King of the Unblessed

by Michelle M. Pillow

  “Has he said what he wants?” William asked.

  Thomas sighed. Hugh didn’t move.

  “Well?” William prompted.

  “There’s been no word of ransom,” Hugh said after a long pause, his words as stiff as his body.

  “What mischief is this?” William whispered. He began to pace, mumbling to himself. It was a sight they had seen often as boys.

  “William,” Hugh stated, his voice stern. “There’s no time for this. We must concentrate and come up with a plan.”

  “What?” William blinked. He scratched behind his ear, humming thoughtfully. “So, no ransom? Did he say what he wanted with our sister?”

  “William,” Thomas said, able to tolerate his oddness better than Hugh. “Do you know something? What have you heard?”

  “Well, the king, he took her,” William said. He studied them carefully before shaking his head in distraction.

  “King Henry kidnapped our sister?” Thomas repeated carefully. The very idea was ridiculous.

  “Nay, nay, that’s right. They don’t know, do they?” William turned to look his brothers in the eye, adding, “You don’t know, do you? I forget sometimes. To me it’s as common as the sun shining and you don’t know.”

  “He’s gone mad,” Hugh said under his breath. Thomas saw the concern in him. He felt it too. William had been away the good part of five years, studying with the monks at a nearby monastery. Every time they met with the youngest brother, he’d become stranger and stranger. Both Hugh and Thomas were sure William would someday take his orders, and for that reason they left him where he was, though the youngest had never given any real indication one way or another. “I feared this would someday happen. William, what has gone on with you?”

  “Are you seated?” William said, glancing back and forth quickly between them.

  Thomas frowned. They were both seated. He was tired and had an ache in the back of his skull that radiated down his spine.

  “William, concentrate!” Hugh said.

  “Right, right.” William nodded, looking around. “Let’s see. The castle? Aye, you’re right, start with the castle.”

  “William?” Hugh said, standing. “Who are you talking to?”

  “Nay, nay, sit.” William waved Hugh down. “You’re too big to pick up off the floor. Let’s see, ah, aye, a simple trick should do it.”

  William reached into his robe and pulled out a wand. Licking his lips, he cleared his throat. “Something small, I think. Ah, wine.”

  William flicked his wrist, mumbled something they couldn’t understand under his breath and then grinned. Thomas frowned. He glanced over his shoulder. Nothing was changed.

  Hugh scowled. “What?”

  “I filled your wine,” William said, pointing at Hugh’s goblet. “There, see.”

  Thomas and Hugh both leaned over and looked into the goblet. It was full.

  “The servant was just here,” Hugh said. He stood, prompting Thomas to do the same. They walked around the table, coming down off the platform. “I will get you a physician and a priest. The best care, but I want you to come live here at Bellemare. I promise, William, you will be looked after.”

  “Ah, nay, wait. I’m not mad. I can prove it.” William looked quickly around the hall. Seeing the servant girl standing in attendance with her pitcher, he pointed at her and blurted, “Digitalis purpurea!”

  She gasped, her eyes widening as she stayed frozen to her spot. Thomas and Hugh studied her from across the long hall. She looked unchanged.

  “Wil—” Thomas began.

  “Nay, shh, just wait.” William waved his hand for silence, staring at the servant. He moved toward her. Thomas and Hugh shared a look and then moved to follow. “I’m still young and it takes a while.”

  The woman glanced from one brother to the next, shaking uncontrollably at their rapt attention. The pitcher of wine dropped from her finger, crashing on the floor. Suddenly, brown and red scabs formed on her hands, growing on her skin. She screamed, a high-pitched sound of terror. Her body jerked. She couldn’t move. The scabs traveled over her arm, up her throat, covering her mouth until her voice stopped.

  William grinned. “There, see.”

  “What devil’s madness…” Thomas’ jaw dropped in awe.

  “Cease at once!” Hugh ordered. “William!”

  “Cease? Oh, right, cease.” William pointed at the servant and said, “Aeruprup Silatigid.”

