Ch 52: The Sorceress In The Tower

For the second time since Calder’s return, Astasha found herself locked away in a cell in a tower in the castle. The first time, she had been heartbroken, scared, uncertain. This time, however, she was resolute. There would be no more tears, no more fear. Deep down, she did fear for Calder, for what would happen to him with what she knew was coming, but she couldn’t let that consume her. She needed to keep her resolve.

When the High Council had arrived, it was obvious that they would immediately bind her magic. Which was why she found herself shocked when they had tried, and failed. How could it be that the greatest sorcerer in the land had been unable to do what Errant had done so easily not so long ago?

But she didn’t dare let on. If they truly believed her powers had been muted, so be it. She would play their game for now, until she figured out what to do.

Calder’s determination had come through their connection in brute force. The wheels had been turning in his head from the moment the council had appeared, and she knew his cunning and its capabilities, so she went to the tower in silence to await for what it was he had planned. If all else failed, she would be stripped of her power, and perhaps Cal would then be free from the bind that kept him from his throne.

But if whatever he had up his sleeve worked, maybe, just maybe, she would see the destruction of all who had played a part in her torment.

All night, she had felt the pull of Calder’s magic, and when the sun rose, she finally understood why. It was like an explosion inside her, when his protective spell had flowed through her very being. She was overwhelmed with love, and passion, with the very memory of their most precious moments, and she felt the wall around her it provided.

Even from afar, he was protecting her. She didn’t quite understand why he wanted her shielded, but she enforced it with her own magic as well as she could, and when the High Council arrived to perform the Authentication Ritual, she knew.

The satisfaction she felt when she saw the Highest Sorcerer’s face, she had to keep from her own. It had worked. Only her and Calder knew about the sacred stone, and now, they just had to get there.

So when Alaric arrived in the tower and asked for the guards and water sorcerer to leave, she knew she had to play her cards well.

He stood before her, tall and proud, yet clearly frustrated, the bars of the cell separating them.

“It seems your charms have extended past that of the Prince. Whatever it is you are trying to hide, you have won the King’s favor in aiding you Sorceress Astasha.”

So Josnen had refused to allow them to read him or Calder.

She remained silent.

He sighed. “My dear, if you truly wish to help your cause, I suggest you give me some answers.”

She knew nothing she would say would stop them from finding her guilty. She had always known that. “It doesn’t matter what I say. I was condemned from the moment I was born into a line of dark sorcerers.”

Alaric raised an eyebrow. “Oh that’s not true. You were condemned from the moment you laid with a royal and thought there would be no consequences for your actions.”

So even with the fate of the kingdom hanging in the balance, it still came down to that. “I knew the consequences.”

“And yet you still saw fit to break the law.”

Astasha shook her head. “You seem to have it in your mind that I did what I did out of malicious intent. That I am the villain in this story.”

There was a brief pause as the Highest Sorcerer studied her before cocking his head to the side. “Did you not seek power when you chose to seduce a prince?”

She had to fight to keep her calm, to keep the fire inside of her from coming to the surface. “You know nothing of me and what I want. All I ever wanted was a simple life. But the Goddess dealt me a very different fate, and while yes, I have made mistakes, I do not and will not feel ashamed for experiencing a love that the likes of you shall never comprehend.” She took a deep breath. “I did not seek out the enemy and ask to be a part of it’s malicious plan. What I have faced I would not wish on even the worst of souls.”

“I see.” She knew he was reading her, trying to pry into her emotions, determine if she was lying, if he had gotten under her skin. “I must say, I applaud you for your daring then. Not a sorcerer in the world would have the nerve to go head to head against an enemy such as a demon with as little training as you. Or perhaps it was pretentiousness.”

“And I applaud your ignorance if you still can’t accept the truth of the motives behind my actions.”

Alaric calmly clasped his hands together in front of him. “Ah, you see sorceress, it is you who now has it in your mind that I am the villain. I am simply doing my job. So, let us do away with these useless charades and get to the point. I do not know how you kept us from your memories, but clearly there is something you are hiding, and it seems the Prince is keen on it staying hidden as well. So tell me, if you are not working with the enemy, what is so important that you would risk the safety of the entire kingdom to keep it secret?”

His voice had been rising slowly and Astasha could see his facade breaking.

It was her turn to cock her head. “What is it you are so afraid of Highest Sorcerer?”

“Is there a child?!”

The words echoed in the tower.

So that’s what this had all been about… of course. An illegitimate child of the throne, born with magic in its veins. The High Council no doubt believed it could find a way to sever the power from the Prince, but if he were to have a son, one conceived of a witch…

To them, the entire thing had been orchestrated by Astasha using her born talents for the dark arts to ensnare Calder and the kingdom into the birth of her own personal weapon, a child that she could wield to rule as she so desired. So consumed with their ideologies they were, that the entire plot that was actually unfolding seemed simply a ploy.

She bowed her head and shook it. “I fear for any child to be born into a world where those as blind and stubborn as you, are the ones to lead it. Your refusal to see the truth will be the destruction of us all.”

Alaric was incensed. “Very well. You have made your choice and left me no other.” He raised himself up, as if standing straighter would make him more powerful. “Sorceress Astasha, you are to be stripped of your powers and banished, tomorrow, at first light.”

Tasha raised her head to meet his eyes. “And maybe once I am dead, Highest Sorcerer Alaric, you will realize, I was never what you thought I was. Maybe then, you will finally see what is really happening, and I pray to the Goddess you do before it’s too late.”

The sorcerer clenched his jaw, no doubt wishing to say more, but instead, turned and stormed from the tower, demanding the guards and water sorcerer return to their posts. No one was to enter, not Errant, not the King, no one.

She could have easily told the Highest Sorcerer exactly what he wanted to hear. She had been meticulous in taking the herbs required to prevent what it was he feared, but she knew it wouldn’t matter. She would have been sentenced to death in the morning regardless. That was the problem with the world as it was; the masters of the old feared change more than the looming threat before them.

Astasha thought about using her magic to escape, to simply disappear into the world never to be found, but it was her against an extremely powerful water sorcerer, not to mention the guards, and she had no clue what lay beyond the doors to the tower. Besides, she knew Cal would never stop looking for her. No, either his plan would work, whatever it was, and they would soon be on their way to the Land of the Dead, or she would face death with the rising sun. The Goddess would decide her fate.

And so, the sorceress in the tower waited. She watched as the shadows grew and the light dimmed. Darkness came, and still, she sat in wait. And then the moment she had been waiting for came.

Calder’s voice whispered in her mind.

‘Be ready, my love. I am coming to free you.’