Wraith King

by Jack Porter

  Holding the sheet to my crotch, I said, “What’s going on?” I asked. “Your Grace,” I added as an afterthought.

  “You may call me Nya,” she said. “Ashyn is what I was called as a young elfling in the royal court. When I took my throne, I took on the name Nya.”

  “Thank you, Nya,” I said. I still felt a bit awkward about the whole situation, and it had nothing to do with the fact that I was naked.

  Mostly.

  This morning, Nya was dressed in what could be called half armor. She wore a chest plate that covered both of her ample breasts, bracers on her arms, shoulder armor that I still couldn’t remember the name of, as well as what looked like leather leggings and then an armored belt. Her midriff was exposed, but she wore an elegant cloak on her shoulders that was the color of honey and perfectly accented her hair. She was breathtaking to look at.

  “Do you like what you see?” she asked me.

  I cleared my throat. “I didn’t mean to offend you.”

  “Don’t worry, you didn’t.” She said this with no expression on her face, and it left me to wonder what she really meant by it. The customs here were so different from my own, and Nya had been kind enough to me that I didn’t want to offend her after she had taken me under her protection.

  “I like what I see,” she said, smirking.

  I smiled, thinking that I liked the way she was so direct with me. Most women were not. I wondered if it was a quality of the elves or a quality of all the females in this world. “Since we are being honest,” I said, “I like what I see, too.”

  I held my breath, waiting to see if she would get mad, or even consider slapping me. But she did none of those things, and nearly smiled for real. “I’m glad to know where I stand with you, then,” she said.

  “I am naked,” I said, gesturing to the sheet I still held over my crotch with my other hand. “And while I’m glad that I please you, I suppose I should get dressed for the day.”

  Nya’s eyes twinkled with mischief, but she nodded. Walking back through the door, she said, turning, “I’m going scouting again, this time with my guard. And I would like you to go with me, Jon-man.”

  “I would be happy to,” I said. “But I’m afraid I’m not much of a rider.”

  “You did all right yesterday. And I will make sure your mount is steady. In any case, if you are to stay with us for any length of time, you must learn how to ride a horse. Better that you start your education now, human.”

  I nodded. “As you command, Your Grace.”

  “I told you, call me Nya.”

  I smiled.

  “Oh,” she said, realization donning. “Just with me, though. Be sure that Alayna doesn’t hear you do that.”

  Realizing that although Nya pretended like she was leaving, she had no intention of missing the show. So who was I to deny her? I dropped the sheet and began pulling on my clothes.

  “Was Alayna the elf ruler on the middle throne?” I asked as I tied soft leather pants up around my hips.

  “Yes,” Nya said, still watching me. “You would do well to watch your step around her. She’s my sister, but there’s no love lost between us.”

  I had surmised as much, but hearing it from Nya didn’t make me feel any better about it.

  19

  Turning, I pulled on the woven shirt that had been left for me. It was much finer material than the tunic I had worn earlier, and I felt comfortable for the first time since falling into this shithole of a country. After putting on a belt, and even attaching the dagger that had been left for me, I felt like a normal human again. Well, at least as normal as I could feel in Hell.

  After nodding her approval, Nya led me out of the tower into the castle stables. These were much finer than the ones at the city gates. There, she mounted a fine dappled stallion, hopping into the saddle as if she had flown there.

  “Where is Ilana?” I asked.

  “Do you prefer her company?” Nya asked.

  “I just wanted to make sure she was okay,” I said. It wasn’t entirely true. I wouldn’t have minded another glimpse of the succubus, either, even if I never intended to take her up on her offer.

  Nya seemed to realize this, and said, “The succubus did not want to spend the day riding. As she is my guest, I will not demand it of her, whereas our errand has a specific purpose for you. I have also confined her to her room while I am not here since she is not to be trusted around the castle.”

  I climbed into my own saddle, on top of a solid brown mare, and frowned. “That doesn’t seem fair.”

  Nya scowled. “Have you ever seen what happens to a male after he has lain with a succubus?”

  I shook my head. “I had never even met a succubus until I met Ilana. Hell, I didn’t even know they existed until I met Ilana.”

  “It is a fate worse than death,” Nya replied. Her dappled stallion danced beneath her. “There is no honor in dying in the arms of the succubus, Jon-man. And when you resisted Ilana, I thought that maybe you were different than other males in Hell. Most of them would have fucked her there on the road after they had freed her. And then they would have died, either from the arrows of the villagers or by Ilana’s own hand.”

  I stared at Nya, looking for a hint of a joke. But she was serious. “For the moment,” I said, “I have no intention of fucking her. But I won’t deny that I wasn’t tempted. Does that bother you?”

  Nya smirked, and I was beginning to see it was one of her signature expressions. “I have now taken you under my protection, Jon. That includes not letting other creatures seduce you to your death.” She frowned. “But the decision is always yours, and if you are asking if I’m jealous, then that is something that only humans worry about.”

  “Elves don’t get jealous?” I asked, slightly mischievously.

  She turned her horse around and trotted toward the first gate. Her stallion seemed to fly over the ground. “No, Jon-man. Because as soon as they have been with an elf, a man doesn’t want to be with anyone else,” she called back.

