As the man in black approached him, Rodrigo could see his face was covered by a helmet that gave him a sinister appearance: both sides had horns pointing backwards, the eyes were two small slits and its mouth was covered by black spikes that looked like the fangs of a monstrous creature. The voice that came from inside the helmet was so cold that by listening to it Rodrigo felt his heart freeze.

'Well, well, well,' he said slowly. 'Were you thinking of leaving without showing your respect for the emperor?'

Despite the man's explanation, Rodrigo had known instantly that he was standing in front of Arakaz himself. His manner of speaking reflected the coldness and arrogance of someone who had managed the lives and deaths of those around him for centuries, eventually coming to see them as mere mice in his cage. Rodrigo knew it was all over. This wasn't a man like Balkar, who killed only those standing in his path. Arakaz had everything he wanted. He would kill for fun.

'You,' he said, staring at Oliver. 'Come here.'

Rodrigo watched, terrified, as his friend climbed down from the simorg and walked towards Arakaz. Although he was scared, Oliver wasn't capable of controlling his footsteps. It was just as they'd been told: nobody could disobey an order from the emperor.

'I have the Mirror of Power!' Rodrigo cried in a desperate attempt to help his friend.

Arakaz turned and stared fixedly at him for a couple of seconds, which seemed like an eternity to Rodrigo.

'What do you know about the Mirror of Power?' he asked. 'Come on, answer me!'

'First, let my friend go,' he replied, mustering all the bravery he had left.

'I said answer me!' Arakaz roared, pointing his black sword directly at him. 'Nobody dares disobey me!'

Arakaz's voice resonated against all the walls of the destroyed city of Irdun, shrouding Rodrigo in endless threatening echoes. Suddenly a ghostly light shone from the black sword directly towards him. He instinctively crouched down, closed his eyes and tried to protect himself with his arms. A still silence washed over him. Rodrigo half-opened his eyes to confirm he really was still alive. Then he realised that nothing had happened. Well, one thing had.

Arakaz had disappeared.

Oliver slowly got to his feet. Popeyed, he looked first at the spot where Arakaz stood moments before and then he looked at Rodrigo.

'What happened?' he asked. 'What did you do?'

'No idea,' Rodrigo replied, just as surprised. 'I didn't do anything. We need to leave. Run!'

The two boys hurried onto the simorg's hind quarters, which obeyed Oliver's orders this time. As soon as its claws left the ground, it neared where Donegan was lying and picked him up by his tunic. Seconds later, they were flying above the great wall and they saw the enormous abyss into which Balkar had fallen. Little by little, the ruins of Irdun became smaller and smaller until they fell away from view.

'How did you resist him?' Oliver asked. 'I couldn't stop myself when he ordered me to go over to him. It was as if my legs had stopped obeying me.'

'I've got no idea!' Rodrigo answered him. 'I didn't even realise he'd given me an order. I was only trying to distract him. Then he attacked me but I don't know what happened afterwards. When I opened my eyes again, Arakaz had disappeared.'

'I saw what happened,' said Oliver. 'His power bounced off your body and hit him. Then he vanished.'

'I don't understand,' said Rodrigo.

'I do,' Oliver said. 'I think the boy without power finally discovered his gift.'

'What do you mean?'

'I think you discovered your power, Rodrigo. You are the Mirror of Power.'

'What are you on about?'

'Don't you see? The premonition came true. The Mirror of Power is your gift and you discovered it at the right time and in the place the seer predicted.'

'But... If I have the gift of being able to reflect powers, why have I not noticed it before?'

'Because nobody had attacked you with magic until now,' Oliver replied. 'Nobody had aimed their power directly at you.'

Rodrigo had to hold on tight to make sure he didn't fall from the simorg. The whirlwind of thoughts spinning inside his head was making him feel dizzy. He couldn't deny that everything Oliver was saying made a lot of sense.

'I think destiny brought you to Karinthia to finish off your ancestor and all the pain he was causing, Rodrigo. And destiny granted you the gift you needed to face him.'

'You think he's dead?' Rodrigo asked.

