The Black Orb Read online

  "Your highness." Aria curtsied. "I don't understand."

  "You will...soon. And now would you like to tell us how you saved the baby today?"

  "How do you know?" Had Nysa told the Tsarina?

  "My dear, I know everything that goes on in the forest. I am a vital part of it and it of me." She smiled. "This is a day of rejoicing, Bikkar, and there will be celebrations for days. We have been blessed with a baby. Aria gave the child life when the parents had given her up for dead."

  "What happened?" Bikkar looked to her with curiosity plain on his face.

  Aria recounted the entire tale. She had not saved the baby's life in order to win accolades. It had been an impulsive act and one she was proud paid off. "I'm glad it worked. I wasn't sure it would, but I'd seen the midwife do it once. Sometime they are not gone and if you work on them..."

  Bikkar placed his hand on her shoulder and squeezed gently. "Well, I'm glad you did it. Saving a life is worth more than you can imagine." He turned to face the Tsarina. "Please convey my heartiest congratulations to the parents."

  "I shall do so, indeed." She beamed happily as she looked at Aria. "There are so few of us left... We are one of the oldest races in the world, do you know that?"

  "Yes, I do, your highness."

  "This forest is one of our last dwelling places. If it goes--and it will if the Queen of Azmeer has her way--we will be extinct. And she will certainly turn her attention to us once she has conquered the rest of the world. That is the way of power-hungry tyrants, never content with what they have. There is always desire in their greedy hearts for more. "

  "Why would she want to conquer the Forest of the Dryads?" Aria said.

  The Tsarina smiled sadly. "Our forest is bubbling with magic. We are magic; and the Queen of Azmeer fears that. If she turns the wrath of her Orb on us, she will suck away all our power. Without it, we would die and the trees would die because magic is to us what blood is to humans. It runs within in, defines us and makes us who and what we're."

  "Could you not stop her?"

  "We've been resisting the Orb for so long. That is one of the reasons why Bikkar is still alive. The forest acts as a shield and once Bikkar came within its boundaries, the Orb was unable to reach him. Had he remained outside the protection of the forest, the Orb would have continued to suck the magic out of him, leaving him nothing but an empty shell."

  "I would've died," Bikkar said. "The magic is a part of me. When it started to go, I was in great pain. It felt as if someone was sucking the blood out of my veins. If my magic had all gone, I would died from the sheer lack of strength, or perhaps gone mad with the lack of it."

  Aria gasped. She had not realized the full extent of Bikkar's danger. She shuddered to think what might have happened had she not entered the forest in time.

  "So, why can't you resist the Orb forever like you're doing now?" she said.

  "We could do so for a time," the Tsarina. "But imagine a world where all men are slaves of the Queen of Azmeer. My dryads are trained fighters, but they are not a match for a blood-thirsty army of mortals who have no regard for their own survival. If they stormed the forest and began cutting down trees, our power would diminish as each fell. Dryads are nothing without our trees. If a tree dies, so does its dryad. In time..." She spread her arms wide. "The forest will be lost forever."

  "I'll not let it come to that." The words escaped Aria's mouth before she thought.

  "Won't you?" The Tsarina appeared amused. "Well, only time will tell as to what you will or will not do. In the meantime, I would like to invite you both to the tree-planting ceremony tomorrow at dawn. Nysa will take you. The infant you saved will be named and its tree planted. No mortal has ever witnessed this ceremony, but I think the parents of the new-born will be happy to see you both."

  "Thank you, my lady. You honor us." Bikkar bowed." We'll resume our journey after the ceremony tomorrow. As you know, I'm running out of time."

  The Tsarina inclined her head. "It has been a pleasure to have you with us for this short time. I will make arrangements for your safe passage through the forest and assign guides who will lead you across."

  Aria made a curtsey and led Bikkar out of the hall, holding on to his bony arm.

  "Are you ready to travel then?" she said as they were walking to his room. "A few more days' of rest will do you good."

