Sobbing, the girl fell before the nonplussed young lord. “Lord diOnni, please forgive me and all of us here. We had no choice, I swear it! I beg of you, don’t have us killed!”
Raphael shook his head sadly, gently patting the young woman’s trembling form. “There, there, my dear. Rest assured, I have absolutely no desire to behead all my servitors. Who could possibly keep up the chateau then? I shall have a hard enough time getting things up and running again, as it is!”
The girl flashed Raphael a trembling smile. “Thank you, my lord.”
“Jess, we're running out of time!" Twilight's call brooked no argument.
Jess turned to Raphael. “Twilight’s found something. We have to go, now!”
Raphael nodded as Jess dashed ahead, Malek racing by her side, Raphael but steps behind them. Twilight calmly gazed at their approach. “I took a look inside. Someone is about to do something rather permanent to himself, and torch Lord diOnni’s study while he’s at it. If you are going to act, it had best be now.”
Jess grimaced, slamming out with her hand against the trembling surface of the thick hardwood door before them. “Open!” Jess shouted, and without even a pretext of happenstance, the door burst apart, wood flying in all directions, spooking a short, balding man, elegantly attired, gazing at them with feverish intensity. In one hand he held a flask he seemed to be struggling to sip, in the other hand he held a lamp over a pile of documents.
“Stop!” Jess roared. The shaken man, however, neatly tripped back on his own panicked feet, the lamp crashing atop him. He began to scream.
“Bloody hells. I think the fool set himself ablaze,” Malek grumbled even as he rushed over, offhandedly tearing off a wall tapestry, beating out the flames even as Jess came to his aid, Raphael rather adroitly rushing in and grabbing the entire stack of documents, placing them just outside the room with a great shudder of relief.
“Well, I think he’ll be fine now. In a matter of speaking,” Malek allowed, gazing down at the still screaming man, face a rictus of terror, still desperately clenching his unstoppered little flask, about to down the contents before Jess masterfully ripped it out of his hands. She eyed it carefully, sensing the dark herbal nature of its ingredients, frowning in distaste.
“Poison,” Jess hissed. “He was trying to kill himself.”
Malek shook his head. “For all that he was terrified of burning. Not that I blame him. When the diOnni clan is done with him, I’m sure he'll wish he had gotten off so lightly.”
Jessica's lips pressed together in a tight frown as she examined the wild-eyed man more closely. Somehow, she knew something was wrong, and not simply from the way the man was both pleading with and roaring at them, begging for forgiveness and coldly demanding they kill him.
She felt a familiar weight settle upon her shoulder. “Do you see it, my mistress?”
A sharp intake of breath and Jess realized that she did indeed see it. The dark chord of power that seemed to wind its serpentine way through the man’s skull, throbbing with ever greater intensity as the man desperately struggled and writhed in the tapestry now used to constrain him. With dreamlike calmness, Jess found her belt knife and gently scraped her cheek, somehow comforted by the hot sting of the cut, her blade now etched with her blood.
“By Dawn, your blade is smoking.” Raphael’s voice held just a hint of awe, even as Jess gently sliced the ethereal weave of dark power throbbing through the poor man’s mind. Jess felt the hint of a smile caress her lips as she heard a faint scream off in the distance with the cutting of the chord, even as she nodded her satisfaction.
Jess turned to a wide-eyed Raphael. “Our dear seneschal here was under a rather dark compulsion. I suspect his final orders were to burn any incriminating documents and kill himself, once it became clear that we had seized the field.”
Malek’s handsome features curled into a snarl. Rather fierce and wolf-like, Jess mused to herself. “Bloody hells. Dark arts again!”
Jess nodded. “Indeed.” She turned to the shuddering man who was shaking his head and blinking furiously, as if shaking himself free of a nightmare.
“By the gods, what did I just do?” The utterly disoriented seneschal glanced about himself in a sort of dazed horror. “Why in heaven's name am I in the master’s study?” He blinked again as Raphael kneeled beside Jess. “Master? Why are you here? Why weren’t you announced? Oh my, I must see to arrangements at once.” He shook his head in confusion, registering at last the tapestry that covered him. “I seem to be a bit… constrained, at the moment.”
