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  The Path Of Destiny

  The Cremelino Prophecy Book I

  By Mike Shelton

  The Path Of Destiny

  Copyright © 2016 by Michael Shelton

  All rights reserved.

  ISBN: 0-9971900-1-9

  ISBN-13: 978-0-9971900-1-4

  Library of Congress Control Number: 2016901555

  Greenville, North Carolina

  Cover Illustration by Brooke Gillette

  http://brookegillette.weebly.com

  Map by Robert Altbauer

  www.fantasy-map.net

  Author Website

  www.MichaelSheltonBooks.com

  Acknowledgements

  First and foremost I thank my wife Melissa for all her patience as I have worked through multiple versions of manuscripts over many years. Her support is immeasurable. I thank my children Danielle, Emily, and Ryan, my parents and my siblings for their continued interest, support, and encouragement of my writing.

  This book would not have been accomplished without the work and help of Heather, Crystal, Kelsey, and others at Precision Editing Group, as well as my beta readers. I really appreciate all the feedback and support they have given me.

  Bringing my book to life visually was Brooke Gillette (cover) and Robert Altbauer (map). They took my simple thoughts and ideas and interpreted them perfectly into wonderful visual representations of my world.

  The Path of Destiny is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are the products of my imagination and are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. I alone take full responsibility for any errors or omissions in this book.

  -Mike

  Books by Mike Shelton

  The Cremelino Prophecy:

  The Path of Destiny

  The Path of Decisions (spring 2016)

  The Path of Peace (summer 2016)

  Chapter One

  THE FLAME

  Darius San Williams followed his best friend, Kelln El’Han, down the dark stairway in the back of the school library. Black boots clicked on wooden steps, stirring up dust. The stairs curved away from the lighted doorway and darkness met the two young men down below.

  Hearing voices from above, Darius pushed himself back against the wall. Muttering, he mentally punched himself for following on another of Kelln’s harebrained adventures. He had known Kelln now for five years, since entering the academy at thirteen years old. Normally one to obey the rules, he hoped beyond reason that he wouldn’t find himself standing in front of his father, trying to explain how the two of them had found trouble once again.

  “I thought I closed this door before we left for lunch,” said an older lady with a hoarse voice from the top of the stairs.

  “You should’ve slid the shelf back over the opening,” a younger snappy voice answered back. “We’re going to get in big trouble.”

  “What? You think someone went down there?” said the first. “No one would be crazy enough to do that. It’s too dark down there.”

  “All we were supposed to do was to get one of the history books for King Edward from the private storage and close things back up,” interrupted the second lady. “No one is supposed to know the doorway is even here. You weren’t even supposed to tell me, except you were too afraid to go by yourself.”

  Only a few yards away, down the stairway, Darius continued to hold his muscles taut. His dark bangs hung just above his grey eyes. The two young men were just out of sight of the ladies at the top of the stairs and strained to hear their whispered voices.

  Five minutes earlier Darius had been studying, or trying to study, in the old academy library of Anikari, the capital city of the Realm. Both of the young men, at eighteen years old, were in their last few months before graduating and were supposed to be getting ready for their final examinations. Kelln had wandered off, as he often did when told to do homework. When he came back, he had grabbed Darius and whispered something about a secret door he'd found.

  Kelln had noticed the opening next to the moved bookcase and he’d led Darius down the narrow stairway behind it.

  “You and your bright ideas, Kel,” whispered Darius. “Once again.”

  “Shhh.” Kelln put his finger on his lips. “I was bored. We’ll be fine.”

  Darius sighed. How many times had he listened to that phrase? Kelln always said his Belorian blood protected him from trouble. Darius wondered if that was about to change. His friend’s bright red hair would surely give them away this time and maybe Darius wouldn’t be able to smooth things over with the school authorities.

  Darius tried to listen to what the ladies were saying but couldn’t hear it all. The two boys crept up a few unsteady steps to hear better when Kelln stepped on an old board and a loud creak ensued. Darius dropped to his hands and knees and froze. He wondered if his pounding heart would give them away. Kelln now was lying down flat on the stairs next to him.

  “What was that?” said the younger lady. “Is someone down there?” she called down the stairs in a loud whisper.

  Darius almost answered. Maybe if he gave up now the punishment wouldn’t be that bad. He had always been able to cover for Kelln and take a part of the blame. Being a noble did have some advantages, but he could already hear the lecture once again from his father about how the son of a noble should be acting. That he should be studying and readying himself for a minor position in the Realm’s government after graduation. His father would surely send out guards to watch him closer.

  His stomach tumbled at the thought of not being able to see Christine if he was guarded too closely. Of course, his father would be happy with that. Christine was from the farmlands, and in his father’s opinion way below Darius’s status as the son of one of the King’s councilors.

  Kelln put his hand over Darius’s mouth. Darius almost bit him. Kelln’s Crazy! Crazy!

  “Probably just those rats,” cackled the older lady. “Maybe they like to read!”

  “Rats!” mouthed Darius behind Kelln’s hand. All Darius could envision was the secret door closing above them with wild rats to keep them company.

