The Spade Chronicles Book 0: Eagles Rising
Trial by Fire

“Who in the name of Spade came up with that idea?” I deadpanned. “Did they just decide ’hey you know what, we think assassins might be after some fresh out of the gate initiate so we’ll send a teenager to make sure he doesn’t die’?”

“You’re guess is as good as mine. But why would people want to take my life?”

“I can think of a few reasons.”

“You’re really not helping.”

By now we were just entering the Forest of Trials and Lance was just packing the compass issued to him into his bag. Once his pack was on his back once again he turned to me.

“So, any tips for making it out alive?”

“Go north and make friends. This isn’t just a way to prove your bravery, this forest is filled to the brim with different species of creatures. If you can replace the one you can talk to, this will be way easier.”

“How will talking to animals help?” He inquired, and I thought for a moment. I knew that my non human companions were an invaluable asset, but there were so many possibilities it was difficult to decide where to start.

“That will really depend on what type of animal you bond with. But usually the first creature you can speak to has already bonded with you, so they tend to stick around. When I came through the Forest of Trials I met Kyrie pretty early on, and I’m glad I did. She was the one who told me about the relationship between humans and animals in the first place. She was the one who got me through this forest.” The last line got me an affectionate nuzzle from Kyrie.

“But why?” Lance inquired, “What’s in it for them?”

“Lots of things,” I replied. “Creatures that are bonded with us have access to some of our magic, so they become stronger or more powerful if they stay with us. Look at Belladonna, she’s larger than your average wolf, and she’s fast enough to keep up with Peppermint, who has a huge stride.” When I finished speaking, I felt an eerie sensation of being followed. I looked around, eyes darting to each of the gaps between the trees. I couldn’t detect anything unusual, but the feeling didn’t go away.

“Is something wrong?” Lance asked, reaching up from his seat on Lily to put a hand on my forearm. I put a finger to my lips and focused on the dragon around my neck. I saw a group of ten armed people further back in the forest with a tracker examining two sets of hoof prints. They were too far away for my dragon to consider it a threat, but I knew we were the ones they were after.

“We’re being followed.” I said quietly and turned to rummage through the saddlebags.

“What are you doing?” Lance inquired when I began packing supplies in a bag and slinging it over my shoulder.

“When I give the word, I want you grab onto the sturdiest branch you can replace and pull yourself onto it.”

“You want me to what?”

“Look, they have us outnumbered five to one. I say we throw them off our trail.”

“And how are we going to do that?”

“We split up. You and I will take to the trees and go east to replace a different route, and Peppermint, Lily, and Belladonna keep on our current course.”

“But I wanna stay with you Allie. Why do I have to go back to Spade?” Belladonna whined, and I smiled down at her.

“I want you to go tell the other Eagles why I’m late returning. I don’t want them to worry just yet.” I explained, and while she didn’t look happy about it, she didn’t complain either.

“You okay with that, big guy?” I addressed Peppermint, who shook his mane in reply.

“I don’t quite like separating but I see your point. I can make it back the Eagle Bastion from here. Just promise me you’ll make it back in one piece.”

“Coming back in severed pieces really isn’t what I had in mind.”

We rode on until we reached a few trees with branches low enough to grab onto, and pulled ourselves up. I hopped over to Lance’s tree and landed on a branch a foot above his.

“So, have you ever traveled by tree before?” I inquired, putting my palm on the trunk and leaning against it.

“No, but we all have to start somewhere I suppose.” He said, and tentatively tried to cross onto the nearest tree.

We went from tree to tree until dusk, it was slow going at first, as Lance was still a novice, but after a while he got the hang of it and we were making our way through the forest at an accelerated rate. Once the sun sank below the horizon we wrapped ourselves in our cloaks and settled on branches strong enough to hold us. It was bitterly cold, and a light frost covered the ground. But our clothes were warm and we were protected from the wind nestled in the boughs.

