The Divine Apprentice (The Divine Series) (12 page)

Why did this matter so much?
Kade asked himself.  Unable to answer his own question, he closed the book and placed it back in the cubby.

Next, Kade pulled a red, leather book off the shelf and carefully set it on the table, making sure that he did not open it accidentally.  He chose this book because it looked like the oldest one on the shelf, and maybe the most important.  Hopefully it held the information he was looking for.  The cover was old, worn leather with many symbols etched into it.  At least, he hoped it was leather.  It had an oily feel to it, and it made his skin crawl to touch it.  He shook his head, realizing he did not want to know what it was.  The cracks in the cover also indicated it was very old.

Kade closed his eyes and activated the Reveal Calling.  He looked closely at the book and saw a combination of red, green and a faint blue.  His eyes came open and went wide at the amount of protection this book had.  He moved his hands slowly away from the book and regarded it for several long seconds.

“You placed three on this one alone?” Kade questioned incredulously as he shook his head in wonder.  “You must really want this book protected.  Okay then, maybe this has the answers I need,” he said as he prepared to disarm the callings.

Kade made the motions to deactivate the traps while saying the ancient words in his head.  He reached for the book but froze, chastising himself for being careless so soon after his recent disaster.  He closed his eye, preformed the Reveal Calling and was shocked to see both the blue and green outline still on the book.  He tried to disarm them again, but the two callings were still present.

“Why?” Kade wondered aloud.

              He sat back in the chair and regarded it through half-lidded eyes.  He leaned forward, put his fists under his chin and stared at the book, waiting for something to come to mind.  He tried to recall anything Zayle had said that would help but came up blank.  Finally, he knew he was either going to take a chance and open the book or put it back on the shelf.  The demon so fresh in his mind made the choice easy.  He gently picked up the book and returned it to the shelf.

He reached for another book and pulled it out carefully.  This one was made from some kind of metal.  Kade placed it on the table and sat down in front of it.  He performed the Reveal Calling but saw nothing.  He placed his hand gently on the cover and hesitated, turning his head slightly as though listening with his mind.  He closed his eyes to help him focus better.  It was so faint he barely felt it, but he was certain he could feel the Divine.  He pulled his hand back and performed the Reveal Calling again.  He looked closely, and just when he was about to open his eyes, he saw it; a shimmer, as though heat were ever so slightly coming off the book.

“I almost did not see that,” Kade said as he swallowed the lump in his throat.  “I remember what you said about this one,” he said, feeling confident.

Kade completed the Disarm Calling, but this time, he used a slight variation.  Closing his eyes, he looked with his inner site and was pleased to see that the shimmer was gone.  He opened his eyes and placed his hand on the cover.  He felt for the Divine Power as he held his breath and found nothing.  Steeling his nerves, he smoothly opened the book, alert for any signs of danger.  As the cover hit the table, a loud roar filled the room, causing him to jump back from the book in full panic.  As he pushed away from the table, he tipped over in the chair, slamming into the floor.  His heart was pounding so hard he thought it was going to burst through his chest. 

Kade scrambled to his feet, preparing to meet this new danger.  His eyes scanned the room, and stopped at the window.   Slowly, his jaw unlocked as he huffed in exasperation. 

“You,” Kade growled as he made eye contact with his dragon.  “Blood and ash!  You almost stopped my heart!” he said as he took in a deep breath and let it out.  The dragon slowly backed away from the window but did not take its eyes off him.  “What?” Kade asked as he shook his head, still trying to recover. “You want me to come out?”  The dragon gave a grunt which Kade took for a yes. “Okay, Okay.  I could use a break,” Kade said, eager to get some fresh air and steady his shaking hands.

He picked up the book and placed it back on the table.  He was very careful not to close it for fear of resetting the calling.  He backed away slowly, taking another deep breath and was actually grateful for the distraction.  Glancing once at the bookshelf, he turned for the door.  As he left the room, Kade could feel the familiar tingle on his skin as the protective barrier activated.