  Almost instantly her skin cleared. The sounds of her screams echoed in the hall as she ran away, terrified. Thomas couldn’t move as he stared at his younger brother.

  William frowned after her. “Wonder what’s the matter with her? It was just a simple spell.”

  “What kind of monk are you?” Thomas asked in awe. He’d never seen anything like it in his life. He shook his head.

  “Monk? I’m not a monk,” William said, chuckling. “I’m a wizard, well, an apprentice anyway. A monk? That’s what you thought I’ve been doing all these years?”

  “You were at a monastery,” Thomas reasoned.

  “We’re all tired. We’re seeing things that cannot be,” Hugh said. “We should try to sleep for an hour before we renew our search. I’ve already sent men to the west boundaries. There’s not much else we can—”

  “Do you truly know about none of this?” William looked surprised. “I mean, I know you don’t know Rees, but have you never suspected the truth?”

  “About what?” Thomas took a deep breath. He knew what he’d seen with his eyes. He just didn’t know what to make of it. “Who?”

  “Well, about magic?” William asked.

  “Magic?” Hugh repeated. His voice rose as he swore, “I will not have this family making deals with the devil.”

  “But, Juliana, she knows?” William looked from one man to the other, confused. Thomas shook his head. His gut tightened, thinking of his sister. “Her stories…I…I just assumed she knew. We never talked of it, but… Well, then, how did she know to draw his notice? I just assumed she’d asked him to come to end the wedding and got more than she bargained for.”

  “So help me, William, you had better collect yourself,” Hugh warned. He pointed a finger at him. “My patience is thin as it is. I will not have you speaking of our sister making pacts with the devil.”

  “Nay, hardly the devil. Have you never wondered how it is our family is so blessed?” William asked. “Our horses breed the best stocks, our weather is always the fairest, our lands are fertile, our armies strong, our—”

  “We get the point,” Thomas interrupted.

  “It’s because we work hard,” Hugh asserted.

  “It’s because we have help. We’re blessed,” William added.

  “By God, aye.” Hugh nodded.

  “Him, too.” William paced the floor as he talked, waving his hands. “But we’re also blessed by the King Ean of Tegwen, ruler of the Blessed Kingdom. It goes back to our great-great—well, an ancestor of some sort who saved the old King’s daughter and married her. She became mortal and died. The king was sad, he died, and now Ean, his grandson rules Tegwen. Oh, why didn’t I think of it before! That has to be what this is about.”

  Thomas shivered. William was serious. Their brother had never been one to lie. He might be eccentric, but he was always honest.

  “Our ancestor was the daughter of a king?” Hugh prompted. “Nay, such things would be in our records.”

  “Aye, though I believe she was married to a brother of our direct bloodline. As far as I know, they had no children of their own but claimed their nieces and nephews,” William answered before mumbling, “That’s why Merrick… He seeks to… Aye, aye. Oh, nay, nay. That cannot be good.”

  “What?” Hugh demanded. “William, explain yourself!”

  “Methinks the King of the Unblessed takes Juliana for revenge against his brother. You see, King Ean took Merrick’s throne and cursed him. Or so some of the legends say.” William paled dramatically. “If this is about revenge, then y
ou have to go after her. She’s in grave danger.”

  “Wait, how do you know all this? How do you even know this Merrick has her?” Hugh asked.

  “Merrick is King of Valdis, Ruler of the Unblessed,” William said. “He is…was Ean’s brother. He was supposed to be King of Tegwen, but something happened. None of us are sure what.”

  “Aye, good and evil, blessed and unblessed,” Thomas answered, trying to make sense of it.

  “Nay, evil would be King Lucien of the Damned. When you go to the Otherworld, stay away from him. He’s pure evil. King Merrick is more of a necessary evil. He’ll not save you, but he’ll most likely not kill you either without cause. But let me tell you, there are worse things to be had at his hand than death. Now, King Ean is basically good but, as with all things, good is subjective to the beholder. Watch for him as well. There isn’t much to be said of him in the scrolls. Oh, and it’d be best not to draw the notice of the lesser kings or the faery queen. They don’t have as much power, but they can be a tad meddlesome at times. Other than that, you should be well. At least, I can’t think of anything at the moment.”

