Shadow Dagger Ch. 20

Jon raced inside and stopped. Magi bodies littered the ground all around him. And in the middle of all that carnage stood Marcus. He was standing in front of the Emporium and gesturing with his hands. Magi were flying out of windows and falling to the earth.

Marcus was laughing. There were no hiding spots for Magi when a True-born came calling.

"Marcus!" Jon screamed.

Marcus twitched. He lowered his hands slowly and turned toward Jon. He cocked his head sideways to stare at him. The golden light dimmed from his eyes. His eyes were completely colorless.

"No, Marcus," Jon said softly. He had seen eyes like that far too often in another lifetime. He tightened his grip on the dagger.

"Have you come to witness the birth of a god?" Marcus asked.

"There already was a birth today," Jon replied.

Marcus scowled. "Yes, that child. I will deal with it shortly. There is no room for another god in this world."

"You sound just like them," Jon said sadly. "Just like the True-born we had to destroy."

Marcus shrugged. "They were weak. I am not. I was a chosen one of the God. An oracle. I will succeed where they failed."

"Then you will have to kill me," Jon said, as he raised his arms in the air.

Marcus laughed. "Do you think this pains me? I will finally be rid of you."

"Then do it," Jon said, seriously. He stuck his chest out. "Kill me. Kill the only family you have. Kill the only person who ever loved you, who ever looked out for you. Kill your brother."

Marcus growled. "Your arrogance offends me, little child. You were not the world to me."

"You were to me," Jon said quietly. He lowered his arms. "I wouldn't have made it this long without you. You sustain me, my brother. You and your faith. It carried me to this point. I love you. I love you."

Marcus twitched his head sideways. "Your petty mortal concerns do not affect me. I am above them. I am perfect."

Jon stepped closer to him. "Then why do you hesitate? Kill me and be done with it. Claim this world for your own."

Golden light filled Marcus' eyes. He pointed his finger at Jon. "Do not tempt fate, mortal. I will be gracious and allow you to leave. Push me and you die."

Jon took another step further. "I'm not leaving. And I don't care about death. I will gladly die if I have to live in a world without my brother. You kept the faith, Marcus. We have been led here, to this moment. Just keep it a little while longer."

The muscles in Marcus' face spasmed. He growled and took a threatening step toward Jon. "Be gone from here! This is your last chance."

Jon stopped in front of Marcus. "Okay, I will leave. Or you can kill me. Just tell me you love me. Just say those words and I will do whatever you want."

Marcus visibly struggled to open his mouth. "Jon...leave! Go! Before you die!"

"I will die for you," Jon replied sadly. "For you, I would gladly die. Before I do, just tell me you love me. If the words mean nothing, then just say them. I love you, Marcus. Do you love me?"

The golden light intensified in Marcus' eyes. He stepped toward Jon and raised his hand. Jon closed his eyes and opened his arms.

"I'm ready," he whispered.

"I love you, you damn fool," Marcus rasped.

Jon opened his eyes and stared into Marcus' soft blue eyes. "Welcome back."

"Not for much longer. I can't control it anymore, Jon. It's a struggle just to talk to you like this."

Jon felt fear clench his heart. "What are you saying?"

Marcus smiled at him sadly. "It has to end here, Jon. I have one more role to fulfill."

Jon shook his head. "No! No more fulfilling the God's orders."

"I have to keep the faith, right Jon? I was told, when the time came, to ask you to make one more sacrifice. I tried to deny it, because I couldn't place that burden on you. But it's time. It has to be done."

Jon shook Marcus by the shoulders. "No more sacrifices! Please, just come back with me. See Evelyn's new child! See the future we fought so hard for."

Marcus smiled, though his eyes look strained. "I don't have much time here, Jon. This needs to end now. You know that rune on the bottom of your Shadow Dagger? The one you never figured out?"

"I don't care about that!" Jon yelled, the fear squeezing his heart even more.

Marcus laid his hand on Jon's shoulder. "I can't hold it back any longer. Listen to me. The reason you've never been able to access the magic in your dagger isn't because it's your son's soul and not your own. It's because your dagger is incomplete."

Jon shook his head, trying to deny the sudden realization of what Marcus was talking about. The image of Reynar's dagger popped into his mind.

"No," Jon whispered, brokenly. He wished his heart would stop beating, stop feeling.

"Yes," Marcus replied, softly. "Your dagger was meant to contain more power. My power, Jon. The rune on the bottom of the dagger is meant to contain my power."