  "It would." Bikkar sighed and ran a hand over his face. "But there's a need for us to hurry. The Queen of Azmeer has amassed an army, as you've seen yourself. She might start the war anytime after her birthday celebrations. We must stop her in order to prevent terrible bloodshed.

  "If you are able to use the Dragon's Claw to destroy the Black Orb, we will save thousands of lives."

  Aria didn't have an answer to that. Now that she had witnessed the power of the Black Orb, their quest seemed too mighty a task for the two of them alone.

  "Be ready tomorrow. We'll leave after the ceremony." He sat on his cot, his movements slow, as if he were terribly weary.

  It was on the tip of Aria's tongue to ask him what he had been talking to the Tsarina of Dryads about when she walked in on them. And what was the problem he wanted to solve but the Tsarina had refused?

  She kept silent. He would not tell her, she knew. Something was going on here beyond her understanding. And somehow, one day she might find herself in the middle of it. Until that day, perhaps it was best to leave things as they were.

  Chapter Ten

  Dawn broke through the thick tree canopy in a rainbow of sunbeams. Aria walked behind Bikkar and Nysa in the chill air, hugging her cloak close as they penetrated deep into the forest. Dryads joined them from every direction, until they were part of a large procession.

  The sun finally broke through the cover of the trees and lit the moss-covered ground just as the leaders came to a halt. Before them stood the parents of the new baby, the mother cuddling the infant close to her body. Her tiny face was concealed by a thick shawl made of soft material. The dryads formed a circle around the parents and waited in silence.

  Aria stood close to Bikkar, shivering in the chilly wind, curious about what was to happen.

  The circle parted as Tsarina Meliai glided into the center. She was dressed in a soft green gown and her skin glowed in the sunlight.

  "Let the ceremony begin," she commanded in a clear voice.

  Two male dryads came forward and sat in front of the parents. With their hands, they dug two small holes in the ground. The father stepped forward and deposited a round ball in each hole.

  "Let all who're gathered here see that our daughter has been gifted two seeds. Each will form a part of her as she grows." With gentle hands, he covered the seeds with dirt. The mother placed the baby between the two mounds, and the parents stepped back to join the circle.

  The infant remained fast asleep. She was a beautiful child, with a thick cap of dark hair above a small cherubic face. The dryads began to sway, sliding their feet side to side, maintaining the circle. They were chanting something in a language she didn't understand.

  Soon they stopped moving and chanting. The baby opened her eyes and let out a loud piercing wail.

  Tsarina Meliai stepped forward and lifted the baby high for all to see. "We bless this new arrival and wish on her a long and healthy life. May she bring to her parents a lifetime of happiness and may her trees grow tall and strong in the coming years. Let all be known that from henceforth she is to be called ARIA, in honor of the mortal who saved her life."

  Startled, Aria looked at the Queen and at the parents of the baby who were staring at her with identical expression of pride and happiness.

  "Thank you," Aria muttered, not sure what to make of this unexpected honor.

  They bowed deeply. The mother stepped forward to take little Aria from the Tsarina's hands. The rest of the dryads stepped forward to see the baby and to bless her. Aria stood rooted. Humbled, she could only stare at the parents as they allowed the rest of their community to cuddle and touch t
he bundle of joy wailing now with bloodcurdling screams.

  "Come with me." Tsarina Meliai placed a hand on Aria's shoulder and motioned for Bikkar to follow them. Walking slowly, she led them back into the palace and into the great chamber. "I've something to show you before you depart for your journey."

  "Before that, your highness," Aria said, "I wanted to thank you for naming the baby after me. It's indeed an honor."

  "It was the decision of the parents. Time will only tell if it will prove to be a blessing or a curse for the young one." Tsarina Meliai's sharp green eyes stared at Aria. "Although I had initial misgivings about their choice of name, I thought perhaps it was an omen for things to come."

  "Omen?" Aria raised her eyebrows, not liking the implications of that word.