Raphael flashed his most charming smile. “My dear Dayton. I do believe you’ve had a rather rough time of it, old chap. I don’t suppose you can tell me what has been happening here at the chateau since my last visit? Though it has been awhile, I must confess.”
Poor Dayton shivered, eyes filled with sudden terror. “Oh, by the gods. By the gods, my lord! The things I suddenly recall, as if I have been living these past months in an odd dream...” he gazed imploringly into Raphael’s sympathetic gaze “Oh I beg of you, my lord, tell me I have been ill, lost in a mad fugue. Tell me that all is well. Pray tell me that all is well, young master!”
Raphael gave a sympathetic shake of his head. “I’m afraid such is not the case, my dear Dayton. Though I must say that it is a relief to see that I can count on at least one of my favored housemen still maintaining their honor and loyalty, such that the darkest magics were needed to compel them.”
Dayton grimaced. “My lord, I swear to you! I love your family with all my heart. I would never betray you. Never betray any of you!” Tears began to stream from the man’s eyes. Raphael gently stroked the man’s brow.
“Fear not, Dayton. I have no doubt of that. One I trust implicitly has assured me that dark arts are to blame here, not you, my friend. Thus I shall recommend absolving you of all blame, when next I speak with Father. That being said, I am hoping very much that you can see through the dark haze our enemies put over you. I need for you to give me a sense of what exactly has been going on while my family has been sadly remiss in visiting our properties here.”
Dayton immediately nodded, flashing Raphael a look of pure gratitude as he was gently helped to his feet, Raphael handing the still trembling man a flask of water to ease his parched throat. “It all started some months back, my lord. We had a guest of note, well dressed and of noble temperament, visiting the chateau with his retinue of armsmen.”
Dayton’s lips pressed together in a frown of concentration. “I believe, wait, it escapes me, hold on but a moment...” The seneschal grimaced and rubbed his temples, muttering intently to himself. “Wait, yes. His name was Galeck Borson. Lord Galeck Borson. That’s it.” He blinked and shook his head, even as Jess exchanged a knowing look with her friends. “What did I say again? You were asking for the name of a guest, right? The man with the armed retinue? How odd that his name keeps slipping off my tongue. Normally I have a fair head for such things.”
Raphael gave Dayton a reassuring smile. “No worries on that account, my friend. Trouble yourself no further with his name. Instead, let us focus on his activities while he was visiting the chateau.”
Dayton dipped his head. "Of course, my lord. In any event, I had given him a tour of the property, as is our policy for any visiting guest." He blinked and rubbed his head. "For some reason, I thought he was expected. I was under the impression he was there on your father's behalf, young master Raphael. In any event, he was a charming conversationalist, and appeared well versed in matters of commerce and trade. I believe we spent a very convivial evening discussing the plight of trade within Erovering, as well as future trade routes we planned to pursue." Dayton blinked. "Though come to think of it, I don't recall why I was conversing so freely with him. In any event, we found any number of interesting topics to pursue in what I vaguely remember as being a most enjoyable discourse, and somehow our conversation had ended up touching upon artifacts, of all things.”
The seneschal blinked th
en, gazing up at Jess and Malek, turning his alarmed gaze toward Raphael.
And Jess turned to catch sight of Raphael gazing not at Dayton but at herself, staring at her with a look so tender, so profound, that Jess couldn't help but blush, knowing she was utterly unworthy of that adoration she sensed, as if she were his savior in truth.
Her friend's elegant features abruptly broke out in a brilliant smile, even as he turned to address his seneschal. "It is quite all right, my dear Dayton. The pair before you is responsible for nothing less than saving my life, even at this very moment covered with the heart's-blood of those who would have placed my own head upon the chopping block of their machinations. They have already proven themselves as staunch a pair of allies as our House could ever hope to have. Whatever you have to say, you have my permission to speak freely, about all things."