  “And you think this Merrick has our sister?” Thomas shook his head. This was too much.

  “Thomas, you’re listening to this?” Hugh asked.

  “How can I not?” Thomas believed what William said. Somehow, he just felt it was true. “I mean, think of it. Haven’t you always known but never wanted to question? In tournament, haven’t there been times when the lance should have struck you from your horse and hasn’t?”

  “Aye,” Hugh whispered, nodding slowly. “Oft.”

  “And haven’t you felt it?” William asked eagerly.

  “I know Juliana has,” Hugh admitted, though his words were reluctant. Thomas studied William. “How is it you know all this and accept it? Why you?”

  “When I was younger, after one of Juliana’s stories, I trapped a…ah…” William’s words trailed off.

  “A what?” Thomas insisted, impatient. If their sister had been kidnapped by an evil king, they needed to go get her. They didn’t have time for childhood stories.

  “I caught a nymph in the woods. Her name was Meliades. She was beautiful and naked and had great breasts.” William grinned. A besotted look clouded his eyes. Thomas cleared his throat to draw his attention back to the matter at hand. “In exchange for her freedom, she introduced me to Father Gerald and he’s apprenticed me ever since. It was he who got the message that Juliana was taken by Merrick to the Otherworld. Though I’m not sure who told him.”

  “William, I do want to believe you, but it’s—” Hugh began.

  “Then believe me,” came a strange voice.

  Thomas’ gaze darted to a little creature that appeared by William’s foot. His short brown hair was unkempt and he wore a bright green tunic that fell to his thighs. His wide blue eyes looked up at them, almost too big for his face.

  “What is that?” Thomas asked William, pointing at the small creature and not sure if lack of sleep was getting to him.

  “The name's Rees,” the creature said, bowing gallantly. “I’m a spright. More importantly, I’m Bellemare’s spright. I help breed the horses. Now, Heinic, the garden gnome, he’s who you thank for that little piece of heaven out by the kitchens. Giles is your household brownie, though he be scarce most days. Quite taken to drink, that one is. That’s why your pantry is collecting dust. There are more of us. Your brother’s right when he says you’re a blessed lot. King Alwyn, rest him, ordered us here to your keep many, many years ago and here we’ve been, watching after you. Right proud we are of you, too. We especially like sitting with the children to listen to Lady Juliana tell stories. You’re a noble, honorable lot of—”

  “And you believe this Merrick killed my father.” They turned, seeing Nicholas in the entryway to the stairwell. Thomas wondered how much he’d overheard. Nicholas’ gaze roamed over the small man, but he didn’t acknowledge him otherwise. His face turned red and his breathing deepened. Looking to the three brothers, he said, “I’m going with or without you. I will find this Merrick and avenge my father. I will not let him have Lady Juliana.”

  “Merrick killed Lord Eadward?” William asked in surprise. “When?”

  “Last night. Around the same time Juliana was taken.” Hugh eyed the spright warily. Rees grinned up at him and winked. Hugh drew back ever so slightly.

  “He was slaughtered like an animal in his bed whilst he slept,” Nicholas spat. “And all so this coward, Merrick, could come steal his bride.”

  “Slaughtered?” William frowned, shaking his head. His confusion only deepened on his face. He looked at Rees. “That makes no sense.”

  Rees only shrugged. He still stared dreamy-eyed at Hugh. Hugh shifted uncomfortably on his feet. Rees leaned forward and said, “My lord, I’ve been meaning to talk to you about your sword arm.”

  Hugh shook himself, ignoring the creature as he said to William, “So you think this Merrick couldn’t do it?”

  “Could? Aye, he could. He has the magic to go where he will. It’s hard to explain. In his world, he’s more limited, though still very powerful. Here, in our world, he’s freer, especially since we only use small protection magic—a strand of garlic in a threshold, holy water for demons, salt, poppy seeds—”

  “Then he’s the one,” Nicholas said. “You yourself claimed he’s a necessary evil. Well, then I say we rid the world of him.”