  I barely touched my heels to my horse’s flank, and it bolted forward, nearly unseating me. But I hung on for all I was worth and followed Nya’s disappearing form down the street.

  20

  Instead of leading us back through the city, Nya and I met her guard at another small gatehouse tucked into the wall on the north side of the castle. This one, called a postern, was not ornate, nor was it big enough for an elephant like the front gates. It was barely big enough for horse and rider.

  The guards here opened the portcullis and gates when they saw us coming, about twenty riders in all. Each guard was almost as beautiful as Nya. I say almost because already Nya felt a bit special to me. But her guards were dressed similar to her, except their cloaks were red with gold trim.

  When we rode through the gates, we emerged outside the wall, not into another part of the city, but onto a drawbridge that spanned over to a stone mountain road. The road itself seemed to float in the air until it joined with the mountain. Like a skybridge. The bridge had no railing, of course, and it took us straight over the deep cavern they used as a moat, which ran closer to this side of the keep, but much farther down when viewed from here. To keep from getting dizzy again, I didn’t look down until we were firmly on the other side. Being a climber, I could handle heights, but that crevasse and that blue light still unnerved me.

  The journey was treacherous, and more than once, I was thankful for a surefooted horse. We rode for an hour along a trail that would not have been visible unless we knew it was there. It led us up and up until we crossed over a mountain ridge. The wind buffeted us, and I turned in my saddle to look in every direction at the wasteland of Hell.

  It wasn’t all plains and wasteland, though. There were dark forests, too. One was laid out below us and covered the entire valley. Once, when I looked back, I saw two of Nya’s guard smiling at each other, their cheeks a bit red. Perhaps they were making a joke at my expense. I’m sure I was a terrible rider. Shrugging it off, I tur
ned back in my saddle and minded my own business.

  Finally, Nya stopped, dismounted, and signaled to me to do the same. I slid out of my saddle less gracefully than she had and noticed some inconvenient chafing in my groin area. Yet I tried to walk as normally as possible as we left the rest of her guard behind and continued up a footpath along the mountain.

  “Where are we going?” I asked.

  “To someplace sacred to the elves,” she said. She unhooked a skin from her belt and handed it to me. I removed the top and smelled it. Wine.

  “Go ahead,” she said. “Some of the finest of the castle.”

  I smiled. “Are you trying to get me drunk?” I took a swig of it. It was rich, dry, and delicious.

  Nya laughed. “It is mostly what we drink in the castle. Although if you prefer water, I can make sure there’s always some in your chambers.”

  “I have a feeling that I won’t be able to handle as much wine as you.” I took another swig and then put the cap back on. Nya took it from me and took a drink herself.

  “Humans are so frail,” she said. She wasn’t insulting me, merely stating a fact.

  I didn’t want to argue with her, but I felt like she was being a bit unfair. I had saved her from that sorcerer, after all. Well, I had done the first part by killing him. She had taken on her share.

  “We are heading to the Elfstone,” she said after a moment. “It’s not far. There’s something that I want to show you. Tell me, Jon. Are all men where you come from as assertive as you?”

  The question threw me off guard, and I didn’t know how to answer her. I didn’t think I’d been that assertive around her. Mostly, I’d been content to let Nya take the lead. “Most men where I come from are similar to me. Some are much more assertive, as you call it, and aggressive. And others… Not so much. I would say that I am about middle-of-the-road. I mean, I got in a fight just the other night after I’d had too much to drink. But it was in defense of a woman, if that helps.”

  “You defended another woman?” Nya asked.

  I looked at her, at the way she walked steadily up the mountain, confident and at ease. She seemed genuinely curious. “Yes,” I answered. “Her boyfriend was treating her like a piece of trash. And that’s something I can’t stand.”

  “Why didn’t she just thrash him?”

  “He was a lot bigger than she was,” I said. “And, in my world, women aren’t always taught to stand up for themselves. So sometimes men do it for them.”

  Nya stopped and looked at me. “Strange.”

  “I suppose,” I said. “But to me, it is pretty strange the way things are done in your land. Not bad. Just strange.”

  We crossed over to a small area that was sheltered by the harsh winds. There in the center was a plain dark stone that stood like an obelisk surrounded by a ring of smaller stones. It would have been taller, but it was broken at the top, and I didn’t see the pieces laying anywhere around. As we approached, I saw there was writing on the stone in a language I didn’t know.

  “This is what you wanted me to see?” I asked.

  Nya nodded.

  I approached the stone, looking at the writing, which didn’t make any more sense now that I saw it close up. “What does it say?”

  “To be brief, it is a prophecy that many of the dark elves no longer believe. Although a portion of it is forever lost.” She reached up to feel the broken stone above her head.

  I turned to look at Nya and saw the determination in her eyes. “You told Ilana that you believed in prophecy,” I said. “Do you believe in this one?”

  “I do.”

  “What does this it say?” I asked. “Will you translate it?”

  “Not yet. Not word for word. But it tells the story of a king who will defeat our enemies.”

  “And your enemies are the wraiths? And the Wraith King?” I asked.

