Tales of the Lorekeepers 01 - Rise of the Red Dragon

doubt that you would make it.”
    “I appreciate the vote of confidence, but it was no thanks to you that I saw the sun rise this morning. I could have easily died in Clive’s burning tent.”
    “But you didn’t!” replied Angeline, like a teacher proudly complimenting her brightest student.
    “Still,” continued Samuel. “I heard you whisper in my ears again and I went in, but I have to say, I didn’t feel any special powers or Lorekeeper’s abilities when the flames surrounded me and the smoke clouded my vision.”
    “That’s because you don’t have any special abilities for that specific task. Remember Sammy, not everything requires special powers. Some things you simply have to do by yourself. The only reason I gave you a little push was because I was confident you would succeed in rescuing that poor man. And you did! You’re a true hero now.”
    “I don’t know. It would have been nice of you to give me a little warning.”
    Angeline looked slightly offended.
    “But I did! Don’t you remember? I told you that the night would not be as quiet as the previous ones. Was I not right?”
    “Oh come on, that doesn’t mean anything. I never imagined that a magnitude nine earthquake would shake the whole region for over an hour. I thought maybe you meant stomachache or wolves howling. You’re not the most explicit person I know, Angeline.”
    “Samuel, you know very well I can’t say anything else. We’ve been over this. If I had explained to you in detail what was about to happen, that some men would die and many more would end up injured, I’m sure you would have tried to warn them.”
    “There’s something I need to ask you,” Samuel said. “You mentioned someone named Morghan in our last conversation. Who is he?”
    “Ah yes, advisor Morghan. He is a very close friend of King Vortigern. He is the one who suggested to the king that he bring his army here to Dinas Ffaraon. He’s also responsible for the next act in the story. I’m still not sure what role he plays in this particular version of the legend, but he is a wise and suspicious man. Stay clear of him as much as you can or he may find something peculiar about you, and we never know how he would react. What’s more, he could have been contacted by the Yfel’s agent already.”
    “I’ll try to avoid him. Still nothing on the Yfel’s man?”
    “No. Whoever he is, he’s doing a good job of hiding.”
    Samuel took out the dice one more time to look at them.
    “Why didn’t he try to prevent Morghan from suggesting to the king that they come here?”
    Angeline picked up one of the dice to study it.
    “What do you mean?”
    “Well, since the first act of the story was to bring the army here, so they could build a fortress and then watch it destroyed, wouldn’t it be wise for the Yfel agent to recommend somewhere else? If the Yfel emissary was able to get to Morghan and had made sure the army never comes here, then the legend would not even begin the way it was supposed to, right?
    Angeline pondered what the Lorekeeper had said.
    “It makes sense indeed. Then again, we still don’t know the plan of the Yfel. All we know is that he is here, and that he has not affected the story yet. For the moment, his goal remains hidden from us.”
    The little fairy put the die back in the boy’s hand, took off and flew rapidly around Samuel.
    “Nonetheless, you do raise a good point, Samuel,” she said. “I will share it with others and hopefully someone will have a clue to shed some light on this mystery. Until then, keep your eyes open and be on your guard.”
    “I will. But who are these others you’re talking about?”
    “Hush now, someone is coming!”
    The little fata disappeared in a small cloud of purple smoke.
    “Wait!” called out Samuel.
    “Sammy!” yelled Malloy. The older boy was hurrying in his direction. “Are you talking to yourself again, Sam?” he asked when he got closer.
    “Me? Of course not, that would be crazy. I was only picking up your tent and trying to salvage the anchors.”
    Malloy paused for a few seconds, studying Samuel’s face.
    “What’s up?” asked Samuel, to break the uncomfortable silence. He clenched his fist around the dice, hiding them from his friend’s view.
    “Right,” mumbled Malloy. “I just checked on Clive. It seems he will make it after all. He still has trouble breathing with all the smoke he inhaled, but he’s in the clear now.”
    “Glad to hear it,” replied