Despite this, we were still chilled when we woke up the next morning and pulled out some of the food Mrs. Pendragon packed for us.

“So,” Lance mumbled while munching on a granola bar. “What’s the plan today?”

“You tell me,” I replied. “This is supposed to be your trial. I intervened yesterday because I was ordered to protect you.” I focused on my dragon then, to see if my plan had worked out. What I got was a bird’s eye view of the forest, with bright red beacons representing hostiles. The group of ten were still following Peppermint and the others, but I wasn’t too concerned. They would move faster now that they didn’t have to carry us. What did catch my attention was that my dragon showed me that there were multiple groups of three people combing through the forest, the group closest to us was on horseback and would reach us in about half an hour if we didn’t move.

“We’ve got a problem Lance.” I said, and he looked at me with question in his eyes, tilting his head to the side in way of asking for an explanation.

“Our plan worked for diverting the first group following us, but now there seems to be teams of people making their way through the forest, and if we don’t move now, I don’t think we’ll make it very far without them catching us. So what do you want to do?” I watched as his face changed to show fear, but then began to look around. His eyes fell upon the eastern cliffs where Kyrie and I spent the night for shelter under the rain.

“I don’t suppose there is anyway to make it up those cliffs, is there?” He mused, and I looked to Kyrie.

“There is actually,” She claimed. “There is a set of steps that goes all the way to the plateau above, but it’s so steep and slick that it’s rarely used.” I relayed this information to Lance and he nodded.

“Might as well give it a shot,” He concluded. “If we can make it up there, that should discourage any mounted assailants from following us as well as give us the advantage of a high vantage point.”

We made it around halfway through before we began to hear something from beyond the ridge. A blood curdling roar resounded throughout the air around us before fading away

“Maybe going up there isn’t a great idea.” I whispered. “We don’t know what or who is waiting.” Another roar sounded, causing me to press myself even closer to the rock face.

“We can’t just leave,” Lance protested. “Whatever it is needs our help. Can’t you hear it?”

I didn’t but I asked Kyrie to take a look anyway.

“It’s completely barren,” She reported. “nothing but a few rocks and shrubs.”

Even though it sounded stupid to me, and I told him what I thought of his idea, Lance insisted we keep climbing. By the time we made it to the top we were both exhausted and the previous roars had diminished to small whimpers. I plopped my pack on the ground and dropped down beside it, exhausted. Lance kept trying to track down the source of the noise until his foot caught and he tumbled face first into the ground.

“Watch out.” I called out, watching him pull himself up.

“What would I do without you?”

“You’d probably stumble around in your own incompetence.”

“You’re faith in me is truly inspiring.”

“Glad to hear it. Why don’t you use some of that inspiration to figure out why you dragged us all the way up here?”

Lance shot me a look before feeling around the ground for whatever had tripped him up.

Suddenly a huge mass of blue scales appeared, pulled back its massive head, and roared up into the sky.

Immediately I sprang up and dashed to Lance’s side, halberd in hand, before I felt him pull back on my shoulder gently.

“Wait, I don’t think he wants to hurt us, do you?” He finished, directing his attention to the massive creature in front of us. It continued to grumble, but the forceful nature was gone. Lance listened to it after a while before wrinkling his brow.

“Sounds pretty serious, can you show us?” He asked, and I felt it’s wary gaze look me over. I dissolved my halberd in hopes of making the situation less tense, causing it to recoil slightly.

“As you can see we mean you no harm.” Lance prompted gently, hand still lingering on my shoulder.

Slowly, as if in pain, the creature stood, lifting itself up to the point where it was towering above us. Only it’s outside scales were a deep blue, there was a streak of black that began at the chin and ended at the tip of the tail, with black spikes running from the top of the forehead, down it’s back, and ended at a point sharp enough to cut through entire trees. Finally, slowly, leathery wings unfurled and expanded to a span twice the length of a school bus. Despite my living in Ivaline for a few months now, it never occurred to me that I would run into such a creature. Nevertheless I suddenly found myself in the company of a dragon.