  "You see, Aria, the future is a mass of possibilities. It could be one thing or another. Each choice a person makes affects another person. One thing leads to another. Nothing is fixed until it takes place...and then it is fixed forever."

  "Yes, your highness." Aria had not a clue as to what Tsarina Meliai was taking about but saw no harm in agreeing with her.

  "Do you know what I am talking about?"

  "No, your highness." Despite wanting to make the Tsarina happy with her, Aria did not want to lie.

  "Well, at least, you're honest." The Tsarina wore a soft smile as she lowered her hands. "I think it would be wise to show you one thread of a possibility that exists." She clapped.

  Two dryads brought in a stool and a basin of water. They placed them in front of Bikkar and Aria before bowing and leaving the room.

  Tsarina Meliai gestured toward the basin. "Look carefully, for therein exists a thing that may come to pass."

  "My lady?" Bikkar looked startled.

  The Tsarina silenced with him one raised hand. "She needs to see this. See, Aria. Look deep inside the water."

  Aria bent over the basin as she had seen Bikkar do the day before. The water shimmered, began to roil, almost as if on the edge of boiling. Suddenly it stilled and became smooth, as smooth as a pane of glass, and images appeared on its surface. She bent her head to see clearly and was horrified. An army of massive proportions was invading the Forest of Dryads, hacking down the ancient trees as if they were mere blades of grass.

  The image faded, to be replaced with another. A different army marched across a strange land, killing all who dared oppose them, burning villages and farms, murdering innocents by the thousands.

  The image faded in turn, to be replaced by yet another--this one showed a mundane market place where people walked around in a silent, trancelike state, going about their business with the same tight expression on their faces as she had seen on the face of palace guards at Azmeer. The same expression her brother, Marcus, wore when she had seen him last.

  The last image faded into nothing, leaving the surface of the water smooth and calm.

  Involuntarily, she took a step back. "What was that?"

  "That, Aria, is what may happen if the Queen of Azmeer has her way. She wants complete domination over the known world. We dryads will fall before her, as will all the other kingdoms. She will not stop until all men and women become her slaves, unable to think or act for their own interests. She will not stop until all magical living beings have ceased to exist.

  "This may come to pass if nothing is done to destroy her."

  "But we can stop her," Aria insisted.

  "You may...and you may not. Those are separate possibilities." Tsarina Meliai shook her head, making the flowers of her garland sway gently. "It may come to pass that you succeed in bringing an end to her ambitions. It may come to pass that you fail. We shall never know until you try with all your heart and soul."

  "I will do my best, your highness." Aria shook her head to banish from her mind the remnants of the gruesome images. Seeing the world enslaved to the Queen of Azmeer had been soul-shattering. She vowed not to rest until she succeeded in throttling the plans of the power-hungry monarch. Curse her for enslaving so many, including Aria's brother.

  "I know you will do the best you can, not just for yourself but for everyone else too. For the fate of the world rests on the decisions you may make."

  "I don't understand."

  "You will, one day. And I hope on that day you will have the wisdom and the courage to make the right decision." The Tsarina stared deep into Aria's eyes for a long moment. "Ah, how I wish I possessed the foresight to see what will come to pass. But all I have are the threads of the countless possibilities. Still, it may be that you will be the one to save us all. If you do, tales of your bravery and generosity will be sung in the depths of the forests as long as our trees stand tall and proud."

  "There is one more thing I must show you before you leave and resume your perilous journey." The Tsarina raised her hands once more. "It is something already fixed and cannot be changed. It is the past... Your past, Aria."

  "My past?" Aria stepped closer to the basin of water, as if pulled towards it. The water roiled as before, and an image formed on its surface.

  This time she saw four thatched huts. Beside her, Bikkar gasped as he stepped closer. A woman stepped out of the nearest hut. Aria struggled for breath as, in her early memories, something twisted and sharpened. She knew, without being told, that she was looking into the face of her mother.