  “Just lock the door and put the shelf back before anyone notices. No one went down there,” continued the older lady.

  The door closed with a loud thud.

  Silence! Thick, black, empty silence!

  All Darius heard was the blood pumping through his veins. He'd never been in such darkness before. Kelln took his hand off Darius's mouth. However, Darius couldn’t see anything around him at all. He put his own hand up against his nose and still couldn't distinguish his fingers wiggling. Panic began to creep up inside him. His breathing quickened. Why did the dark do this to him?

  “Darius?” whispered Kelln.

  “I’m here. What do we do now?” Darius didn’t like the dark. It had always been embarrassing for him to admit. “We might die in here.”

  “Not for a while. We could go days without food,” laughed Kelln.

  “Kelln El’Han!”

  “I'm sorry, Darius. We have to keep our sense of humor in times like this.”

  “This isn't very humorous. If we could at least see, we would be able to think of something. I am sure I could find a way out, but I can’t even think in this darkness. And what if there are rats? Ugh.”

  “Wait,” said Kelln. “I took some of those new sulphur sticks from the chemistry lab this morning.”

  “Why didn't you say so?” Darius didn’t mean to sound so irritated at his friend, but he really didn’t like the dark. He took a deep breath and tried to remain calm. Kelln was the son of the city’s most famous sword maker, and Darius was the son of the King’s first councilor, Richard San Williams. They had become f
ast friends immediately upon entering the academy. There always seemed to be adventure around Kelln, and Darius always stood up for him in front of others.

  “They’re in my book pouch,” Kelln offered.

  “Well where is your pouch?”

  “I took it off my shoulder when we got down here. I must have set it down on one of the steps, but it might have fallen further down.”

  “OK, let’s find it.” Darius got up on his hands and knees and heard his friend do the same. Even with their eyes trying to adjust to the dark, they couldn’t make out anything. Darius started feeling along the floor, dreading what he might find instead of the pack. Rats! The words echoed through his mind.

  “Christine’s not going to like this . . .” Darius half said to himself.

  “Seems you worry a lot about what Christine thinks these days,” teased Kelln.

  “Well . . . uh.”

  “Well what, cat got your tongue . . . or maybe the rats?”

  “Shut up and find your sulphur sticks,” laughed Darius. “Remember what happened last time you had one of your great ideas?”

  “How was I to know the rain would make the city walls too slippery to climb back over?”

  “If we had come back when I or Christine suggested, we would have been fine.” Darius looked around the darkened room. It felt oppressive and he wished that Kelln would hurry.

  A year before, Darius had made friends with Christine, a beautiful, intelligent, fair-headed girl from the farmlands. She had tripped and fallen in front of the city gates and Darius had helped her up and escorted her home. He’d tried to keep their friendship from his father, but it hadn’t worked and his father found out. As a noble’s son, he was expected to maintain certain decorum, and hanging out with those outside the city walls was not proper. It was one of the things about being a noble that Darius couldn’t seem to understand. Why should anyone be treated differently than anyone else?

  “I found the bag,” yelled Kelln, interrupting Darius’s scattered thoughts of Christine. “Now if I can find the sticks.”

  “What are we going to light?” asked Darius. “The flame won't last long.”

  “I have a few pages of writing paper in here,” said Kelln as he continued to rummage through his pack in the dark. “I think I’m at the bottom of the stairs. Stand up, and as soon as I light this thing, look around for a candle or lamp to light. There has to be something down here.” Kelln took a few moments to get things ready. “I’ve got them; are you ready?”

  “Go ahead.” Darius readied himself to glance around. He didn't know which direction to look first.

  He heard a scrape, and then Kelln moaned, “Oh.”

  “Oh what?” asked Darius with anticipation.

  “I broke one of the sticks.” The sulphur sticks were something that the chemistry department had been working on for some time. Earlier that month they had been able to get them to work a few times. Somehow Kelln had gotten hold of a few to test. Another thing that amazed Darius about his friend was how he always ended up with the means to get out of a difficult situation.

  “OK, I’m trying again. Here I go.”

  The small flame caused Darius to blink a few times as light created dancing shadows around the end of the long room. Kelln’s face reflected a shadow of orange behind the burning stick, his unruly hair glowing even redder in the strange light. Kelln lit a piece of paper and started to walk around the large room.

  Darius darted through the enormous room. All he noticed were books. And dust.

  “Books!” he said out loud.

  “What?”

  “Light a book. That will give us more light.”

  “What book?” asked Kelln as if there was a lot of time to choose.

  “It doesn't matter. You’re not going to read it. Just grab one. I'll keep searching for a candle or lamp.”

  Darius knew Kelln had found one when he heard the ripping sounds and watched the room grow in brightness. He headed towards a desk in the corner, where a small lamp sat.

  Kelln moved towards him in a slow crouch, shielding the light with the palm of his hand. Suddenly Darius yelled and sent a chair crashing to the floor. Kelln ran to him, almost causing the flame to die out.

  “What happened?” he asked.

