The Nine Bishops

Everything happened in an instant. The fighting was over. Axel and Nik were lying on the ground not far from Mika, surrounded by smoldering remnants of their battle. All was quiet except for the crackle of lingering flames. Mika felt the intensity of the heat and knew she didn’t have much time to get to Nik before he was consumed by fire. She wasn’t even sure if he was alive. She could no longer hear his cries of agony.

The collar that had bound her for so long was somehow shattered. Discovering that she could finally move again, Mika didn’t hesitate. She ran towards Nik as fast as she could, dodging the fires to reach him.

Mika felt a wave of tears run uncontrollably down her face. The power that others might have seen signified in the royal seal painted on her eyes was the last thing she was concerned about.

Soon enough, she could see that Nik was gone. His whole body had been scorched, burns had rendered his face unrecognizable, and he was no longer breathing. Realizing he was gone brought her unbearable pain.

Nik had saved her life, and the last thing he’d said was that he loved her. Mika had heard the words come from the bottom of his heart and knew they were true. She had so much left to say to him. She knew in her heart that she loved him, too, but now he was gone. He had sacrificed his own life so Mika could have another chance.

Mika knew now that she had forfeited her best chance to make things right in Seemos; all she had needed to do was be patient, but she had let her emotions take her in the throne room. Even Nik’s apparent betrayal was meant to protect her; everything he had done for her was because he loved her, and shared her goals. Mika wished she had told him how she felt about him, but now it was too late.

She laid her head on Nik’s burned body and wept deeply. Only later would she understand only that the tears from her royal eyes were emitting a powerful magic.

In a flash, she saw Nik’s whole life through his own eyes.

And then, what felt like a moment later, she came back to her own consciousness, with the sense that she was being awakened by someone calling Nik’s name.

She was still kneeling next to Nik.

But he was no longer burned. Nor was he dead. In fact, he was gazing at her.

She rubbed her eyes, still full of tears. She wasn’t imagining this! Nik’s yellow eyes were full of life and looking back at her.

From the expression on his face, Mika suspected he knew she had just gazed into his past.

She should have felt immense joy on having revived him so miraculously. But her heart was filled with sadness. She had seen Nik’s past, and it was full of pain—so much pain that it made Mika’s life seem a joy in comparison. She knew everything about him: his childhood, his family, and his fond memories of them. All of that was overshadowed by the painful memories of what it took for him to become a Bishop. She knew why he loved her amid all his suffering.

Strangely, she also knew that, now, his magic was gone.

Everything he had strived and suffered for was gone, and Mika had taken it away from him. In her burst of emotion, she had emitted the unique Arcane power Micah had spoken of. While that power had ultimately stopped Axel, it had dire consequences for Nik.

“I’m sorry,” she said, the tears flowing again, this time in shame.

“For what?”

“I don’t know how, but I took your magic. You sacrificed so much to have it, and now it’s gone.”

Nik sat up slowly and looked deeply into Mika’s eyes. He brushed away the tears rolling down her cheeks and said, “That’s the best gift anyone could have ever given me.”

He moved his face closer to Mika. She met him halfway and the two shared a long-awaited kiss. Everything else was forgotten as they focused on the power of that moment.

When the kiss ended, Nik stood up as though he’d never been hurt. He offered Mika a hand up, which she graciously accepted. Mika didn’t understand how he could so easily reconcile himself to losing his magic. There was obviously something about Nik she couldn’t understand merely by flashing through his memories.

“What happened to Axel?” Nik asked, observing Bishop Flame’s limp body a short distance away.

“I don’t know, but I imagine the same thing that happened to you,” she said, wondering why Nik even cared.

As they walked closer, they could see Axel was unconscious, though his body was unmarked by the battle.

“He doesn’t have his magic, either,” Mika said with certainty, not sure of how she knew.

“That’s going to make things easy, then,” Nik said. He picked up the unknowing Axel and flung him over his shoulder.

“What are you doing?” Mika exclaimed.

“I’m taking him with us,” Nik said, as though it was obvious.

“Why would you take him? He just tried to kill both of us, and if I remember correctly he technically succeeded.”

“Well, the way I see it, we have a valuable hostage with us. And if what you say is true, then we have nothing to worry about, since I have you to protect me,” he said with a big smile and closed eyes.

“This isn’t funny,” Mika responded.

Nik’s smile vanished. “We can’t afford for him to be taken back. He is too powerful, and he’s the only one who knows which direction we’re headed. The king has no dominion over the West; he won’t know where we are unless he finds us. He might not have his magic now, but that doesn’t mean your brother won’t just give it back to him.”

Mika was stunned. She hadn’t thought of that as an option. She had forgotten her brother had the power to create magic, while she had the power to erase it. If she were ever to face Micah, she would have to learn how to control her Arcane ability.

Out of long habit she went to finger the necklace she had received from Sam so long ago—and gasped, her hand to her collarbone. Her neck was bare. It must have been vaporized along with the rock collar when my Arcane power came out, she thought.

She knew what this meant: She was no longer hidden under the veil of mage. And she was instantly recognizable now, everywhere in Seemos, thanks to winning the Selection of Sixteen. It would have been so much better to be unknown right now, Mika thought.

Mika knew that after her escape, contracts would offer a huge reward for any information on her whereabouts. Of that, she was certain. Micah would stop at nothing to capture her, and it was only a matter of time until he sent the rest of the Bishops after her.

“You know what this means, right?” Nik asked, as though reading her mind.

Mika nodded her head.

“There is no turning back, from here on out. But I want you to know one thing for sure.”

Mika raised her eyebrows.

“We are in it together. I won’t leave your side anymore.”

Mika could hear the sincerity in his voice. Mika wasn’t going to let him give up his life again for her sake. I will protect him, she vowed to herself.

In that moment, she decided to look towards the future. She wasn’t ready to take the throne now, but she would be ready the next time she saw Micah.

Mika wanted a world of equality and fair treatment for all, not the world Micah had envisioned. She knew she was the only one who had the power to make that dream a reality.

“I’m ready to go when you are,” she said, her eyes already set on the path ahead.

“Then walk with me,” Nik said, bowing as low as he could with the limp Axel on his shoulder.

“You never told me where we were going,” Mika said as they walked. It was growing dark. The sun was setting in the east, but they were walking in the opposite direction towards the dark and unfamiliar.

Why are we going westward, anyway? she wondered.

Nik, who was a pace or two ahead, turned back to her and smiled as he answered her unspoken thought.

“The rebellion.”

The Stranger

The storyteller sighed and yawned. “We’re properly snowed-in now,” the storyteller said, glancing out the window. “Time for supper and then bed.”

“You can’t stop there!” Inessa said, throwing her hands in the air.

“Actually, I can and I will. I need to take a break,” the storyteller replied, sighing again at Inessa’s outrage.

“But I need to know what happens!”

“And you will, little one. Just be patient. I can resume tomorrow. How does that sound?”

“That sounds awful.” Inessa groaned dramatically.

The storyteller rose chair next to the fire. “Come now, let’s go whip up something for us to eat. It will help keep us warm. I promise we will pick up the story right where I left off.”

“Okay fine!” Inessa said, scrambling to obey—to ensure the storyteller would tell her the rest, eventually.

Outside the wind howled again, and the blizzard raged on. Unseen by the girl and the storyteller, a traveler who had been plodding through the snowy forest for days spotted the warm light glowing through the window of the lodge and drew closer.

When the stranger arrived, Inessa would be sure to hear the rest of the story.