Lips pressed tightly together, Dayton looked troubled but nodded his head in deference to Raphael’s request. “As you will, master Raphael. Besides informing me that his retinue was to stay and bolster our own house guard, which oddly enough seemed to be a perfectly reasonable declaration at the time, the majority of those candlelit hours were spent going through the House accounts, such as we have here at the chateau.” The man shuddered. “Besides taking a thorough inventory of your assets, this lord spent most of his time here trying to place the whereabouts of one particular artifact of questionable origin that your grandfather had managed to acquire, though through trade or as a legitimate prize of war, the records are less than clear on.”
Raphael raised a polite eyebrow. With trembling hands, Dayton flipped through the pile of documents Raphael had rescued, pulling out one in particular that showed a rather exquisite rendering of what looked to be a small golden chalice decorated with large rubies and filled with a dark liquid of some sort. For some reason, just seeing the artist’s exquisitely precise rendering, drawn and shaded so carefully so as to make it almost appear that one could lift it straight off the parchment, left Jess feeling shaken and out of sorts.
Jess shuddered, imagining herself suddenly in the grip of a terrible winter storm roaring through her very soul, ghostly winds howling horrors unimaginable into frost-numbed ears.
“That sketch shouldn’t exist,” Twilight hissed. Jess turned her head to gaze at her suddenly restless looking familiar. “That should not be here, Jess. Not in this time and place.”
“Twilight?” Jess whispered even as she tried to shake off that numbing jolt of horror, rarely having seen her familiar look so bothered, his ears flicking back in agitation. “Are you okay, kitty?” Jess asked in genuine concern.
Her familiar sighed, gazing at her with his typical bemused affection. "I suspect we shall soon be in the thick of it once more, beloved mistress. And I, for one, could really use a fish before fending off the forces of Hades yet again."
Jess cracked a smile. “That's my kitty! Such a flare for the dramatic. As soon as we finish up here, we’ll do a reconnaissance of the rest of the chateau, and then I have no doubt our good Raphael’s cook will whip us up any number of tasty treats. Isn’t that right, Raphael?”
Her friend blinked, flashing Jess a troubled smile. “I shall see to it right away, my friend. It is just that I am afraid I have some rather grave news.”
Jess swallowed. “It’s about the depiction of that chalice there, isn’t it?”
Raphael nodded. "I'm afraid so." He took a deep breath. "I have not been quite as forthcoming as I might have been when we used to share our… impromptu meetings." He glanced at Dayton, not wanting to mention the name of their little coven, The Circle of Midnight, back when life had been far more innocent and simple, and the seven of them would sneak off to a near-abandoned library and discuss all manner of gossip and flirtation, under the pretext of seeking hidden avenues of power and knowledge. Of course, for most of them it had been little more than a lark, an excuse to socialize and snuggle with their beaus away from prying eyes, the search for hidden lore being but a pretext.
Raphael cleared his throat. “In any case, Jess, in addition to being on familiar terms with the Adventurers Guild, the diOnni clan has stumbled across an artifact here and there in our many years as a trading concern.” He flashed a deprecatory smile. “In fact, for a clan free of Delvers, we boast as impressive a collection as anyone outside the Guild might possess, I suspect, but that is neither here nor there. Suffice it to say that we have a time or two stumbled upon artifacts of a, how to put it, less than wholesome nature?”
Raphael suddenly paled, immediately raising his hands in a placating gesture, Jess only realizing at that moment that she was glaring.
“Sorry, Raphael,” Jess apologized. “Please, continue.”
“Quite all right, Jess. To be honest, until very recently, we thought diabolism something of an archaic dark religion. A quaint affectation of those various fractious elements of noble society from centuries back who fancied themselves above the status quo.” Raphael gave a solemn shake of his head. “Though with the attacks upon the academy, and the rumors surrounding them, obviously there is a bit more to it than that. What is all the more troubling is that this Galeck Borson character has gone to such great lengths to find out all he could about this artifact, no doubt seeking to steal or otherwise leverage it away from Father’s collection.”
Twilight glared at Raphael, who shivered, looking about in sudden trepidation. “Did you hear something, Jess?”
“Do these fools even know what they have in their possession?” Twilight continued to stare coldly at the nervous looking young lord.