  Darius paled and his voice shook. “Rats.”

  “Rats?” asked Kelln.

  “Huge ones,” said Darius, holding his hands about six inches apart to show Kelln. “ . . . Well, I only saw one.”

  “Ouch!” yelled Kelln as he dropped the burning pages. The flame had gotten too close to his skin, and now the fire started to die out on the dark wood floor. The paper taken out of the book turned to ash before their eyes.

  Darius reached over to help but couldn’t grab the paper fast enough. Before either of them could do anything, the small light blinked out of existence, leaving them once more in thick darkness.

  Darius scooted back against the old wooden desk and took a deep breath. He could hear Kelln moving around on the floor.

  “What are you doing?” asked Darius, noticing for the first time how his voice echoed around the room. The darkness put him on edge once again.

  “Trying to find something.”

  “Like what?”

  “I don’t know. Something. I don’t see you doing anything.”

  Darius closed his eyes to compose himself. With the surrounding darkness there wasn’t much difference, but it became easier to think. He breathed in again, letting air out of his lungs with a slow puff. A picture of a flame came unbidden into his mind. He thought about the flame and how nice it would be to have light in the dark basement room. With his eyes still closed, he perceived flickers of light reflecting through his eyelids. Before he opened his eyes, Kelln gasped audibly.

  “Darius. Darius?”

  “What?”

  Darius finished opening his eyes and found himself staring at an orange red flame dancing above his upturned right palm. The flickering light both frightened and excited him at the same time. The small, unbelievable flame started wavering and he panicked and yelled out.

  The flame shrunk to barely a pinprick.

  “Don’t let it go out,” Kelln yelled.

  Darius closed his eyes, brushed his bangs to the side, and concentrated again. The flame grew larger, bright enough to distinguish the entire room. He wasn’t sure what was happening, but at least they would be able to see.

  “Been holding out on me?” Kelln asked, his voice quivering.

  “Kel, I, uh,” Darius stammered, and he couldn’t tell if it was from fright or exhilaration. He had no justifiable reason to believe what he was doing. “I had no idea.”

  He wondered what his best friend would think of him now. Would he think of him as a freak? Would he tell everyone? Magic was not looked upon favorably in the Realm.

  “This is so fantastic,” Kelln said, his mouth opening wide.

  “Not everything is fantastic, Kelln.” Darius pushed his friend’s favorite word back at him.

  “Well this is. Like the wizards and magicians from the stories. What else can you do?”

  “What else?” Darius became frustrated and the flame soared larger. “This isn’t a game! How am I going to explain this to anyone? They’ll lock me up or kick me out of the city. I don’t even know if I can do anything else.”

  “How did you do the flame?”

  “I was just thinking about a flame in my mind and how much I wanted to see, and it happened.”

  “Great need and strong emotion,” Kelln stated.

  “What?” Darius rubbed his eyes with the fingers of his empty hand. A headache started to emerge, but through the simple pain he felt a sense of wonder and excitement.

  “Don’t you read anything? Wizards of old used ‘great need’ and emotion to perform their magic.”

  “I’m not a wizard.” How could he be a wizard? Wizards were normally thought to be hereditary and neither his father nor mother was one. “A full wizard hasn’t existed in
the Realm for over a hundred years.”

  “But the Empire of Gildan has them. The Emperor there is one, and his entire family I hear are wizards. And the Conclave of Wizards in the Kingdom of Arc advise their king,” Kelln recounted.

  “All of a sudden you are an expert on magic and wizards?” Darius’s voice rose louder than intended. He took a deep breath and tried to reason it out, but reason didn’t make any sense in this situation. He looked inward and felt his heart stirring with new feelings.

  “I have heard my father talk of a wizard in Belor,” Kelln continued. “What if you are a wizard, Darius?”

  “I am not a wizard.” Darius repeated himself. As soon as he said the words out loud, doubts and fears rushed in. He again sensed something stir within him. An awakening. Something calling to him. He didn’t like what it might mean, and he dismissed his friend’s words. But there was the fire burning above his palm. He couldn’t just ignore that, could he? But if he didn’t ignore it, he knew he would be exiled out of Anikari, or worse, kept in a prison for the rest of his life.

  “Not a wizard?” Kelln flapped his skinny arms around him in mock excitement, his green eyes sparkling. “Oh, I’m sorry. I forgot that you always make fire come out of your hands. Just a normal occurrence for you.”

  “Shut up, Kel.” Rare frustration flew out of the young noble.

  They both jumped back as a row of old lamps high up on the wall roared to life with flames. They lit the room from one side to the other.

  “Great need and emotion. Fantastic.”

  Darius glared at Kelln’s flippant remark. He rubbed his hands together, putting out the small flame, which they no longer needed. As he did so he felt a receding of the power throughout his entire body. He knew that his father didn’t like him befriending some of the people from the farmlands, but having magical abilities would send his father into a tirade. Ever since the wizard rebellion a hundred years earlier, the people of Anikari had been apprehensive about magic, to the point of not allowing it in the city under any circumstance.