Friday, June 8, 2012

#fridayflash "Betrayal"

 

During the Flash Fiction Blogfest, I decided to revisit Raven's world from my short story "Eclipse" in the flash fiction piece "Between Dark and Light." Unfortunately, doing so has given me an idea to write an adult fantasy novel. Here is another character from that world and the possible novel that keeps nudging my mind and saying, "Write me!"

 

Betrayal

The heavy knock and crackle of thunder foretold the Magician’s coming.

Sage’s mother grabbed his arm. “Quick, son, you must hide.”

“But, Mama, no.” The eleven-year-old boy dug his heels against the wooden boards.

“Please, listen to me.” She shoved him down into the hidden room under the floorboards.

“He’ll harm you. I won’t let him.” Sage started to crawl out.

“I won’t let him take you.” Fear widened her eyes at the second knock. With shaking breath, she whispered the magic spell, “Bind your mouth so you cannot talk. Bind your feet so you cannot leave this room until he leaves.”

Sage’s voice left him as his mother slammed the trapdoor upon his head. He could imagine her pulling the rug and chair over it. He was trapped and silenced. Fists formed at his sides, and he reached up to pound upon the boards when he heard a loud bang. It sounded like the door had exploded off its hinges.

“Kirken! You should be more patient.” Mama’s voice sounded like all smiles. How could she change so quickly? Perhaps she just wanted her son out of the way.

“How is my favorite witch?” Charm oozed from his dulcet tones. Footsteps clomped closer to where Sage stood under the floor.

“I’m very well, thank you. I would’ve dressed more presentably if I had known you were coming.” The chair creaked.

“Cassia, you look lovely in anything.” Kirken paused. “Where’s the boy? I would like to see my son.”

“He’s out...in the woods. I don’t know when he’ll return.”

“Perhaps I’ll wait for him.”

Sage sank to the dirt floor. A spider crawled across his arm, its hairy legs tickling his flesh. He swiped it away. Would his father wait for him? Mama had told him about his father, how the Magician lived in a castle surrounded by the fae forest. How he would take her portion of the kingdom, including him, if she let him?

“It might be a while,” she said. His mother gasped. “What are you doing?”

“I want you to join me. You and the boy can return to my castle. The Witch and the Magician’s sections could be combined. The Sorceress and the Wizard won’t be able to defeat us.” His voice lowered, and Sage couldn’t hear Kirken’s last words.

A slap filled the empty space.

“I assume you disagree.”

“Of course, I do. You’ll never have Sage, or my portion of the kingdom.” The chair clattered to the floor.

Sage held his breath.

“So be it.”

Light seeped into the darkness where Sage sat. Its brightness blinded him. A clap of thunder shook the house, and something thudded above his head.

Footsteps trailed away. Silence followed, except for the patter of rain and rumble of thunder.

Sage felt the spell release him from the hidden room. Shoving aside the trapdoor, he silently cried out.

His mother lay facing him with her eyes wide open. She was dead. Sage knew it as soon as he saw her.

And he couldn’t say a word. Even in death, her spell had binded his speech.

22 comments:

Summer Ross said...

YIkes! Very intense piece Cherie- well done and now I'm curious what the boy will do.

Tyrean Martinson said...

oh, wow! Very intense, and awesome piece! I definitely want to know what happens next, especially for the boy's sake.
BTW, I have a couple of awards for you at my blog today!

Anonymous said...

Thanks for the flash fiction! A pretty intense tale today. Do your characters have words for their spells, like in Harry Potter?

Esther Jones said...

This makes me really curious. Did Sage inherit magic from his parents? If he did, can he use it without being able to speak? I definitely want to know what happens next. :)

Laura Clipson said...

Oh wow, this is great! Such a dramatic scene, I'd love to find out what happens next! :)

Unknown said...

Wow, I wonder how long the silencing spell will last?

Unknown said...

Good for you heeding the nudging! The persistent ones, that beg to be written, make the best stories.

Christine Rains said...

Now that is an awesome flash piece! I can't wait until you write that one!

Carol Kilgore said...

Great piece. I can see why it intrigues you to explore deeper.

Happy Weekend!

Tracy MacDonald said...

Wow. Sage unable to speak and therefore taking a part of his mother with him. How awesome.

Tracy MacDonald said...

Wow. Sage unable to speak and therefore taking a part of his mother with him. How awesome.

Heather Murphy said...

Ah poor guy! At least he was spared

Anonymous said...

Such an intense flash fiction piece... it was great:)

Julie Flanders said...

Oh my gosh, I love this! What a chilling ending. I think it's fantastic that you are playing around with a novel, based on this piece I hope you go for it! :D

Sheila Deeth said...

Oh wow. I want to read more...

sjp said...

wow magnificent twist at the end, sounds like a very persistent idea indeed

Callie Leuck said...

Ooh, wow. Too bad she didn't put a qualifier on the muting spell. Hm, traditionally if a spell doesn't end upon the caster's death, that person was very powerful indeed. If true, this Magician must be even more powerful. Interested to see where this may go.

Nas said...

Thanks for this intense flash fiction. What happens next?

Nicole said...

Nicely done!

Anonymous said...

Love that the binding spell now serves as a crutch and a lasting reminder of Sage's murdered mother...

Sonia Lal said...

Well done. I like Sage, poor thing.

Unknown said...

loved the Betrayal tale...the relation beyond everything else about the mother and the son....


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