             
While exiting the cabin, Kade almost tripped over the dead animal that was lying on the ground.  He looked at the dragon, preparing to ask it why and found it watching him with ears perked up.  Kade chuckled lightly, realizing that his friend was proudly displaying its catch and offering it to Kade.  The apprentice looked at the animal and felt his stomach rumble.  The dragon moved closer and nudged it toward Kade as if to say, “Here, take a bite.”

             
“Oh no.  I don’t eat raw meat,” Kade said as he patted the dragon on the muzzle.  He went into the cabin and quickly came out with some wood, a large, sharp knife and a long metal spear about five feet long.  He grabbed ahold of the animal and brought the knife down with several hard swings, severing one of the legs off.  He grimaced as the fresh, hot blood splashed on his arm.  The sight of blood always made his stomach turn, and lately, there was more stomach turning than he cared for.  He forced himself to ignore it.

             
Kade speared the piece of meat and set it by the fire pit.  He dropped some wood into the ring of rocks as he prepared to cook.  He stood for a few moments, considering how he was going to make the fire.  Zayle had always been the one to start the fires so Kade did not feel confident that this was going to go as smoothly as he wanted.  If he used the Divine Fire calling, he was certain he was just going to blast the wood right out of the pit.

             
“I just need to figure out how you were able to light the fire without the big explosion,” Kade said as he felt the Divine swirling in him.  “Maybe…I can control how much Divine Power goes into the calling,” he said as he closed his eyes and followed the subtle current of the power.  It was peaceful, calling him to follow it and forget the world.  Kade opened his eyes to break the trance so he could focus on his train of thought.

             
Turning toward the open field, he performed the Fire Calling.  He held it in his hands, the blue flame dancing off his fingertips.  Kade closed his eyes and felt for the Divine as it fed the fire.  There…he could feel a way to lessen how much flowed through him if he focused.  He choked off the flow of the Divine, feeling it slowly dwindle and then it vanished before he could attempt his idea.  He completed the calling again and watched as the flames completely engulfed his hand.  He closed his eyes and felt for the flow once more.  Slowly, he squeezed it off and opened his eyes, preparing to throw, but before he could send out the blue flame, it melted into the air.  Kade took a deep breath to calm his frustrations and performed the calling again.  As he did before, he felt for the Divine and slowly choked off the flow.  As it dwindled, he opened his eyes and threw.  It hit the ground, setting an area twice that of the pit on fire.  He walked over and stomped out the flames in exasperation.

             
“No wonder why you were always so angry with me,” Kade called over his shoulder toward Zayle’s burial plot.  “I struggle with everything.”

             
Once again, Kade performed the Fire Calling and closed his eyes, trying to stay calm as he focused.  He choked off the Divine, and when he thought it was just about right, quickly opened his eyes and tossed the fire toward the field.  It died out before it got halfway to its target.  Kade felt himself wanting to scream in frustration as he balled his fists.  He took a deep breath, and after holding to the count of ten, let it out, forcing the stress from his body at the same time.

             
“I can do this,” Kade said as he closed his eyes and performed the calling again.

             
He relaxed his mind and forced everything out except the Divine.  He felt the way the power moved through him as he fed the flame.  He studied it as he applied a little pressure, squeezing it off slowly.  At the point where it started to collapse, he opened his eyes and threw.  It hit the ground, setting it on fire.  He smiled as he looked at the results.  Not perfect but easily sufficient.

             
Kade practiced the technique one more time and then moved to stand in front of the ring of rocks.  He planted his feet and closed his eyes, but before he could perform the calling, a hot puff of bad breath hit him in the face.  His eyelids flew open and he coughed several times, stumbling back while covering his mouth.  He gagged and fought the urge to get sick.

             
“Light and ash!  Don’t do that!” Kade said in muffled words as he pressed his sleeve tightly to his mouth.  He put one hand on the dragon’s chest and pushed.  At first, it leaned forward to resist, but after a tap from Kade on its shoulder, it moved back.  “Now stay here,” Kade said, pointing at the ground.