  It was a heart-shaped face not unlike hers, with a sharp nose and curly hair. But the eyes, a deep sea-green color, were so much like her brother's. Her mother sat on a log, next to a man lying on the ground, his body twitching as if in pain. She placed her hands on the man's chest and chanted. Her hands glowed, as if she held a beacon of light. Almost immediately the man calmed, relaxed. He sat up and shook his head.

  The watery image faded. Aria moaned and reached out to stop it from disappearing. She wanted to see more.

  Again the water roiled. This time she saw her mother with a different man. Her father, Aria guessed, for he stood as tall and proud as her brother did. He mother and the man bent over the naked body of a little girl and touched her with glowing hands. Copious amount of blood had already seeped into the hard mud floor, oozing from a wound on the child's chest. The glow from her parents' hands increased, until it was as strong as ten lanterns. Soon the wound began to close and the skin to knit together. In moments, the little girl's chest was smooth and unblemished, as if she had never been grievously hurt.

  The image faded and the water became clear and calm.

  "That child lived," the Tsarina said. "Your parents closed the wound and, after days of careful ministration, the child regained her health, even though she had lost a terrible amount of blood. Soon she was frolicking outside with her friends, almost as if nothing had happened."

  "My parents did that?" Aria suppressed the urge to look into the basin again. It was so hard to see her parents and recall their images in her mind. Had she deliberately suppressed all those memories of her parents? It hurt to think of them. "They had the gift of magic?"

  "They were healers." The Tsarina sighed. "They cared for others. Their own needs were simple. Your brother's birth was like a gift from the Goddess for them, for he had the touch also."

  "Marcus?" Aria gasped.

  "He was only a year old when they discovered that he'd the talent, and he was destined to be a healer. They were overjoyed.

  "But then the clouds of evil shifted and the Queen discovered the hiding place of the Black Orb, something she'd been searching for since her accession to the throne. Before, she was ambitious and greedy. Afterward, with the Orb by her side, she was unstoppable. When she unleashed its power on the magic of the land, your parents were among the first casualties."

  "What happened?"

  "You saw how Bikkar was stricken when the Orb turned its attention on him. The same thing happened with your parents and other healers. Not only them, all those who dwelled in the kingdom and carried magical blood in their veins. Bit by bit, the Orb sucked the magic out from them. Some of those who could not bear the loss w
ent mad or committed suicide. Others died because they didn't have the strength to live without the magic. Your parents lived. Weak and scared, they clung to life, fearing for their only son."

  "Marcus?"

  The Queen closed her eyes for a moment. "It was hard for the children born with the gift. Too young to understand what was going on inside their bodies, many of them died. Marcus lived, but was never the same."

  If not for Bikkar's firm grip on her elbow, Aria might have fallen. Her brother Marcus was born a healer. He'd magic in his blood. Had he become simple-minded because he lost his gift when the Black Orb struck? Had he lost some of his personality, his sharpness too?

  She remembered her brother attempting desperately to count coins and add them in his head. He had never been able to do so. He had struggled with reading and writing skills, had always been slow, as far as she could recall. Had there been a time when he was capable of doing all that and more?

  Were his chances for a dignified life snatched away from him when the Queen of Azmeer unleashed the Black Orb's power on innocent people?

  Aria shook her head, trying to clear her thoughts. "What happened to my parents?"

  "You were born when your brother was five years of age. For a while, your parents struggled on, taking on odd jobs and working as day laborers wherever they could." The Tsarina's voice held a sad note as she recounted Aria's past. Her gaze, however, remained steady. "Weak from the loss of their magic, they could not survive for long. They had no skills, others than those stolen from them.

  "Ironically, your father succumbed to plague. Your mother endured for a few more years, but was unable to care for you children. Her heart and spirit broken, she could not avoid her own slow journey into the jaws of death. One night her poor heart stopped beating. You and your brother were given into the care of the nearby orphanage by the neighbors who discovered her cold body the next morning."