'I hope so,' Oliver replied. 'He ended up getting a taste of his own medicine, just like Mirena.'

'Speaking of Mirena, I think you owe me three cleaning shifts,' Rodrigo laughed.

'Eh, I don't think so. You weren't right either.'

'How could we have been so stupid?' Rodrigo asked. 'Not for a moment did I think Donegan and Mirena were trying to protect us from Balkar.'

'How were we supposed to know? Everything pointed to them being the guilty ones.'

'Look,' said Rodrigo. 'We're almost back.'

The simorg began to descend in circles towards the rickety cabin that served as the secret entrance to Garador Fortress. Rodrigo remembered the first time they came here, also flying on the back of the simorg. Just a few months had passed but what appeared to be straight out of a fairy tale had become completely normal to him. He knew that there, in the middle of the foaming waves of the sea, was an enormous castle, even though you couldn't see it. And he also knew that inside the stronghold were his friends, safe at last...

'Hey,' he said suddenly. 'You still haven't told me how you managed to escape. Balkar told me you were locked in an underground room.'

'That's true,' Oliver replied. 'By now, we'd all have drowned if it hadn't been for Noa.'

'Noa? But she wasn't even there.'

'That's exactly why. Aisha contacted her and explained what was happening, knowing that she was our last hope. An hour later, a dolphin appeared in the cavern. It brought us a teleporter.'

'A dolphin? Did you summon it?'

'No. It was Adara. Luckily Noa found the potion just before she woke up. If it hadn't been for her, Adara would have died minutes later, and us too.'

'Well done, Noa!' Rodrigo said. 'Thank God she never paid attention to you and she continued to trust in Mirena.'

'Right. That's easy for you to say now,' Oliver grumbled.

Their conversation was interrupted by a gentle sway of the simorg as it place Donegan's body on the ground as softly as possible. Then it continued flying a few metres further before it landed.

'Hurry!' Rodrigo said. 'We need to get help.'

As soon as his knuckles knocked on the ramshackle door of the cabin, the outline of the fortress began to appear a hundred metres away from the shore, as though it were emerging from the depths of the ocean. Although he already knew this was going to happen, Rodrigo couldn't help but feel impressed by the powerful spell that protected the stronghold. As soon as the gates began to open on the other side of the long bridge, he began to shout for help. Several people came out of the gates, running towards them. Soon, he could recognise them: Darion, Aisha and Vega, accompanied by Sir Toravik and Lady Porwena.

'What's going on?' Darion shouted from the middle of the bridge. 'Are you hurt?'

'It's Donegan,' said Rodrigo. 'He's in a bad way.'

In truth, they weren't even sure if he was still alive. He wasn't moving at all.

'Let me through!' Toravik bellowed. 'I'll take him to the infirmary. Mirena will know what to do.'

With surprising tenderness, the muscular smith slid his arms under the motionless body of Donegan and lifted him up as though he were as light as a feather pillow. He turned and strode towards the castle.

'Are you two alright?' Lady Porwena asked.

'We're absolutely fine,' Rodrigo answered her.

Aisha wrapped Rodrigo in a tight hug.

'We were so worried!' she said, half laughing, half sobbing. 'We were scared Balkar was going to make you present yourself before the emperor.'

'Well, in the end, he was the one that presented himself to us,' said Oliver casually.

'What? But that... No... No way!'

'Children, we can't stay here,' Lady Porwena interrupted. 'Especially, if we're discussing these matters. Let's all go inside.'

Obediently, the five of them hurried towards the fortress' gates as Lady Porwena followed a short way behind them. As soon as they were inside the walls, Aisha stopped in her tracks.

'Come on, you have to tell us everything from the start,' she demanded.

'Let's find Noa first,' said Rodrigo. 'She deserves to be here when we tell you the whole story. If it weren't for her, the ending would have been completely different.'

'You're right,' Aisha conceded. 'Come on. She's in the infirmary, helping Mirena. Adara's still very weak after transforming into a dolphin.'

