Fire of the Inquisitor

Lucia chewed on a piece of bark as she tried to keep up with Sable’s pace. If she didn’t know better he was trying to lose her, desperate to finish his mission alone. The inquisitor was so completely devoted to his queen he refused to eat anything, but the smallest meal. However, Lucia felt like she was finally starting to connect with him a little, though someone observing them probably wouldn’t be able to recognize that at the moment.

They had been traveling in silence for quite some time now. Lucia knew that Sable was never going to initiate a conversation by his own accord, so that left the task up to her. Normally, Lucia was as skilled as anyone at the art of discourse, but with Sable, she could not think of a way to start a conversation that didn’t involve her asking him a bunch of questions. She would have loved to learn more about his culture, his family, and his inhuman abilities, but she got the feeling he did not like to talk about it. Even questions about his plans once he found his dragon was only met with vague answers.

But by the emperor’s receding hairline was she getting tired of the silence.

So, against her better judgement she started with a question. “So, Sable how far is this Nightshade palace?”

“It’s the Palace of Nightshade,” Sable said, without interrupting his pace. “And I doubt your people use the same standards of measurement as our own.”

Lucia could see his point, but she decided to press the matter. “Is it farther or closer than the ice caves were from the top of the plateau?”

Sable looked back as if to say something but then turned around again. Lucia could tell by the way he dropped his head that he was thinking about the question.

“Farther,” he said at last.

Lucia smiled. “Is it twice the distance from the caves to the top of the plateau?”

Sable did another double take but was faster to answer this time. “Farther.”

“What about three times?” she asked quickly.

She could have sworn he sighed. “I don’t know.”

Yes, she wasn’t definitely starting to wear him down.

Lucia was thinking of another innocuous thing to ask him when she suddenly ran into something hard. She jumped when she realized that it was the blue cloaked back of Sable. He was holding out his hand, obviously wanting her to hold back, but she stepped to his side so she could see what he was doing. The inquisitor was staring into the distance, but she couldn’t see anything unusual in this barren land other than a pile of boulders.

“What is it?” she whispered. “The Dragon?”

He shook his head. “There is too much light here.”

Lucia couldn’t believe she hadn’t even noticed until now, but he was right. It wasn’t as bright as home or where Sable was from, but she had no difficulty seeing her surroundings for the first time since she entered the Fields of Shadow. She could have sworn she could even see the wall that surrounded Orchid in the horizon sometimes. Lucia wanted to ask Sable if they were even in the fields anymore, but whatever he saw had his undivided attention.

“She we go around?” she said.

“I don’t know,” he answered.

Lucia was getting worried. Anything that could give the inquisitor pause must be really serious. She felt her hand slip down to the hilt of her sword.

“Well, are you going to stand there all day or are you going to come introduce yourself?”

Lucia jumped and turned around, swearing that she heard the young voice coming from next to her ear, as if a relative had snuck up on her, but there was no one there. When she turned around she saw that Sable had not moved from where he was standing. She was about to ask him what was going on when she finally saw what he was looking at.

It was a girl. She was sitting on the rocks holding a strange rounded object at the end of a pole. It was the same rusted color as the rocks she sat upon, and what must have hidden her from Lucia sight before. The girl’s robes were also this color and unlike anything Lucia had ever seen, decorated with images of flowers and adorned with smaller pieces of fabric, but it wasn’t the robes or the object the girl was holding that was the most outstanding feature about the sight. It was the fact the girl seemed completely human.

Her skin was lighter than anyone in the legion and her hair was an unusual shade of red, but she looked as human as Lucia. Aside from their gray skin the goths of this world looked similar to humans from a distance, at least the woman, she had yet to see Sable without his mask, but she assumed there couldn’t be much difference. It was only when you got close to queens people that you noticed their noses and ears were merely slits and their eyes almost square in shape. This girl could not be mistaken for one of them.

“Sable who is she?” Lucia asked.

He didn’t answer.