Once I got over my shock, it was easy to see why it had been hiding, it’s right wing was torn up. While I was busy gawking at it, Lance was asking what had happened and if there was anything we could do to help. After an intense conversation I only half understood, Lance turned to me.

“He says that he could heal himself magically, but he would need to consume something to boost his magic.”

“And what might that stimulant be?” I inquired, having a sinking feeling that the solution was not an easy one.

“There is a kind of flower that grows in the Valley of Avalon, just before you enter the Forest of Trials. If you can get some of the roots, then it should be potent enough.” Lance explained, but then I caught something off.

“What do you mean me? What about you?”

“I want to stay here and make sure no one tries to get at Tide.” He responded, gesturing to the Dragon to make sure I knew who he was talking about. It would be a pain, but at least up here there was a decreased chance of any ne’er do wells from replaceing Lance.

“Alright lazy, I’ll do your homework just this once. What does the flower look like?”

I slept until night fell, then made the precarious journey back down to the forest. Once I descended the last step, I did a quick scan to make sure there were no adversaries along my planned route. Thankfully, by this time Kyrie had returned and could help me. Just to be safe, I sent Kyrie on ahead to see if she could replace any flowers beforehand so I could minimize time spent before going back. I made my way through the forest as quietly as I could. I traveled on the ground this time, as I didn’t want to cause so much noise and movements among the tree branches. It was slow going, but safe. I had to creep uncomfortably close to an enemy camp, but I managed to pass undetected.

I sighed in relief as I made it to the edge of the valley and could once again feel the comfortable weight of Kyrie as she landed on my shoulder. She deftly guided me to the flowers, but turns out that I wouldn’t have had much trouble anyway. Avalon Tears, as I’d been told they were called, shined gently. They were a breathtaking violet, with tapered petals and a bright purple emanating from the center. It seemed almost a shame to dig them up, but I was here for a reason. I quickly dug a few up and started back. I only made it a few miles into the forest when my dragon warned me that I was being followed by a party of three. I twirled around until I faced three shadows emerge from the trees.

“Three against one isn’t very fair.” I commented, forming my halberd in a flash.

“We don’t do fair.” Replied the one in the middle, before charging. The first one I came into contact with carried a sword, so I made up mine to match it, the force of the blow knocking be back so I slammed into the tree behind me. After a brief exchange of blows, they fell, and the second one came at me, carrying a chained mace. For this one I had to get creative. This time, instead of forming a blade, I made a metal version of a pair of kali sticks and raised my left one to strike the chain connecting the ball to the shaft. It had the desired effect and soon the mace was tangled up with the stick, effectively disarming my opponent. I finished things off by swinging my right hand across to hit their cheek, and they fell. I turned to the third one, expecting just as much aggression from the final hooded figure as it’s comrades had. Instead, I watched them slowly back away, then turned and fled into the forest.

“Strange, they don’t usually run away.” I murmured, before turning in the direction of the plateau.

“Perhaps you are becoming more fearsome.” Kyrie suggested, to which I snorted in disbelief before stepping forward once again. The trek back to where I left Lance and Tide was a long one, and I sorely regretted that I didn’t think to bring any type of food. By the time I made it back to camp it was midday and I was so weary that Kyrie had to tap me from time to time to make sure I stayed awake.

“I got your stupid flowers.” I murmured sleepily as I took a seat. I handed the blooms to Lance and stretched out on the ground, falling asleep using my pack as a pillow.

When the sun reached its zenith I was awakened by the grumble of my own stomach, and was painfully reminded that I hadn’t eaten anything since the day before. I looked around and found Lance standing by an elevated statue of a man on the back of a dragon. I didn’t recall seeing it before, so curiosity won over hunger for the time being. I strode up to him, and he was quietly staring at the statue, a pensive, almost melancholy expression laced through his features. I gazed at the statue, there was an inscription engraved onto the base.