The five of them ran across the stone courtyard and climbed the stairs to the infirmary more energetically than ever before, followed by Lady Porwena who was now some distance behind them. Rodrigo knocked at the door and seconds later it was opened by Lady Mirena offering them a cheerful smile.

'Hello, children,' she said. 'I'm glad to see you safe and sound. Come in, please. You have much to tell us.'

Rodrigo entered behind Oliver. To his left on a bed stained with blood was Donegan, lying beneath the watchful eye of Toravik. To his right, also lying on a bed, was Adara, who was gazing at them with a warm but weak smile.

'Lady Adara!' Oliver said. 'I'm so glad to see you. Without fluffy ears and fangs, I mean.'

His comment made Adara laugh despite the fact she could barely keep her eyes open. Even Toravik let his curt demeanour slide for a moment and joined in the laughter.

'Is it serious?' Rodrigo asked, approaching Donegan's immobile body.

'He's lost a lot of blood but luckily you arrived just in time,' the nurse answered. 'A few minutes later and it would have been too late.'

'Was it Balkar who injured him?' Toravik asked.

'Yes,' Rodrigo replied, 'but Donegan managed to push him into a huge crater afterwards. Balkar's dead.'

'I'm glad. I hope the vultures eat his insides,' the smith muttered.

'Is Noa here?' Aisha asked.

'She'll be back shortly,' Mirena answered. 'She went to find me some herbs.'

Just then, the door flew open and the redhead appeared. As soon as she saw them, she rushed to hug Oliver and Rodrigo.

'You're back!' she said. 'I'm so happy to see you! Are you alright?'

'We're fine, Noa,' Rodrigo replied, hugging her back. 'All thanks to you.'

'What do you mean?' she protested, cheeks burning red. 'I didn't leave here all night while you–'

'You knew exactly what you need to do and you followed your instinct,' Rodrigo said to her. 'If it weren't for you, Adara would have died.'

'And then she wouldn't have been able to save us,' Oliver added. 'And I wouldn't have been able to save Rodrigo and Rodrigo wouldn't have been able to kill Arakaz, and Arakaz would still be bothering us for a long time.'

'Arakaz is... dead?' Mirena asked, voice trembling. 'Are you serious?'

'Well, I think so although we didn't see him kick the bucket exactly,' Oliver replied, clearly enjoying the bewilderment of those around him. 'He simply vanished.'

'That's enough with the mysteries!' Aisha protested. 'Tell us everything from the start. It'd be better if you tell us, Rodrigo.'

Rodrigo started to explain everything that had happened since he had climbed onto Balkar's horse and left the fortress in the middle of the night. Oliver stood up and bowed when Rodrigo moved on to mention his opportune appearance, just when everything seemed lost.

'Then Oliver and I got on the simorg to go and help Donegan but they weren't where we'd left them,' Rodrigo continued. 'Then we saw him lying on the ground on the edge of the wall. He told us that Balkar had injured him but that he'd managed to push him from the wall. Then he passed out and couldn't tell us anymore.'

'We got on the simorg and I asked it to take the three of us back to the fortress,' Oliver continued, 'but the beast wouldn't obey my orders. Then we realised we had company.'

Oliver was silent, enjoying the expectation caused by his words.

'Was it Arakaz?' Darion asked.

'Arakaz himself,' Oliver confirmed. 'We knew simply from looking at him. He ordered me to approach him and my legs started walking without me controlling them. Then Rodrigo told him he had the Mirror of Power.'

'Was that true?' Mirena asked.

'No, or at least I didn't think so,' Rodrigo answered. 'It was the only thing I could think of that might stop him.'

'Arakaz was surprised and then he asked Rodrigo what he knew about the Mirror,' Oliver went on. 'When Rodri refused to answer him, he got really mad.'

'What? You refused to answer him?' Mirena asked in shock. 'But that's... That's impossible!'

'No, it's not,' Oliver smiled. 'Rodri did it and Arakaz got so angry that he attacked him with his power. He had no idea he was about to get a taste of his own medicine.'

'What happened?' Aisha cried in exasperation. 'Just tell us!'