"Why?" Jon asked, his voice cracking. "I don't want that power."

Marcus winced and closed his eyes. When he opened them, they were pinched in pain. "It's not permanent. The power will only last for a short while. Enough time to accomplish one task. To right one wrong."

"No," Jon said, shaking his head fiercely. "I won't do it. I can't do it."

"There's no choice," Marcus replied. "Hurry, Jon. I'm slipping and I won't come back again."

Jon looked up at him, pleading with his eyes. "You said we always have a choice."

Marcus grabbed Jon's hand, the hand that held the dagger. "Not in this, big brother. I'm making the choice for you."

And just like Jon's son did once before, Marcus forced the hand holding the dagger into his chest. Jon couldn't have stopped it. There was no stopping fate.

Marcus held on tight to Jon's hand. Instead of blood, pure golden light poured out of the wound. The runes on the dagger lit up. The rune on the bottom of the handle glowed like the sun.

"I love you," Marcus said, as golden light surrounded him.

"I love you," Jon said, his heart breaking unbearably.

Marcus continued to smile as golden light poured all around him. His smiling face disappeared in the fierce glow of the sun.

Jon closed his eyes and felt the power enter the dagger. He knew Marcus' body was gone, absorbed into the dagger.

Jon opened his eyes and golden light poured out. The power rushed through his veins like liquid gold. Marcus' essence entered his body and became one with him.

In that moment, Jon understood it all. Everything clicked into place. Everything made sense. The Order of the 12 and the God's power. The Order's disappearance. The War of the Gods. The creation of the Magi Victus. Jon's dagger. His sacrifices.

He saw each step of the God's plan and hecomprehended. He knew each step was put into place on purpose. Marcus' power continued to rush through him and lifted him into another plane of existence.

Everything around him was made up of golden runes, the language of creation. The clouds in the sky. The trees. The wind. The ground beneath his feet. This is how the True-born saw the world. Everything was connected. Everything was one. Everything was complete.

Knowledge and understanding continued to flow through him. He basked in the power. He was a god. He saw. He knew. He understood.

And with understanding, he knew what he was meant to do. He was to right a wrong. Reality itself was broken. It had been tampered with. The arrogance of that action nearly made him vomit. It was against the very fabric of nature!

Reality itself was made up of runes. It existed in everything. Jon couldn't point his finger to a specific place and say, "There, that's where reality is warped." But he knew. He understood.

The understanding hadn't come from Marcus. It came from his son. His son's essence was also in the dagger. His son had been present when Jon's brethren banded together and warped reality. Warped it for their own sick purposes.

This is what they changed, a voice whispered in his head. And he saw. He saw how they childish thought to change reality. But in order to change it, he would need a focus. That's how they accomplished it.

They had used his own son's baby as the focus.

He saw it clearly in his mind. His son, Mathus, struggled to get away from his guards. Jon's brethren laughed as they placed Mathus' own baby son on a stone slab. His baby, a baby he had with his non-Magi wife. Mathus did want Jon couldn't do. He followed the god's will and married a non-Magi.

The Magi flowed their spell through the baby. They wanted to twist reality, to make it so that Magi could not reproduce with non-Magi. In their childish conceit, they thought to change that which the God made.

They didn't realize their mistake. But they were satisfied with the results. Babies born from that union were born wrong. They couldn't use magic. But Jon saw and understood. It was meant to happen. The Magi created their own enemies.

Because they used a male child as a focus, only male children could be born from the union of Magi and non-Magi. They didn't understand as Jon understood. How could they? They weren't gods.

But as awe-inspiring as this power was, he wasn't the God. This power wasn't enough to fix reality. It had taken twenty Magi of Jon's own generation to do it. And they did it wrong. He needed not only a focus, but power as well.

What is power?

Jon didn't have to think about it. He knew. The God was power.

Yes. And where does this power come from?

From their souls, Jon knew. This dagger held two souls. Magic was the soul. The soul was magic.

And what are souls?

Jon knew. He understood.

Souls were a part of the God. Every life was a piece of Him. He was in everything. He didn't give the Order of the 12 his power. He merely unlocked it for them, allowed them to access their own power.

Because they were pieces of Him.

So if souls are power, you can use that power. Where can you find souls?

Everything had a purpose. Every step had been accounted for. Jon had never been alone. His mind jumped to the big stone structure beneath the sewers. He had been commanded to bring it there. To hang the daggers of deceased Magi Victus on it.

