The Test of Ostra

by Rory D Nelson

  “We are well met Herod-Sai. I say thankee for the opportunity to serve you. I know well my death was staved off by an omnipotent hand.”

  “An investment that will bear fruit, I assure you. You did not travel this far for greetings, though did you?”

  Talgath shakes his head. “No, Herod-Sai. I did not.”

  Morgana peeks her head around the corner and comes into view. She eyes Talgath, evoking desire and unrest in him. Talgath finds it difficult to swallow for a moment.

  He nods his head and bows. “Good day to you, Lady-Sai.”

  She bows her head and curtsies in response. “Good day to you, Talgath. How fareth?” She approaches and touches his shoulder with intent.

  “Well, Lady-Sai.”

  “You are in trusted company, Talgath. Chastity is a closest confidant. What you speak, you can tell her. See burden lifted and speak mind.”

  Talgath nods. “It concerns the likes of Felinius.”

  Herod raises an eyebrow and scowls. “Go on.”

  “On journey to here from Cortez, I shared heavy conversation with the man. We discussed much, and the conversation flowed, most of it banal. But there were other enlightening manners. I heard things. Egregious sins committed against you.”

  “Why would he share such things with you?” asks Herod with suspicion.

  “The vino and pixie loosen tongue. He had no memory of it the next day. Perhaps a part of him wanted to unburden himself. I don’t know why he did.”

  Herod nods. “Go on.”

  Talgath hesitates for a moment.

  “The company is well met, Talgath,” prods Morgana. “You need tell only what is on your mind.”

  Talgath nods. “Well, then.”

  He senses the warming effects of the pixie wash over him. Talgath rises, walks over to the bottle of vino and takes a drink. He settles down on his horse blanket.

  “So, you are like a dutiful son. You’re always heeding the call of master, lest he put you out like a disobedient dog?” asks Talgath mocking his position. He too feels the effects of the pixie and vino, though he has had far less than Felinius. Talgath knows his faculties are intact.

  Felinius feels unburdened and safe, though it is illusory. “Not as dutiful as you might imagine, pube.”

  “I’m far from pube,” says Talgath.

  “Oh, I pretend to be a humble and dutiful servant for my benefactor. And, for the most part, I am.”

  “And, at other times?” prods Talgath.

  Felinius gazes into the distance as if he is looking into his own past. He glances at his hand, as if it is still part of the real world and laughs. He looks back at Talgath and smiles. “At other times, I throw a wrench into the machinations of the great Herod-Sai. I undermine. I sabotage.”

  “Why?” asks Talgath.

  “Because I, though the despicable wretch I am, cannot abide by what Herod asks of me. I am much more than dutiful dog who obeys without question. To Herod, the end always justifies the means; but some things I will not abide. You ken?”

  “What did you do?” asks Talgath with curiosity.

  “Would you like to know?”

  Talgath nods. “It’s burning inside. You cannot whet my appetite and remove food at the last moment. Ai, would hear it, so I would.”

  A moment of practical lucidity ensues. Felinius considers. “It would have to remain buried here. You ken?”

  Talgath nods. “Ai, set watch and warrant, it will not leave here. See burden lifted.”

  Before he feels the anvil’s weight, Felinius sighs and descends from his chest. He laughs. “Herod has been after this boy for some time. His name is Dante. Herod obsesses over him and wants to kill him. It is a good thing the boy is slippery beyond imagining. Herod had him in his grasp. As part of some mad ritual which only him and Morgana understood, he was to take this boy and bury him alive in consecrated ground.”

  “What happened?”

  “Herod summoned me. He asked me to assure deed and see it finished. The job was as good as done. No chance of failure. You ken?”

  “Ai.”

  “Herod, in all his grand audacity, wanted the boy’s wolf as a pet for himself. The world is his and everything in it must acknowledge this.” He says. “Herod is a god in the world he has created for himself. But there was a minor glitch, unaccounted for.”

  “What?”

  “The dog escaped from his bounds. Several men were on dog watch, but they failed. She escaped. And who do you think she headed for?”

  Talgath smiles. “The boy.”