“I guess you have decided to just to stand there,” the girl said. Though she wasn’t that far away, Lucia couldn’t understand how her voice was so clear without shouting. “I would come to you, but alas my wounds would not allow me to.”

“Sable I think we should at least hear her out.” Lucia desperately wanted to know more about the mysterious girl.

Sable started to walk toward the girl, but at a snail’s pace. “Stay alert,” he said, “she is dangerous.”

Lucia couldn’t see how a little girl could be dangerous, but she would do as Sable commanded. When he must have sensed that they were safe for now, the inquisitor picked up his pace and approached the girl only slightly faster than a stalking cat. Lucia was starting to become alarmed by his fear but wished he would just get it over with.

When they finally arrived at the pile of rocks the girl introduced herself. “Greetings brave warrior I am Palm of silence.”

“I am my lady’s Inquisitor,” Sable said.

“I know who you are Sable, I have admired your bravery,” the girl said with a smile. “And who is this?” She motioned to Lucia. “Judging by her unattractiveness and everything she is carrying I would guess she is your servant.”

Lucia gritted her teeth. “I am not his servant.”

The girl laughed. “Certainly you are not his lover.”

“How did you know who I am?” Sable interrupted.

The girl smiled and twirled the object she was holding. “I have been watching you since you left my sister’s home, my dear.”

“Then you would know I helped him defeat that basilisk.” Couldn’t help but interrupt.

“Please, you were sobbing like a frightened child,” the girl mocked.

“Funny some like you calling me a child.” Lucia was nearly spitting. “You disrespectful little nat.”

Again Sable was forced to interrupt. “If you have been watching us that long, then you know that I cannot delay my mission any longer.”

Again she met Sable with a bright smile. “Your devotion to your queen is beyond compare Sable.” She twirled the rounded object again in an almost hypnotic fashion. “If only I had someone like you, but alas I can only beg for your assistance.”

“I’m sorry,” Sable looked away, “but we cannot diverge from our path.”

“But our paths are not so different,” the girl said. She surprised Lucia by turning to her and flashing her a smile, though it didn’t seem as warm as the ones Sable had been receiving. “And I can help both of you find what you are looking for.”

A chill ran up Lucia’s spine, she got the feeling that the girl wasn’t talking about a dragon and some miracle herb. Lucia turned to Sable, hoping that he would turn her down again.

Sable disappointed her. “You know where the witch is and her dragon?”

The girl laughed. “I don’t think you have to worry about my sister any longer,” her grin was sinister, “she’s lost most of her power.”

Sable actually took a step closer. “But the dragon?”

“Her son?” The girl brushed the hair out of her eyes. “Yes, he is still around and at the palace, I might be able to summon him.”

“What would you have us do?” Sable asked.

“Nothing worthy of your talents my dear.” The girl lifted her leg and pulled up her robe so they could see her ankle. “You see on my way home I sprained my ankle quite harshly.”

“And you want Sable to carry you,” Lucia said.

“He is more than strong enough,” the girl smiled and pointed at the object she was holding, “and look the palace is not so far away.”

Lucia stared in disbelief at the large pyramid shaped building standing in the far distance. There was no way that it was there a moment ago, but if Sable had thought the same thing he wasn’t expressing it. Instead, he did something that totally surprised the human soldier and knelt in front of the girl.

“I accept your terms,” he said.

So, disturbed by what she saw, Lucia reached for his arm and dragged him to his feet so she could talk to him. Although she doubted they could truly talk without the girl knowing what they were saying, she had Sable turn his back on the girl and whispered to him. “Are you sure about this?”

“We are going to the same destination,” he said.

“I know,” Lucia peeked over her shoulder, only to see the girl flash her an unsettling smile, “but can we really trust her?”

“Absolutely not,” Sable said.

“Then why are you going along with this?”

Sable looked toward the palace before answering. “Because I’m an inquisitor, it’s my job to discover the truth.”

It was a simple answer. It was a rational answer, but it didn’t make Lucia feel any better about his decision.