             
He uncovered his mouth and returned to the fire pit.  He closed his eyes again but then quickly opened them to make sure the dragon had not followed.  Satisfied, he closed his eyes and reached for the Divine Power.  He started the Fire Calling, and with as little of the power as possible, opened his eyes, readying to toss the fire into the pit.  Unfortunately, he was forced to let the fire go.  There, with its nose on the wood, was his dragon.

             
“You need to stay where I put you,” Kade said, leaning into the dragon’s chest again, trying to push him back.  The dragon stared at him with a quizzical look but gave no sign that it was going to move.  It tilted its head back and forth several times and then sniffed at the meat.  Kade thumped the dragon on the chest and it, grudgingly, moved back.  “Now, stay here,” Kade said, stabbing his finger at the ground.  “Stay,” he said with emphasis.  “I am trying to start a fire.” 

Clearly, this was making no sense to the dragon as it, again, tilted its head from side to side.  Kade could not stifle his laugh as he considered how silly this massive killing machine looked.  He shook his head and turned away, trying to focus on his task.

              He returned to the fire pit once more and readied himself for the calling.  He glanced at the wood and then the dragon, making sure everything was where it needed to be.  Satisfied, he started again.

             
“This is going to work,” Kade said to the dragon.  It misunderstood and started to come to him.  Kade quickly ran to it and put his hands on its chest.  It stopped.  “Stay,” he said again, pointing to the ground.

             
Back at the pit once more, Kade prayed there would be no more interruptions.  His stomach was starting to protest at the lack of food.  The thought of cooked meat made his mouth water slightly.  Closing his eyes, he felt for the Divine Power and performed the Fire Calling.  He did not need to close his eyes for this, but he found it easier to concentrate and feel how much of the Divine Power he was channeling.  When he felt he had it just right, he opened his eyes and let the fire shoot into the pit.  Kade felt a backlash of heat when the flame hit the wood.  He retreated quickly, shielding his eyes.

             
“Well, it worked,” Kade said to his dragon.  Again, it was tilting its head back and forth.  “Just watch and you will see,” Kade said as he picked up the speared piece of meat and laid it across the fire.  “I am cooking it,” he said over his shoulder.  “Give it a while.”

             
The dragon lay down with its head on its front legs while it eyed the meat hungrily.  Kade smiled to himself at the thought of this fearsome beast being his…pet?  Companion?  Well, he was not sure, but for now, he would just consider this his dragon and leave it at that.

             
Ten minutes went by when the dragon’s ears came up and its nose started to twitch wildly.  Kade noticed its peeked awareness and laughed.  He found it very amusing to see the dragon start to drool and smiled to himself. 

Soon, my friend, soon
, he thought as his stomach growled loudly.

             
The dragon looked at him while licking its lips.  An uneasy feeling spread over him as the dragon’s teeth shown.  He knew there was no threat to himself, but it still unnerved him to a small degree.  Kade looked past the dragon’s teeth and into its eyes.  There was a question in those eyes and Kade knew it was as simple as, “Can I have some?”  He could not help but to laugh. 

             
Kade went over and dragged the rest of the fresh meat to the fire pit.  The dragon was watching intently now.  After another thirty slow minutes, Kade took the cooked meat off the spit and laid it on a rock, doing his best to keep it out of the dirt.  He then turned back to the rest of the meat and started working to put it on the spit.  He started the food cooking and turned back to the piece on the rock.

             
“Smells pretty good eh, my friend?” Kade asked as he picked up the very hot food.  He took a huge bite and inhaled with his lips pulled back, trying to cool it.  After shaking his head slightly, he swallowed his tasty bite and smiled at the dragon.  “Here ya go,” he said as he tossed the food into the air toward his friend.  He flinched as the dragon lunged, catching it in a crash of teeth before it even got a chance to get close to the ground.  The only thing Kade heard were the dragon’s teeth coming together in a crash.  Kade marveled at the deadly prowess.