He never understood why. He just did as he was commanded. And now he understood.

Everything has its place. Everything has a purpose.

Jon was linked to that stone. He held a shining Shadow Dagger in his hand. A dagger that had come from the same stone. Jon flowed into the magic and followed the trail back to the stone.

He felt it. The power. The stone held thousands of lives, pieces of souls willing sacrificed by men who wanted freedom. They were all there, waiting. Waiting for their chance. Jon knew what he had to do.

The spell formed in his mind. Jon released it and cried out. The power flowed through him, into the dagger, and into the stone. Jon was a conduit, a direction for the power to travel.

The spell was absorbed into the stone and released in throbbing waves. Out into reality. Jon continued to cry out as the power flowed through him, as the spell continued to cast out into reality, attempting to mend that which was broken.

The stone began to glow as the power reached it's apex. The daggers shone like miniature suns. Cracks began to appear as the spell continued to spit out into reality.

Jon cried out one more time and collapsed. The power stopped. The Shadow Dagger exploded in his hand. The stone beneath the sewers glowed bright white for one more moment and exploded.

And Jon knew no more.

***

There were all there, in the formless dark. Sarah, Berrick, Mathus, Ashford, and Marcus.

"Am I dead?" Jon asked. He wasn't afraid.

"You're not so easy to kill," Marcus replied, smiling.

"Did it work?

"Beautifully," Ashford said, a calm smile on his face. "There will never again be Magi Victus."

"I'm sorry," Jon admitted, staring at each one of them in the face. "You all lost your lives because of me."

They all smiled at him. Not one looked angry. They looked peaceful. "You've changed so much," Sarah said, looking as beautiful as he remembered, her golden skin shining in the dark void.

"For the better," Berrick echoed her. He was as he remembered him; big, muscular, and with his blacksmith's apron still attached.

"I had help," Jon said. "I didn't know I had so many people who loved me."

"Never forget that," Ashford said.

"Are you all really here? Am I really talking to your spirits? What are these dreams I have?"

"What do you think?" Sarah asked.

Jon floated in the dark and thought for a moment. "I don't think it matters," he finally decided.

They all beamed at him. "It's time to go," Marcus said. "Reclaim your life, my brother. Don't be afraid to live it this time."

"We all love you so much," Sarah said, her smile easing the wounds on his heart.

"We will be together again," Berrick promised. "Just remember everything you've learned. And just be happy."

"I will," Jon promised.

They slowly faded away, all smiling faces. And Jon felt content. He knew he wouldn't be haunted by old memories anymore.

Jon opened his eyes.

***

Evelyn sat by her bed and stared sadly at Sophina's body. She had a guardsmen bring her up and set her down on the bed. It was all she could do for her.

Boots crunched on the floor. Evelyn looked up and felt fresh tears spill down her cheeks. "I'm so sorry." The words sounded hollow but it was all she could give.

Jon approached the bed slowly. He stopped by her head and reached out a hand to brush the hair from her face. "What happened?" he asked, softly.

"Raynolt," Evelyn said, her voice deadened by grief. "He was still alive. He killed Reynar with that dagger of his and stole his power. Sophina bought me some time to try to escape. He stabbed her. Then he caught up to me but Sophina snuck up behind him and killed him. I don't know how she did it, with a dagger in her stomach..."

"She wouldn't let herself die, not when you were in danger," Jon said, his eyes never leaving her face. Evelyn couldn't bear to watch as he lovingly caressed her face. She turned away and hid her tears in her hands.

Several minutes passed before the tears finally faded. Jon still stood over Sophina, his eyes still looking into her face. Evelyn remembered Sophina's last words.

"She wanted me to tell you that she loved you," she said, her grief threatening to overwhelm her again.

"I know," he whispered, his voice as numb as hers.

"And...and she said to don't be afraid to love. Don't be afraid to love, Jon. She almost demanded it of me."

Jon smiled, and a single tear dripped off his face. "Leave it to Sophina to think about my wellbeing as she lay dying."

"Will you honor her request?" Evelyn asked. For some reason, she desperately wanted Jon to not fall apart. She wanted Sophina's last wish to be fulfilled.

"She taught me that," he replied, finally meeting Evelyn's eyes. "She taught me to love again. How can I deny her?"