  “She is drawn to him. I had a direct shot at her but hesitated. Now, I convinced myself otherwise not to. But I knew. She is ungodly powerful and her drive magnificent. The wolf would dig him up and she was trying to do it. Several men caught her and were about to kill her. I couldn’t fathom it.”

  “You intervened?”

  Felinius nods. “Ai. Unleashed on the men, so I did.”

  Herod clenches his fists so tight his fingernails cut into his palms, causing blood to trickle. His pupils grow small and his face tenses.

  “Christ almighty!” says Talgath stunned.

  “When another group of riders approached, I made quick work of them.”

  “And the boy? What became of him?” asks Talgath.

  “Much to the chagrin of Herod, he lives.”

  “Why did you do it?” asks Talgath.

  Felinius looks off into the distance, as if he is trying to find a long-lost ideal that fell out of his grasp. Tears well up in his eyes. “Many years ago, after I was expelled from the knighthood, I was enslaved in the mines of Castall. They took everything I had known. Now, Herod has terrorized the boy relentlessly. Wiped out his entire family. That boy deserves a chance at knighthood. He deserves to live. I would not have him buried away and his existence expunged like mine was. I escaped and gave myself a chance at revenge. Let him have his own chance at revenge. What they did to him was monstrous. I could not abide.”

  Felinius, who has sobered and bears a shocked expression on his face, looks at Talgath. “If Herod wishes me to eliminate him after he has achieved his knighthood, then so be it. I will not hesitate to kill him. The man. The boy I cannot abide. Set watch and warrant, I’ll accept my day of reckoning should it come. You ken?”

  “Felinius, you are a true rebel and you play roulette with your own life.”

  “It is a life is marked for an end soon enough.” He looks at Talgath somberly. “And so is yours. Do whatever it takes to protect your own. You ken?”

  Talgath nods. “Ai.”

  Sobriety ensues and Felinius realizes the gravity of his omission. As quick as lightning, he extracts his butterfly knife and holds it inches from Talgath’s throat. Talgath doesn’t move. “If you mention this to anyone, Talgath, set watch and warrant, I will cut you from ear to ear.” To emphasize this promise, Felinius take the knife and motions it from one ear, down his neck across to the other one. Talgath finds it impossible to swallow.

  He nods. Felinius puts the knife back and laughs. “Little good it would do me. My life hangs in the balance even now. Perhaps you would be doing me a favor.”

  “Set watch and warrant it, these words will not leave here.”

  Felinius walks back to his blanket and falls into it headfirst and falls asleep.

  “And pray tell, Talgath, what do you hope to gain by this information? Do you wish to supplant Felinius?” asks Herod.

  “No. His betrayal affects us all. I thought you should know.”

  “Well,” says Herod, with a look of shocked befuddlement on his face. “That is grave news. If this news is truthful, then you shall be rewarded. But, if it is a fabrication, then-”

  “I would never seek to betray you or fabricate such a story, Herod-Sai. I have a family to consider.”

  Herod nods. “Ai, so you do Talgath.” He extends his hand. Talgath takes it and shakes it.

  “You may go. Tennyson will escort you out.” Talgath bows to Herod and Morgana and
leaves.

  Herod eyes Morgana with intensity and paces around the room as if he is about to unleash. “If his story is true, I will have his head on a stake after I have crucified him.”

  “If you believe his account. Talgath has much to gain with Felinius’ death. You ken?”

  “He wouldn’t risk a fabrication.” He looks at Morgana with doubt. “You know of his mind. What was he thinking? Was he lying?”

  “You also know the signs of a liar. You are well-schooled. What do you think?”

  “I am asking you!” He roars. “You’re a telepath. I am not. What was his mind?”

  “He showed no signs of lying. To him, he spoke of truth, which does not mean he wasn’t lying. I breached his mind and found no telltale signs of lying. But that doesn’t mean he wasn’t. He could have been schooled.”

  “He could have been telling the truth,” snaps Herod.

  “Ai. But what you need is an absolute certainty.”

  “Then give it.” He orders.