Orion Pendragon

Loving Husband,

Noble Father,

Mighty King.

That’s when I realized that this wasn’t just a statue.

This was a grave.

“I’ve always wondered what my father looked like.” Lance whispered. “Do you think he looks like me?” I took in the features of the man depicted on the monument. He had a strong jaw and a defined nose, his eyebrows were drawn together to show the determination with which he held his sword, arm raised to attack.

“He looks like what you could be.” I answered, only to have the wind knocked out of my lungs by arms being thrown around me. Lance hunched over me and held me to him and buried his face in my shoulder. At first I was awkward with the sudden intimacy, and was about to push him away when I noticed his shoulders shaking and the sleeve of my shirt becoming damp. I wrapped my arms around his torso and rubbed his back until he calmed down, keeping a comforting hand on his head. I don’t know how much time had passed by the time he pulled away, but when he did a voice made itself heard.

“So what did I miss?” I found out that voice had come from Tide, who had been flying around for the past few minutes.

“I’m surprised I can understand you,” I commented. “We seemed to have got off on the wrong foot.” I recalled how he had recoiled at the sight of my halberd.

“That’s in the past!” He countered. “You saved my life by getting those plants for me, so you’re okay in my book.” After Tide spoke Lance cleared his throat, voice still shaking slightly.

“Anyway, have you eaten Allie? You went straight to sleep when you came back.”

I was about to reply when my vision went red. I ran to the cliff and looked down. Six cloaked figures were slowly making their way up the steps, already near the ledge. I rushed back to where Lance was rummaging through his pack and scooped mine up.

“Six people are scaling the cliffs, they will be on us soon.” He nodded and grabbed my hand.

“Tide said he’d fly us to the palace.” He dragged me onto Tide’s back and took a seat behind me. Before I could protest, we shot into the sky, wings beating against the air to keep us aloft. It was thrilling. The cold air pumping through my lungs and running through my hair. We swooped over the Vipers on the stone stairwell.

“Honestly why did we even try?” I heard one mutter bitterly.

I heard a triumphant whoop came from Lance, who held me from behind to keep from falling behind. His chin hovered above my shoulder, so I could hear him over the howling wind.

“Can you believe this?”

“No! This is amazing.” I shouted my reply. I held Tide’s shoulders with an iron grip we rose above the forest until our enemies on the cliffs were mere specks. My breath left me when I looked up to the horizon. Before my eyes was Spade in all of its natural beauty. Beyond the border mountains .I could see rivers making their way through meadows and valleys. We were so high that I could see the second mountain range come into view. It was a sight to drink in with the satisfaction of a weary traveler meeting their trek’s end at mountain peak. I felt Lance shift behind me, pulling one arm from where it rested on my waist. After a few moments of indistinct movement, he asked for my hand and pressed a roll into my palm.

“You should probably eat something before you pass out.” I took the roll gratefully despite his sass and bit into it. It had the tough quality that always appears with travel rations. It didn’t satisfy me completely, but it was enough to tide me over until we reached our destination. We flew until night began to drape darkness over the sky. I looked down at the villages and cities below, where people had begun to bring light to the streets and the windows. I could imagine families gathering around the hearth, eating and telling the day’s stories until the time came to rest in their beds. I felt homesick for the nights spent with my Eagles, snacking and scheming.

“I’ll go ahead and tell the others you’re coming back.” Kyrie said from her place nestled under my arm when we were nearing the end of our flight. She flew away and darted off above the mountains in front of us.

After a few more moments I heard Lance gasp behind me, and looked up to the horizon once more, and understood what had shocked him.

Lailoria grew in my vision as we approached it, in the best position to appreciate the view of the canals and the colored sand beneath it. Creating a multitude of hues below us, giving justice to it’s nickname ‘City of Northern Lights’. Eagle Bastion rose above it, towers puncturing the sky and light coming from its stained glass windows. Illuminated by the full moon, I could make out the intricate details of the palace clearly.