'Fine,' Oliver finally conceded. 'Arakaz's power bounced off the body of our friend, Rodri here, and rebounded on its own master. Then Arakaz vanished.'

'So that's it!' Darion said. 'The Mirror of Power isn't an object, it's your gift!'

'Exactly,' said Oliver. 'And he found it exactly when the seer predicted he would.'

'So,' Noa stammered, 'Arakaz is gone. Forever?'

'I hope so,' said Oliver.

'I don't think it'll be so easy,' Adara broke in weakly. 'I don't think Arakaz's spell would have wanted to kill Rodrigo. Nobody has ever resisted his power of speech before. I'm sure he would have wanted to work out how you did it before killing you. I bet his spell only wanted to send you to one of his dungeons.'

'So that's what happened to him?' Oliver asked with disappointment. 'That's why he disappeared?'

'I'm afraid I think so,' Adara replied.

'Next time you'll have to annoy him a bit more, Rodri,' Oliver said. 'Maybe if you call him Chubby Cheeks he'll feel more like killing you.'

'Well, children,' Mirena concluded after their laughter had subsided. 'You should rest. It's been a long night. You too, Noa,' she added, seeing the redhead worriedly look towards Donegan. 'When you've slept sufficiently you can continue to help me.'

Following Mirena's instructions, the six of them walked to the infirmary door although none of them felt like sleeping. They were too excited about everything that had happened.

'Oh, one more thing,' said Mirena. 'I hope you'll forgive me for causing your illness. I only meant to keep you far away from Balkar. Donegan and I had begun to suspect him.'

'We can forgive you for that, Lady Mirena,' said Oliver. 'But we can't forgive you for choosing such a disgusting potion to keep us here.'

When the six of them headed out into the fortress' main courtyard, many of the squires were already heading there, going about their daily chores without realising what had happened. For a moment, it seemed as thought they had awoken from a bad dream and everything had returned to normality but they knew really that everything had changed. Almost certainly all of the squires who were now walking towards the stables, the blacksmith's or the laundry building still had no idea that their grand master had betrayed them and that Donegan and Mirena were completely innocent.

'Hey, wise guys,' said a voice behind them. 'I know you weren't in your dormitories last night. I have witnesses and I'm going to tell Balkar.'

Rodrigo and his friends weren't surprised at all when they turned and realised it was Kyle who was talking.

'Great,' Oliver replied. 'Go and look for him and leave us alone. Oh, and if you find him, tell him that I think he's a disgusting traitor and I hope the worms eat him.'

Kyle stared at him in astonishment, eyes widening. He looked in both directions, searching for someone who would confirm what he'd just said but he was alone. After standing there in shock for a few seconds, he finally reacted and ran towards the study area, ready to tell Balkar everything.

'I still can't believe it,' said Noa. 'Balkar seemed so noble. I would never have imagined he would betray the Knights of Garador.'

'Any of us would do it if we were to fall under the spell of Arakaz,' said Darion.

'Any of us except Rodrigo,' Vega corrected him.

'You're right,' Darion replied. 'Finally, there's someone in Karinthia who can resist his power.'

'What are you going to do now?' Aisha asked Rodrigo, looking directly at him. It was the same question that had been playing on his mind since they'd left the infirmary although he'd tried to remove it from his thoughts. Now he couldn't avoid it anymore. He had to make a decision. Would he look for the way back home and leave his friends' fate to chance or would he join them in the fight against Arakaz?

'You're our only hope,' said Darion. 'Only you can take on the damn emperor.'

'Take on Arakaz?' Noa protested. 'But he's only twelve years old!'

'And at only twelve years old he's the only person who has ever survived one of Arakaz's attacks,' Darion said.

'Of course we'll stay, right Rodri?' Oliver said. 'It's obvious why we've come to Karinthia. You're destined to finish off your... finish off Arakaz and I'm destined to miss every class between now and the end of term. Shouldn't we make that sacrifice for our friends?'

'You're right, Oliver. Of course we will,' he replied, happy to be able to count on his inseparable companion. With Oliver beside him, his future adventures in Karinthia would be anything but boring.

THE END

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