  “I will question Felinius I assure you.”

  “Preferably away from heated bedchamber.”

  Morgana winces as if she had been slapped.

  “You didn’t think I knew? Of course I did. It’s never bothered me until now-knowing you may cover for him. Manipulate me like some fucking chess piece!”

  “I have everything riding on this. You know this!” She bellows.

  As he edges closer to her, he places his hands around her neck, with affection at first. Herod stares into her eyes. His firm fingers pulsating, intending to squeeze her throat. “Question him. If he lies, he threatens us all. I need to know the truth. Is he more a liability than an asset?”

  “Set watch and warrant Herod, you need him now more than ever.”

  “I will ascertain that. Not you.”

  “Without him, you will never win the crown and the people Herod-Sai. You know this well.”

  Chapter 39: Clumsy Assassin

  Felinius lies on his back and snores in the middle of a large feathered bed. Two beautiful young harlots lay next to him, asleep. They are oblivious to the silhouetted figure that has crept into the room surreptitiously.

  Across the room, the figure is a woman, small slender waist, delicate extremities and ample bosom. The room is dark but her cat-like violet green eyes can be seen. They are unnaturally luminescent and radiate other-worldly power.

  Morgana slips in, unbeknownst to the occupants in the bed, and brandishes a large, sharp butterfly knife, the preferred killing knife of Felinius. She holds it up to his throat. He feigns sleep. With heavily induced pixie sleep, he reacts and grabs the knife seconds before it closes in on his throat. He upends his would-be-assassin and throws her down on the ground.

  The two harlots next to him cry out and run off. Felinius laughs when he sees who it is. “I could have killed you Felinius.”

  “Then why didn’t you? Doubt that Herod would send you to do such a vile job. He would send out a plethora of assassins to ambush me. This is the nature of my life-to be on constant vigil around every corner. But this is my refuge.”

  “You’re a fool, Felinius. You may not have a refuge for long.”

  “Until then.” He says. He kisses her with passion. She feigns outrage and resists him, but he fights her, kissing her back. Again, she attempts to buck him off and he relents. They stop and pause for several seconds.

  She kisses him and grabs for his cock, stroking it. He moans with pleasure. In a rush, she rips his pants off while he suckles her ample bosom. This causes her to moan with pleasure. He bites down somewhat hard on her nipples, causing her the perfect amount of pain. She cries out and slaps him hard across the face. He returns the gesture in kind.

  Pushing his head in her mound, he slithers his tongue into her until it reaches her clit. She cries out in pleasure. He suckles her longer until she reaches a climax. After she does, he picks her up like a rag doll, puts her on his cock, and pumps her. She gyrates on his cock in a pulsating rhythmic motion, causing him to cry out.

  As she waits for him, she holds off on her own orgasm, though it is torturous for her. Unable to hold off any longer, he cries out in agonizing pleasure and shoots his load into her. Simultaneously, she unleashes her orgasm, dousing his cock in her own juices as if she had been ripped apart. They continue to cry out in pleasure, out of breath as they collapse into each other’s arms.

  After a brief intermission, they resume the ritual several more times until they are both spent. They both fall asleep into each other’s arms.

  Morgana rises well before Felinius. She looks at him and caresses the outline of his face, taking in his destructive and intoxicating beauty. He awakens to find her caressing his face.

  “I believe you have spent me for a week or more.” He says.

  “A most necessary reprieve from the chaos of our lives. Is it not?”

  “Ai.”

  “I could have cut your throat, Felinius.”

  He shakes his head with vigor. “I think not. Would have cut you down long before you had a chance at a lethal cut.”

  “I hesitated.”

  He eyes her, feigning suspicion. “Oh, Did you now?”

  “You are a fool, Felinius. Herod is this close to eliminating you for good. He doubts your usefulness. He sees you as more a liability than useful and that is a very dangerous place to be. Your life hangs in the balance and I am the only one keeping the balance. I am your spaid, but even I have my own limits. You ken?”

  “My life has always hung in the balance ever since Cathrall.”

