The Prophecy (The Goddess Game Book 1)

Chapter 11

Now it was Osric's turn to stay silent. He didn't want to tell Amelia about his theory. If it caused her half as much stress as it caused him, it might be worth keeping it to himself. But there was no one else he could talk to, aside from his parents and he wasn't speaking to them at the moment. Even if he were speaking to them, he knew what they would say—the same thing they always said, "Marry Amelia and create a savior!"

He didn't realize he was scowling until Amelia said, "That bad, huh?"

He attempted to wipe his face clean of any emotions and said, "Maybe. I'm not sure yet."

Not for the first time today, he was struck by the fact that Amelia was showing interest in him. Sure, that interest was concern, but it was something. She had been snarky and rude since they first reconnected, but today was different. It was...easier. His mind tried to piece together an answer as to what had changed.

"Listen, if it's Guard related and you're not supposed to tell anyone, then don't worry about it. We can just walk."

"It's not that," he admitted. "I am curious though, why do you care?"

She stopped abruptly and turned to him, her eyes wide, "I don't care!"

Ah, there she is, defensive Amelia, he thought wryly. He gave a small shake of his head and, wanting to put distance between them, continued walking.

She ran to catch up, "I don't care. It's just that I was afraid the dark cloud over your head was going to rain all over my research and ruin my hard work."

"Fine, you don't care," he said, resigned. "But I'll tell you anyway." Maybe it was petty of him, but at this moment, he no longer cared about protecting her feelings. He needed to share this with someone, to get a second opinion, and unfortunately, she was the only one who could know.

Osric tried to take a deep breath, but it was difficult to get the air in when there was so much weight on his chest and shoulders. "Things have been off in the mist. In parts of the eastern border, guards have reported finding circles of burnt grass. There have been other reports of trees that look as though they have decayed from the inside out which is not that uncommon, but the guards say that the trees were healthy days before."

Rubbing the back of his neck, Osric sighed. When his commander had brought him into his office this morning to tell him what was happening, he confided that he suspects humans in a town 50 miles away. He believes that they are trying to get through the mist's barrier, but Osric and his team found no traces of disruption outside the mist. There was no indication that anyone had traveled to or from the mist on the eastern border for at least 10 miles. They planned on spending the next few days searching the burnt areas for clues as to who could have done this and why.

"How could a fire be started in the mist?" Amelia asked. "Is that even possible, with so much water in the air?"

"We didn't think it was possible," he admitted. "It's not a secret that the mist is not the best place for fire mages. They can't use many of their powers. That makes maneuvering around a challenge for them. We don't know how the fires were started or why." The fact that a normal fire isn't possible to light in the mist is one of the reasons Osric rejected the idea that it could be humans. Someone would need a lot of power to cause anything to burn in the mist.

"I've always wondered how you all got around in the mist. Jeremy's a fire mage, so he must not go in the mist all that often."

Osric felt his body tense at Jeremy's name. There was another thorn in his side. Ever since their deal started, Jeremy had been finding excuses to find Osric and send him threatening stares. Funny how you never notice a person until you decide that you really can't stand them. Then they seem to be everywhere.