Page 7 of Keeper of the Flame: Orrick

“Eternal,” spat Orrick, tired of everyone getting it wrong. “It’s the Eternal Flame and, yes, it has to do with it.”

“Well, help her find it already and let’s be done with it. Did she give you any idea of where you can look for it?”

“She didn’t, but neither did she have to. You see, I know exactly where it is.”

“Well, why don’t you tell her then?”

“I can’t do that.”

“Why not?”

“I don’t trust her. And I certainly don’t trust that man with her. If the Eternal Flame gets into the wrong hands, it could be disastrous.”

“What in the devil’s name is an Eternal Flame?” asked Corbett, shaking his head. “I don’t understand at all.”

“It’s a burning flame,” explained Orrick, taking Corbett into his confidence since he knew he could trust him. “The flame is connected to one with magic and it burns without being fed by oil or wood. You see, no matter what is done to it, the flame cannot be extinguished.”

“Really? That sounds odd. What is the purpose of it?”

“It has only one purpose and that is to bring about immortality to whoever is its keeper. The position of guardian, or Keeper of the Flame, is passed from one person to the next after every fifty years. The guardian’s job is to keep it hidden and safe and from falling into the wrong hands.”

“Immortality?” Corbett chuckled. “Well, mayhap I’ll look for it myself since I’d like to be infallible and live forever. Getting older has made me often think about my death.”

“Nay, you don’t want immortality. Believe me, it isn’t a good thing. Besides, the idea behind passing the flame to the next Keeper every fifty years is so one does not get too much power . . . or really live forever. There are evils that go along with being the Keeper for too long a time. I know, believe me.”

Corbett’s eyes shot up to Orrick’s and he slowly slid his feet off the bed and to the floor. “Orrick. You aren’t by any chance this Keeper of the Flame. Are you?”

Orrick looked up and nodded slowly, not able to answer with words.

“God’s eyes! That’s fantastic.” Corbett jumped off the chair and grabbed Orrick by the shoulders. “Why didn’t you tell me about this years ago? You know how helpful this would have been every time we went to war? You’ve got to tell King Richard about this. Mayhap his whole army can bathe in the flame and then no enemy will ever be able to kill them.”

“Nay!” shouted Orrick, feeling his anger rising to the surface. “This is exactly why I didn’t want anyone to know about it. It’s not to be used in that manner. It’s a sacred emblem that is only to be used for good. But now I see that it’s about to cause the suffering of many more than just me.”

“Suffering? How are you suffering, Orrick? What are you saying?”

“It’s a curse to be immortal, Lord Corbett. I wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemy.”

“I don’t understand. If it’s only for fifty years, it’s not like one is living forever. How long have you been the Keeper?”

“Too long,” said Orrick, not having the time to explain to Corbett why he’d been the Keeper of the Flame for over a hundred years now, and not wanting to relive his painful memories of the past.

“I still don’t understand,” said Corbett. “Why haven’t you told me about this before now?”

“Nay, I don’t suppose you could understand and that is why I kept my problems to myself through the years,” said Orrick sadly. “No mortal can understand what the Keeper is going through. Outliving all my friends and everyone I ever loved is not easy. Do you realize how hard it is to watch others suffer, get sick, grow old, and die while I cannot do a damned thing to stop it?”

“Nay, I suppose not. I never thought about immortality in that way before, but I suppose you’re right,” said Corbett in deep thought. “Mayhap it’s more of a curse than a blessing at times. I could not imagine outliving my wife, children, and grandchildren, having to watch as they grew old and died while I lived on forever.” Corbett sat back down with a plunk atop the chair, shaking his head.

“Now you see why the flame cannot get into the wrong hands. If used in the wrong way, it could be possible that enemies could defeat even the strongest of armies.”

“Where is the flame now, Orrick?” asked Corbett. But before he could answer, Corbett raised his palm in the air. “Nay. Don’t tell me. I don’t want to know and don’t want to be tempted by it. It’s better if you keep the information to yourself.”

“It’s in a safe place, let’s just leave it at that,” said Orrick. “However, now that Lady Hope and that cur, Lord Irwin, are looking for it, I’m afraid I’m going to have to do something to stop them.”

“I’m sorry, Orrick. I didn’t know anything about this when I made the deal with Lady Hope’s father to be her guardian. I’d like to send them away, but we have an agreement and an alliance. It wouldn’t be wise of me to break it.”

“Nay, I don’t want you to break it. I’ll just have to find a way to get them to leave. But first, I need to know more. I want to find out why they really want it and what they plan on doing with it.”

“That isn’t going to be easy,” said Corbett. “Lady Hope seems like a very determined woman and Lord Irwin doesn’t strike me as the kind of man who will tell you the truth about anything.”