  “They are,” Nya said. “And anyone else who allies themselves with them. For instance, that sorcerer that you killed.”

  I turned completely now to study her face. “Why did you want to show me this?”

  Nya circled the stone, running her hands over the symbols etched into its face. When she returned to the side I was on, she looked me straight in the eye. “Because this new king who defeats our enemies is said to come from another world. A world beyond the portal.”

  21

  I smiled, thinking that this was her idea of a joke. When her gaze remained determined, however, the grin slid from my face.

  “I am not a king,” I said.

  “What about in your world?” she asked.

  Now I did laugh. Then I shook my head. “Not even close. We don’t even have many kings left anymore, and definitely no king in my country.”

  “That does not mean the prophecy is untrue.” She took my hand. “Jon, no one ever comes from beyond the portal. The Wraith King protects it, guards it with a host of his minions. It is there at the very seat of his power. You say you are not one of them, and I believe you. Then it follows that you have some magic, some ability that has brought you to us. Why if not to lead us into battle?”

  “I have never fought in a battle,” I said. I squeezed her hand.

  The elf shook her head. “I have seen you. You could not have overthrown that sorcerer if you did not have magic in your blood.”

  I looked back at Elfstone, and then up at the red sky that was beginning to dim once again. It seemed that the days were shorter in this world than they were in mine, and it was depressing. “Nya, I don’t know anything about magic or kings. I wish that I did. I also wish that I knew how to fight this Wraith King for you. But, my goal is to get back through that portal and go home.”

  Disappointment flickered across the elf’s face, but she hid it quickly. “Then, to do that, human, you must fight the Wraith King. Which means that for now, our goals are the same.”

  “To be clear,” I said. “I am not part of this prophecy.”

  “If you say so, Jon-man. Come, the light fades, and we must return to the castle before night.”

  We had only taken a few steps out of the ring when Nya halted and drew her sword. I tensed, thinking that I had disappointed her more than I originally thought and that she was going to murder me. But then I saw at least ten wraiths headed toward us from above, their bodies sliding down the mountain as if they were spiders.

  Nya said something in a language I didn’t understand, but her meaning was clear. She was swearing. I looked around for her guard, but we’re still too far away from them. The wraiths would reach us before we reached the horses.

  Drawing a small dagger from my belt, I held it in front of me, feeling as if it was very insufficient for the enemies now approaching.

  “Stay behind me,” she commanded.

  “Can you fight them all by yourself?” I asked.

  But the wraiths had already descended upon us, and the elf stepped forward to meet them, her blade swinging and catching the red light. Three wraiths set upon her at once, forcing her back toward the Elfstone. I followed, not wanting to let the enemies get between us. But soon I couldn’t worry about that, for the remaining wraiths came after me.

  “Shit,” I said. Keeping my dagger up and Elfstone near my back, I managed to keep the remaining seven wraiths in my view. The sound of metal on metal rang out as the elf engaged her foes in a sword fight. I heard a blade slice through flesh and glanced over, terrified that she had been slain. But Nya had defeated one wraith and was attacking the other two. One of the wraiths circling me left to fight her, and I thought that they were trying to kill her and take me prisoner.

  To what end, I couldn’t see, but I wasn’t about to let that happen. I darted forward, narrowly avoiding a wraith’s outstretched sword, and plunged the dagger into its chest. It screeched and reeled back. I yanked my dagger out and grabbed for the sword. But the wraith wasn’t dead yet, and it wouldn’t let go. Strong hands gripped me as the other wraiths hauled me off the dying one. I slashed at them with my dagger and felt flesh
give way, severing a wraith’s hand.

  And then Nya was there, cutting down my enemies in a battle rage. The creatures turned to focus on her, and I used that to my advantage. I stabbed where I thought there was a throat for the nearest wraith and was rewarded by feeling hot black blood flow down over my hand. It was disgusting, but I wrenched away from it and attacked the next nearest creature.

  Nya killed three of them for every one that I killed, and I vaguely thought that I needed to learn how to use a sword. She killed the last one by beheading it, and then stood panting over its dead body, her beautiful clothing spattered in black blood, and her hair plastered to her face with sweat.

  We heard the sound of her guard racing toward us then, but they were too late. There was nothing for them to do, and Nya scowled at them before standing proudly in the middle of her slain enemies.

  The captain of her guard, a terrifying looking elf with black hair, looked dismayed. Her face and body were covered in sweat, though, and her armor looked askew. “Your Grace—” she began.

  Nya held up her hand to silence her. “I will hear your excuses later, Jani. For now, we must return to the castle and report. The fact that our enemies dare to venture this close is troubling.”

  She looked at me, her eyes scanning swiftly for injury. I shook my head. I was shaken, but uninjured, and once again in need of a bath.

  “You fought well, Jon. You say you have never been in battle before, and I see you were telling the truth. However,” she said as we hurried back toward the horses, “you fight with courage. I will make sure you are armed and trained. Where is that whip you stole from the sorcerer?”

  “In my room. I didn’t think I would need it.”

  We reached the horses and mounted, taking off at a pace I would have been afraid to set on my own.

  “From now on,” Nya said from the front of the line, “carry it with you at all times.”