“There should be a garden large enough for you to land in towards the north point of the tower.” I shouted to Tide, and he swooped down to come to a graceful landing on the grass of the North Gardens. He landed almost soundlessly, sending a gentle rush of wind rippling throughout the gardens, causing the leaves and petals of surrounding plants to rustle slightly.

I slid down and stretched, stiff from the long ride. I felt Lance land behind me, and we were approached by Sylphia.

“Glad to see you’ve made it back safely, Allie, you’re dismissed for the night, I’ll take Mr. Pendragon to his room so he can settle in.”

Lance looked to me for assurance, and I nodded, gesturing encouragingly. I watched them go as they passed me.

“If you need me, I’ll be in the mountains for the night, I’ll replace a place to stay tomorrow.” Tide informed me before launching himself into the sky. No sooner had he left I felt the telltale weight of someone on my shoulder. Whomever it was seemed heavier than Kyrie so I turned to see who it was, only to be delighted the Hawthorne had flown down from his and Ash’s tower to say hello.

“Welcome back Violet, how was Pangaea?” He asked me in his deep voice, and I told him all that had happened while I was away, breathing in the cool night air. When I got to the part where we met Tide I heard the soft pat of paws on grass before I felt a tug on my cloak.

“C’mon Allie, everyone’s waiting!” Belladonna implored as she pushed her head under my arm. I giggled and scratched her behind the ears.

“That’s my cue to leave it seems.” I said to Hawthorne, he himself gave a chuckle and, after bidding me good night and asking me to visit soon, patted my cheek and flew off into the parapets.

I followed Belladonna through the North common room and down the Hunter’s Descent into the Eagle Observatory. Turns out that even though they were forgotten, very few passages were unnamed, and I read in Robin’s letter that he had managed to dig up the original names for all of the underground walkways and amenities. The stairway into our meeting place was named for the creatures decorating the fireplace that concealed its entrance. I pressed down on the serpent ad crawled through the opening. I made my way down the dark stairwell, by now I had climbed them so many times I didn’t need to see where I was going. As I got further down I paused, noting for the first time that it was too quiet. The few times I wasn’t the first to reach the Observatory it was already filled with the noise of amiable discussion and laughter. But now all was silent.

Undaunted by my hesitation Belladonna brushed past me continued down the steps, prompting me to follow her. As I reached the archway that marked the way into the room, it was dark. I tried to brighten the light, but oddly enough they wouldn’t respond. I wasn’t too concerned though, my dragon would warn me if I was in danger.

“I’m home,” I called into the room. “Anyone there?”

The room light up, revealing my Eagles, all beaming and coming toward me. I barely had time to notice the map table was covered with food before I was immersed in a group hug. Suddenly my vision was filled with masses of hair and limbs, we were so tangled up that I couldn’t tell one person from another.

“I told you Atalanta would join the team hug.” I heard Daedalus’s voice somewhere to my left.

“I am stuck to you people only out of obligation.” I heard Atalanta fire back from my right.

“I’m back.” I said, voice muffled by someone’s shoulder.

“So you are, Welcome back to Spade Allie.” Robin said, immediately followed by Kennedia.

“You must be starving, why don’t you eat something before turning in for the night.”

I walked up to the table where everything had been laid out, all of my favorite foods from Spade and Heart. There was even a thermos of gingerbread hot chocolate.

“Robin rushed to get it as soon as Kyrie told us you were on your way.” Kennedia explained as I was savoring my first sip in what felt like ages.

After I ate I began to yawn, and everyone sent me to bed immediately, and we dispersed. I wearily made my way to my room and fell on my bed, placing my bag by the closet to be unpacked later. I fell asleep with the relaxing satisfaction one feels when spending the night in their own room after a long journey.