“I swear, Jess, for just a second everything went black.” Raphael blinked and shuddered. “Have you ever found yourself wondering what it would be like to be sucked out of the world entirely, left helplessly adrift in the icy blackness between the stars soaring so high above us?”
Jess sighed. “No I haven't, Raphael. And neither should you. Now what can you tell me about this chalice?”
Raphael frowned, looking carefully at the sketching. “According to Grandfather’s notes, it was once used in some sort of ancient ceremony. I believe it was referred to, at least from what he could piece together, as the Chalice of Absolution.”
Jess felt a terrible sense of foreboding with those words. Her heart began to race once more, her stomach twisting in knots, as if she were preparing to lead the charge into battle once more. "I don't think it would be a good idea to let this thing fall into Galeck Borson's hands," Jess quietly said.
Malek gazed at his shieldsister in sudden concern. “Jess, are you all right? You look pale as a ghost for some reason.” He then grabbed a handcloth, wet it, and began to methodically wipe her face, avoiding only the spot where she had cut herself.
“Malek, what are you doing?”
“Wiping the blood off,” he soothed. “I just realized you are a bit of a mess, shieldsister.”
Jess grinned. “So are you, my dear Malek. So are you.” And he was. Armor and face covered in dried crimson flecks despite the helmet he had worn, testament to the fierce battle they had fought and survived, against what should have been overwhelming odds. Eloquin, Jess thought with some satisfaction, would most definitely have been proud.
Jess turned to an openly smiling Raphael. His gaze was somehow approving. Jess quirked an eyebrow. Raphael lowered his eyes but continued to grin.
“About the chalice,” Jess said, and Raphael nodded, focusing upon the task at hand.
“Yes. The chalice.” He cleared his throat. “In truth, my family has had misgivings about it since Grandfather’s time, but we’ve been quite content to keep it rather safely stored away in one of our treasure vaults, the construction of which would do even master Rens proud, I think.”
Jess nodded. “Any chance your father would be willing to part with it?”
Raphael frowned, giving a slow shake of his head. “In truth, I doubt it. I’ve written to Father several times since you and Malek first stepped into living dream, defeating that dark lich. Let me assure
you, Jess, besides being profuse in his admiration for my choice of friends, my father made it clear that he wanted to distance himself from certain… elements that might be interested in grandfather’s collection. Honestly, Jess, before today I thought the chalice just one of our family’s dark little secrets not worth troubling anyone over. Certainly Father would be hesitant to sell it to anyone he was afraid might use it as beacon of sorts to establish any sort of dark cult with which to foment rebellion against the status quo, even if he is privately skeptical that any of the artifacts in our collection hold any power, save that of history and beauty.”
Jess nodded. “I get the feeling that perhaps this is more than some jaded nobleman’s toy used to justify midnight orgies or such.”
Twilight chuckled softly. "You are correct, my Jess. Its powers are far more vile than facilitating mere hedonism, I assure you." Twilight gazed at the rendering thoughtfully for a few moments more before almost obsessively grooming himself. "It troubles me more than I care to admit that both this chalice and the Wand of Dreams are in play at the same time. If the two are used in tandem the results would be… unpleasant. Results that I fear might necessitate the catalyzing of things that have happily lain dormant for many years."
Jess shivered, feeling unaccountably troubled by her familiar’s grim tidings. “It would be a very good idea if your father kept a firm hold of this artifact, Raphael, so that it didn’t fall into the wrong hands.”
Raphael nodded in heartfelt agreement. “Well I suspect I know where we shall next be heading off to.” He chuckled softly, eliciting a grin from Jess.
Dayton gasped, as if he were just now blinking himself to true wakefulness. "Oh, young master! Heavens above, be careful. That Captain Petrie means to hold you captive, hold any member of your family who comes to visit captive, and send for Lord Borson the moment that he does!"
Jess grimaced. "Now the pieces start to come together. Why they must have been trying to intercept you back at the college, clever enough to leave reinforcements here to catch you or any family that came this way, in case we escaped the hook of his trap at Highrock! If Galeck can grab ahold of you, he can use you as leverage against your father in return for this chalice."
Shadow Knight Page 39
