C S Brown

Elsbeth's fiery gaze met the eyes of the two dragons without flinching. Sitting to her right, his majesty Tian Unseer watched her with nervous fascination. On her other side, Torg sat quietly, waiting for someone else to speak first.

 

The three Heroes sat on one side of the oversized table in the Annishere pavilion. Across the table, Déa of Tauris Reach and Déa of Drake Valley sat side by side. Behind them, outside on the parade field, the great form of Orator rested in the sparse grass. Tian turned to face the two Déa. "Thank you all for coming. I know that I have some questions, and I thought we might ask them together."

 

Elsbeth fumed. "I'm getting tired of the answers we receive. I am happy enough to pack up and go home. I will leave the hero business to you and Torg."

 

Tian pursed his lips. "That is certainly one possibility."

 

"I'm thinking it is more than a possibility. I haven't been able to come up with a good reason to stay."

 

Torg looked her. "Just because Tian and I have also been told we are the Hero of Destiny doesn't mean you are not. Perhaps if you leave, the Dark wins."

 

Elsbeth stiffened, glared at him for a few seconds, then visibly deflated. "The prophecies of Laitia do mention that I have a choice. I can quit and live out the rest of my life in peace. But if I do–and if I really am the Hero–the Dark will eventually destroy the world."

 

Tian turned to look directly at the Déa. His eyes were flinty, his lips drawn tight. "I want to know why there are three of us sitting here when there is only supposed to be one Hero of Destiny."

 

Déa of Tauris Reach shifted uncomfortably. "Sire, I apologize. We searched the world for the Hero, but prophecies are not always as clear as we would like. We are convinced that one of you is the prophesied one but don't know which of you it is."

 

"And you did not think you should inform us of this?"

 

"With all due respect, it was hard enough getting you to muster your troops. Would you be here now if you thought someone else was the Hero?"

 

Tian thought for a moment. "I think I would, but I might have waited. I doubt I would have responded as quickly."

 

"Exactly. We need you here. If the Hero of Destiny is not here to confront the Smoke without Ash, then all else is a lost cause. Because you might be him, we could not afford to take the chance."

 

Elsbeth shot a withering look at the Déa of Drake Valley. "If you are unsure, how can we trust that any one of us is the Hero? The world is a big place. Your savior might be washing dishes in some saloon right now."

 

"Most unlikely. We searched everywhere, and only you three were found. Truthfully, we were surprised to find more than one, so we were careful in our search."

 

Torg leaned forward on his elbows. "I am wondering. How exactly do you check? Orator told me he could smell that I was the Hero."

 

"Not exactly, Hero." Though there was no sound, the memory of Orator's voice came unbidden to mind. "I said that I could taste it in the air around you. This is as close as I can describe the sensation, as you lack the sensory perception necessary to detect magical ability in others."

 

Tian sat bolt upright. "Magical ability? What are you talking about?"

 

"All three of you have magic talent."

 

Tian scoffed. "If I were a magician, do you think I would have spent my life as a soldier? I would have sat in some luxurious court telling fortunes to noble ladies with more gold than sense."

 

Déa of Tauris Reach smiled enigmatically. "Of course you have magical talent, Tian. Why do you think you have survived so many wars? What do you think makes you such a good swordsman and a master tactician?"

 

Tian frowned. "I have been wielding a sword almost as long as I can remember. I always thought I was lucky."

 

"I have watched you on the practice field defeat five veteran swordsmen without taking a single blow. You appear to counter your opponent's attacks before they even happen. On the battlefield, you always manage to choose the best tactics, placing troops as if you knew your enemy's mind. And in a way, you do. I was unsure of the exact nature of your talent until you dreamed of Wyrmsteep."

 

Tian's eyes widened at the reference. "Are you saying that my dreams are magical?"

 

"I believe that you have the gift of prescience."

 

Tian settled back into his chair, his face descending into a void of expression.

 

"Maybe Tian can see the future, but there is nothing magical about me," Torg insisted.

 

Orator's reply appeared in Tian's memories. "Look carefully before you dismiss your talent. As an apprentice minesmith, you eclipsed your master. Think back on how many times you located rich veins of minerals hidden in the rock that others had missed, how you naturally knew when an extra support or brace was needed, or when to avoid an unstable area. Your magic is rooted in the knowledge of the Earth itself."

 

Torg sat silently for a second. "How do you know this? Have you been watching me for the last four years?"

 

"No, I only recently met you."

 

"Yet you seem to know all about my life."

 

"I did not see, but the rock remembers."

 

Before Torg could frame a follow-up question, Déa of Drake Valley jumped in, "And yours, My Lady, is obvious. You can make dragonsteel."

 

Elsbeth's head snapped up to stare down the Déa. "That isn't magic, just an accidental discovery."

 

"Are you sure about that?"

 

Elsbeth paused. "Well… Finch can make dragonsteel as well as I can."

 

"When working with you."

 

Elsbeth stopped, silently contemplating the assertion.

 

After a few seconds, Tian spoke, "You claim we all have magic talents, but there are wizards and witches living throughout the land. By this definition, any one of them could be the Hero. Why us?"

 

Déa of Tauris Reach responded, "It is true that there are some few who have learned the science of manipulating magical energy. And there are a great many who have learned the arts of deceit and trickery. But natural magical talent in humans is exceedingly rare, so rare in fact that we were shocked to learn that more than one of you existed."

 

Elsbeth leaned forward, her eyes drilling into those of the dragons. "You say you don't know which one of us is the Hero. Don't you think it's time you figured it out? We are about to go to war with the Dark."

 

"Does it matter?" Heads swiveled to look at Torg.

 

Torg's voice lowered to a severe timbre. "We are here. And we need to fight the Dark because it is coming regardless of what we say. So does it really matter which one of us is the Hero of prophecy?"

 

Els spat incredulously, "Of course it matters."

 

"Why?"

 

A pause in the conversation sat heavily atop them as they contemplated the question.

 

Tian broke the silence, "Perhaps you are right. We have been worried about who is the Hero of Destiny, when what matters is what we are here to do. The war is upon us, and we need to work together. But that would be true even if we knew which of us were the Hero. Who is destined to fight the final battle is unimportant. Time will tell."

 

Déa of Drake Valley put on a beatific smile. "How wise the young man is. We must all work together, putting aside our doubts."

 

Tian leaned forward and put his palms face down on the table in front of him. "We must work together. Us, the Heroes. For all your posturing, nothing I have read in any prophecy suggests that dragons need be anything more than fodder for the battlefield. You have toyed with us long enough, and I no longer have much faith in your words. If you want me to trust you, you will have to earn it. For now, you are dismissed."

 

Déa of Drake Valley looked into Tian's eyes and shivered. She recognized a man who had been pushed to his limit.