  “You go too far!” She stammers. “Herod is convinced you sabotaged the attempt on the boy’s life. I know you did.” She looks at him to reinforce this point, but he seems unflappable. To reinforce her point, she slaps him hard across the face. He laughs.

  “This is not a jest! It outrages Herod, and he is livid!”

  “He needs me.”

  “He has hundreds of henchmen. With a mere summons, he can have an army, a garrison at his command.”

  “And not one of my caliber. I am the closest thing to a knight he has.”

  “You overstep.”

  “What happened?”

  “Talgath has spoken with Herod. And he had an interesting story to tell.”

  “I should like to hear it,” says Felinius.

  “Talgath said when you were drunk on pixie and vino, you told him of your sabotage on Herod’s plot to kill the boy. He said you were to track the wolf and instead you killed the men who attempted to eliminate her. As you know, the evidence supports it.”

  Felinius seems unperturbed but contemplative. “And you came to my rescue? Gave me a reprieve from certain death? Is that so?”

  “Herod is not stupid Felinius! I could stave off his better judgment for a while, but he is more than a little suspicious. You ken?”

  Felinius laughs. “Should I be plotting an escape route then?”

  “You are a fool and jest! Your life hangs in the balance.”

  “But you will protect me.”

  “I will not sacrifice my aspirations-even for you, Felinius.”

  “We are both aligned, Morgana. I want what you want. You want to rule Gilleon and I want my knighthood. First knight. Nothing less. Herod and I differ in our path to get there. That is all.”

  “You overestimate your usefulness. I fear it will be your downfall.” She looks at him with a pitiful, hopeless expression. “I must take my leave. I am spent.”

  “As am I.” In one seamless move, she grabs her dress and puts it on and walks towards the door.

  “You would warn me should my usefulness wear itself out. Wouldn’t you, precious?”

  She smiles but it is a smile bereft of hopefulness. “If it is in my power to do so. In the meantime, take moderation with pixie and vino. It loosens the tongue-one that will sink an empire.”

  He laughs. “I assure you I hold my tongue in the company of my wenches.”

  “I know you have. I’ve breached their min
ds and they know nothing. Set watch and warrant it, if they did, they would be dead already.”

  Felinius nods. “Ai. That they would.”

  Chapter 40: Newest Recruit

  Chelsea enters Merlin’s training barn in a pair of plain, tan cloth pants which allows for maximum flexibility. It is almost the same outfit as the recruits. Merlin dresses the same. As she enters, she bows to Merlin and smiles. “Master,” quips Chelsea.

  “Merlin is fine, young recruit.” Chelsea giggles but stops short from Merlin’s deadpan expression.

  “You find something amusing?” He asks.

  “No.”

  “Good. Pick up your stick and let’s get started.”

  Chelsea picks up her stick. The moment she reaches it, her feet get tangled up, and she flies to the mat. She brings up her stick in a defensive position, blocking Merlin’s swing on her. He backs up and allows her to get up. She arches her back and jumps up on her feet and moves towards him.

  “That was a dirty trick,” She says.

  “One you should expect if you were in a real fight.”

  “That so?” Chelsea asks. She advances towards Merlin and strikes out with a hefty vertical blow, which Merlin deflects. She advances again and swings in an arc. Merlin, sidesteps, pivots and swings his stick around, catching her in the back of the leg. She trips up but catches herself. Merlin advances on her and snaps his stick down in a vicious pile driver. Chelsea deflects it, bringing up her stick a second before it would have smashed in to her head.

  “Well done,” says Merlin.

  Chelsea advances and swing her stick to the side and then fires a sneaky strike with her palm. Merlin blocks it, cups her hand and then drives her into the mat. She loses her balance and her stick. Merlin moves in for the kill. Before she gets up, he places his foot on her chest, pinning her to the mat. “You see what you did there?”

  She sighs. “I telegraphed?” She asks.

  “You telegraphed.” Merlin throws his stick up in the air. It lands in the tubular container with all the other sticks. He helps up Chelsea. The moment she gets up, she throws out her left elbow towards his face. He blocks it. She then kicks forward, connecting with his hand, throwing her off balance.