Evelyn nearly gasped. All the times she had looked into Jon Laurent's eyes, they had been as cold and blue as a frozen lake. Now...now his eyes were blue like the ocean, as soft and as inviting as the gentle waves on a hot, summer day.

"I can see that," she whispered.

Incredibly, Jon smiled at her. He really had changed. He bent down and kissed Sophina's forehead.

"I want to see your child," Jon asked, standing straight.

"Of course," Evelyn replied, popping up from her chair. "I put her in the crib over here."

Jon followed her to the crib. Evelyn's breath caught in her throat as she looked over the crib. The baby was awake and was staring straight at Jon with her beautiful blue eyes.

"Incredible," Jon said, his voice filled with awe. "What an incredible child."

"Yes, she is," Evelyn said, lovingly. She reached down and stroked the child's cheeks. "She reminds me so much of Daminus."

"Have you given her a name yet?"

Evelyn hesitated. "I was thinking...I would like to name her Sophina." Her throat constricted and she had to stop.

She looked over at Jon. He had closed his eyes. She was shocked to see tears escaping his eyelids. "It's a good name," he said, his voice heavy with emotion.

They stood silently and watched Sophina for several minutes. Her eyes eventually closed and she drifted off to sleep. Evelyn felt her heart could burst at any moment, she loved her so.

"What do we do now?" Evelyn asked finally. It was amazing to think that the world continued to exist, even with all this grief and anguish.

Jon turned away from the crib. "What we must. The fighting has stopped, I see."

Evelyn nodded. "I had word sent that the King is dead. There's a lot of confusion right now, Jon. There are warriors from Raves right now in the palace. The guards are uneasy. The Magi are missing."

"I've already asked for Peron, the Chieftain of the Raves warriors, to be sent up here. We need to speak. The Magi have fled, Evelyn. Before the battle even started today, a large portion of them fled the palace back to the Emporium. They apparently sided with the Grand Master instead of Reynar."

"Sura," Evelyn cursed. "She's not going to endorse my rule, is she?"

"Probably not," Jon agreed. "They were attacked at the Emporium but most of them survived. They have already fled the city. My guess is they will try to rally the people in other villages."

"War," Evelyn muttered, shaking her head. "And I don't even have Magi of my own. All the Magi that came with Raynolt are dead or have fled."

"Not all," Jon said, and for some reason he was smiling. "You will have a new crop of Magi to train. I fixed the curse, Evelyn. There will be no more Magi Victus anymore."

"No more...Magi Victus?" Evelyn shook her head. "What...how did you...?"

"It doesn't matter," Jon said, evasively. "Just know that it's over. No more Magi Victus. And the Magi Victus currently alive had their Shadow Dagger's broken. The portion of their souls contained in their daggers have rejoined with them. They can use magic now."

"Where are they now?" Evelyn asked.

"I had them gather here in the palace," Jon replied. "You will need to train them. They're shocked, but that will fade."

A knock sounded on the door. The door opened and a tall, dark-skinned Raves warrior walked in. "Jon," the man said, and, incredibly, he bowed low.

"Will they fight for her?" Jon asked.

Peron nodded. "I've convinced them that our revenge is over and that this new queen will forge a new peace with us that will dwarf any agreement we've ever made with past kings and queens of Astuari."

"Are you okay with that?" Jon asked, turning to Evelyn.

Evelyn was confused as to what exactly was going on but she nodded. "Yes, of course. They fought and died for us. They deserve whatever they want."

"Good," Jon said, turning back to Peron. "You two have plenty of time to work out the details. And the rest of Raves?"

Peron shook his head. "I don't know. When they arrive, I will explain the situation to them. With the current state of the city, they very well may decide to kill everyone and take over. They enmity between our people is that great."

Evelyn gasped. "There's an army marching toward us?"

"I will handle it," Peron promised. "There won't be a war."

"Sura's Magi will be bad enough," Evelyn muttered. "What about you, Jon? What's your plans in all of this?"

"I'm leaving," Jon replied. "My mission isn't over yet."

"But...I thought we just saved the world!" Evelyn said, dumbfounded.

"This was just the first step. A very important step, true, but only the beginning. Astuari isn't the world, Evelyn. But it begins here."

"Then where will you go? I had thought...that you might..." She trailed off, unsure whether should could say anymore. It was too soon.

"Stay here and become your king?" Jon guessed.

Evelyn nearly blushed. "Politically, of course. You're a very powerful figure, Jon. I could use you. Hell, Ineed you."