Crimson Darkness Trilogy: Book 2 - Redemption

Chapter 5: The Secrets We've Been Told

Chapter 5: The Secrets We've Been Told

Coleske found the Aurum king Urg to be quite a delightful man. Though his appearance made him seem cocky and indifferent, once he got to know him better, he found he enjoyed his company. He had insisted on personally sending the warning to the mysterious friends he had in the outside world who would try and help Lisbon. Coleske had been grateful at the kind gesture, but later on could not help wonder if the king was only being helpful because he thought Coleske had some destiny to fulfill. 

If this was true, had he contacted the High Order's Oracle about it as his father had promised to do so many years ago? He could not be sure. The one thing he knew was that something had not seemed quite right in the palace since he arrived. The guards had summoned him early in the morning for his mental training and two hours later, he had still not seen a soul. He was waiting; seated on the carpet in the same meditation room he had seen Mira for the past week. She was impressed with how he quickly grasped her lessons and encouraged him to ask questions if he wasn't sure of something. 

The whole point of this part of the training was to be able to balance human desires with those of the beast. But even she was nowhere to be seen. He let out a sigh and tapped his hands on the base of his feet in a random rhythm. The two large doors opened and the king, the Old Master and Mira came in sight. The king's brow was furrowed and his gaze distant. He made his way to where he and the Old Master usually sat and turned his attention to Coleske.

"Good morning Coleske. You may rise," he said his voice weary.

Coleske raised his head from the carpet where he had been bowing and resumed sitting on the carpet. "Thank you Your Majesty and good morning to you too."

"I apologize for our late arrival but, urgent business had to be taken care of." He paused and regarded Coleske for a moment. "I have instructed Mira today after your lessons to inform you about certain things. I believe a lot is going to change around here and very soon."

"Of course Your Majesty," Coleske nodded. He turned to face Mira who as usual was sitting across him. They smiled at each other briefly and then closed their eyes.

~Mira?

~Coleske, I am here. You are almost done with your mental training. Today I will attempt to test your balance. If all goes well, you can begin the first half of your physical training in the afternoon. It is also conducted mentally, but this time the Old Master will join us. Shall we begin?

~Yes, I'm ready.

Suddenly there images in his head he could not understand, they came at him fast, but then began to slow. He felt something trickle into him at that moment and he stiffened. His body felt uncomfortable like tiny currents of electricity were pulsing through his veins.

~Relax

He heard Mira's voice in his mind.

~I have sent you essence of my magic so you can get an idea of what it feels like to be a dragon. Although I am not a dragon, I can will my magic into a person and turn them into one for a moment. However, the amount of magic I sent into you is not enough for that. Full magic would send your body into shock, and without proper training you would lose control and be unable to change back into a human, unless you were bound by a magic spell like Kiyohime. "

The first image appeared was a stack of gold. Glittering towers of it came into view. Crowns, bracelets, plates, goblets and even simple bars of it were a shiny mess in a large room. He frowned. He did not feel anything at all. 

Just as he was about to tell Mira, he felt a sudden desire flare from within him. It was so strong and so dark. He had the same feeling a predator would before attacking its prey he guessed. He did not trust himself to speak as he felt the longing growing intense. It was incredible yet at the same time frightening. He knew for a fact that he would not hesitate to kill anything or anyone that stood in his way if he wanted to get that gold. The image quickly disappeared and he realized he was breathing heavily.