  “Another will only take his place,” William said, his voice low. “There is no way to rid the world of what he is. There have been worse unblessed kings in his place and there will be so again.”

  “But I will rid the world of him,” Nicholas swore vehemently. His whole body shook. “You did not see my father’s body. There is practically nothing left to bury.”

  “How do we get there?” Hugh asked, his voice practical.

  “Getting there’s easy. You get there the same way you get anywhere. You step out your castle gate prepared with the knowledge to go. It’s getting home that is the hard part. You leave from one point to many, but you come back from many points to one.”

  “It doesn’t matter,” Hugh said. “Juliana’s out there. She’s our blood. We have to go.”

  “Rees, please inform King Ean of what has happened here. He might be able to talk some sense into his brother,” William said. Rees bowed and disappeared. Then, to Thomas and Hugh, he said, “I wish you luck, my brothers. You’ll need it,”

  Hugh frowned. “You’re coming with us. You know about this place.”

  “Ah, about that, I wish I could, but I can’t.” William shrugged, helpless. He motioned the men to follow him as he made his way abovestairs to the bedchambers. “I’m banned due to a rather embarrassing misunderstanding about a giant’s daughter’s virtue. With me on the journey, you’d be sure to attract some very large, very unwanted attention. I swear the baby’s not mine, but Angus won’t hear it. Until the matter’s settled, I’m stuck in the mortal realm.”

  “They think…?” Thomas started to ask, frowning. William coupled with a giant? It was…impossible. Wasn’t it?

  “Oh, aye, that I did.” William grinned, nodding. He paused in the stairwell, sighing dreamily. Hugh nudged his arm to get him walking. “Many, many times. But, you see, I was not the first to till that soil. Try telling that to the woman’s father though. He was none too happy to hear it.”

  * * *

  “What manner of creatures are you?” Juliana questioned the two men on her shoulder. They sat, lightly kicking their feet in an annoyingly steady rhythm against her skin.

  “Us?” Halton asked.

  “Of course she means us,” Gorman answered. “Who else would she mean?”

  She felt them jerk and knew they were fighting again. Gorman had already fallen off twice since they’d left the stream. It hadn’t taken him long to clean off before they had her picking berries to break their fast. After which, Gorman and Halton hopped into the forest for a private conversation. She was am
azed they had the presence of mind to do that much, since they said everything else they were thinking as if she couldn’t hear. When they came back, they agreed to help her find King Lucien.

  Juliana didn’t get into details about why she needed to find him, but they didn’t really ask either, convinced she was going to trade her soul to be a bigger giant. Merrick had said not to tell anyone from her world, but what would happen if she told someone from his? She didn’t want to risk it if she didn’t have to.

  “We’re sprights. Haven’t you ever seen a spright afore—Oh!”

  Juliana felt Gorman fall, obviously pushed by Halton, and moved to catch him. He landed between her arm and her breast.

  “Hello!” Gorman said, pushing against her breast with his face. “What’s this? Mm, I seem to be trapped.”

  “Agh!” Juliana pinched the back of Gorman’s shirt and lifted him up. Holding him before her face, she said, “You stop that!”

  Gorman grinned and shrugged sheepishly, even as his legs flailed in the air. Juliana shook her head and placed him back on her shoulder. When he was again seated, she heard him try to whisper, “Good thing she don’t know about the view, eh?”

  Juliana gasped. Halton and Gorman chuckled to themselves. She glanced down to her breasts. The cleavage was completely covered with her cream undertunic. She frowned, stopping to pull her cloak over her shoulders.

  “Hey, watch it!” Halton yelled.

  Juliana managed to get her cloak on without smothering her riders. “Why am I even bothering with you two?”

  “Because we’re helping you.” Halton laughed.

  Is that what they call it?

  “How else are you going to get to the King Lucien’s palace?” Gorman added.

  “Right.” Juliana sighed. They were right. She needed them and the company did keep her mind off other things—like her brothers who had to be sick with worry, and the children who were probably frightened to tears.