“Very good, but you are wrong about one thing,” he mentions.
“What is that?” Nyx asks curiously.
“A group of knights would not be needed,” Lord Gideon proudly states, causing Nyx and Fritz to look at each other with raised eyebrows. “We have a special weapon against any demons who manage to resist our products.”
Fritz decides to take a wild guess and says, “Is it an ancient, magical weapon?”
“Does the name Radiant Dove ring a bell? It should be familiar to you, my dear,” Lord Gideon answers, his grin growing wider.
“That’s the name of the greatest demon banisher of this century. Her skills were unique among all casters. She could only cast defensive spells, so she mastered elven staff-fighting and researched demon banishing. To give herself an edge, she designed a staff that only she could lift. This staff was rumored to banish demons with a single blow,” Nyx explains, cautiously watching Lord Gideon as she talks. “Sadly, Radiant Dove was pulled into the Chaos Void when she banished a powerful, named demon. She has been lost in the plane of demons ever since. I assume you found her staff and figured out how to use it.”
“Close. I found the woman herself,” he says with a hearty laugh. “You are correct that she was pulled into the land of demons. It was approximately two years later that I was preparing to test a new product. You could imagine my surprise when my summoning brought forth a beautiful woman instead of a demon. To make a long story short, I nursed her back to health and she has been helping me with my business ever since. She prefers to let the majority of Windemere believe that she is dead, so please keep this between us.”
“I bet Lady Adara is fond of this woman,” Fritz jokes, trying to lighten his mood. Nyx lightly punches him in the arm.
“They get along so well that you would believe them to be sisters,” Lord Gideon claims with a laugh.
“That would be because Seryna Adara is the birth name of Radiant Dove. Only a handful of casters know that, but Cyril told me during our demonology lessons. I can’t believe I didn’t recognize her name during the party,” Nyx says, an approving smirk aimed at Lord Gideon. “Anyway, we should be getting to sleep. Sorry about this severe intrusion of privacy, sir.” She takes Fritz by the hand and starts to make her way around the symbols. A whisper from Lord Gideon creates a wall of stone in the doorway.
“I can’t let you leave just yet. You know a very dangerous secret of this family and another secret about my wife,” the noble states with a cold stare. He pulls out a pair of scrolls that are sealed with lines of wax.
“Can’t we just swear on something?” Fritz asks hopefully.
“Sorry, Mr. Warrenberg, but this has to be done before I allow you to leave,” Lord Gideon declares, leaving no room for objection. “It won’t be pretty, but this is business.”
Nyx rolls her eyes and takes one of the scrolls. She opens it up to find that it is nothing more than a standard business privacy contract. The caster looks up at the grinning noble who hands her a quill pen from his inner pocket. She reads it quickly before signing at the bottom and handing the pen to Fritz. The gnome takes the other scroll with a sigh of relief. He takes more time reading the document than Nyx and runs a slow finger along the raised words.
When Fritz finishes reading, he points at one of the middle paragraphs. “May I ask what the punishment for revealing this information is? It isn’t specified in the contract.”
“You will spend four months working for me after I memory wipe the person you told. The work will be around the mansion and will be that of a maid or manservant,” Lord Gideon explains, his tone very serious. “After that time, you will sign another contract that will result in you having to pay me money if you reveal the information again. Do we have a deal?”
“I’m not going to tell anybody and it isn’t like this will come up in daily conversation,” Fritz admits. He signs the contract and hands it over to Lord Gideon as the stone blockade sinks into the ground.
Nyx and Fritz sneak back up the stairs and check the hallway. The party can still be heard in the distance and there are no servants in view. Lord Gideon is a few steps behind them as they leave the passage. The door closes with a low, vibrating grind against the floor. Lord Gideon pats both of them on the head before bowing and making his way back to the party.
“You look a little upset, Nyx” Fritz mentions.
“I ruined my dress falling down the stairs. I liked how I looked in this dress,” she mutters with a pout. She pokes at the long tear down the side and feels a patch of fabric missing from the back. “At least my hair’s still in place because this is a pain to work with at times.”
“We’ll do something about your dress tomorrow,” Fritz promises, smiling at Nyx’s odd, girly display. “Goodnight, Nyx.”
“See you in the morning,” she says, not looking away from the dress. Fritz can hear her start to curse in elven as he walks away. A solid punch to the wall is soon followed by more cursing as Nyx falls into the passage again.
“I think I’m going to miss her most of all,” Fritz chuckles. He wipes the tears from his eyes before he continues to his room.
15
“How are you this morning?” Luciana asks when Luke joins everyone for breakfast. Everyone is sitting on the back porch of the manor, which gives them a wide view of the L’dandrin River and the Barcofian Ocean. Luke can see a gathering of seals in the distance and faintly hears their barking. A high balcony extending to the middle of the room supports a crystal chandelier that turns the sun’s rays into rainbow-colored spots on the wall. Luke stares blankly at the blazing golden candelabra sitting in front of his plate.
“I’m okay. Sorry about running away last night, Luciana. I started feeling sick and had to get some air,” Luke replies, politely covering his mouth while he yawns.
“Are you coming down with something?” Nyx asks.
Fritz swallows his last bite of breakfast before interjecting, “He’s probably still tired from the fight he got into yesterday.”
“I’d ask about for details, but it’s far too early in the morning for me to smack you upside the head,” Nyx says to Luke. She butters a piece of bread and holds it in the palm of her hand. She stares at the bread for a few seconds before pouting and taking a bite.
“A street fight is so uncivilized and barbaric,” Lord Gideon mentions with distaste. “I hope that kind of trouble isn’t a common occurrence for you.”
“You have no idea how much trouble Luke gets into,” Kellia mutters under her breath. She grins at Luke while she drinks a glass of orange juice.
“Anyway, where is Lady Adara and Sebastian, Lord Gideon?” Luke inquires. He begins filling his plate with any food that is within reach. He notices that all of the food is fruit or bread, so he signals Fritz to pass a platter of eggs down the table.
“Lady Adara had some business to take care of in the city,” Lord Gideon replies with a faint sigh. “Sebastian is still asleep. It will be a miracle if my son stirred before the rest of us sat down for lunch.”
“Aedyn said he had to meet with some people and he would be back some time this evening,” Nyx says, wiping her mouth clean. “It looked like he hadn’t slept all night. I think he was up all night thinking about what happened with his father.”
“I would not be surprised. Lord Aedyn and his father have not had a civil conversation in a very long time. Lady Delone must be crying in her grave,” Lord Gideon declares. He shakes himself out of his growing melancholy and forces a smile onto his face. “I recommend that you ignore the events of last night and go back to thinking of him as the same Aedyn that you have traveled with.”
“Aedyn will bring it up if he wants,” Fritz casually claims.
Luke silently nods as he chews on a piece of buttered toast and looks around for something to drink. Luciana comes around the table to pour him a glass of milk. She leans over her shoulder and subtly blows on the point of his ear. She takes the seat next to him with an innocent smile while
Luke watches her out of the corner of his eye.
“Are you sure you’re okay, Luke?” Kellia asks suspiciously.
“My high stress lifestyle might be getting to me, but I’ll be fine,” Luke answers with a nervous laugh.
“It might have been better for you to remain at home with your family and not take to the road. Adventuring is such a foolish venture,” Lord Gideon states, ignoring Luke’s pained expression. “I always wondered about the wanderlust that curses the members of your family. Why do you do it?”
Luke locks eyes with the noble and realizes that the man is trying to lure him into a debate. He is very tempted to argue with the portly man, but he is not sure that he can keep the conversation civil. The forest tracker also quickly sees that Luciana is trying to place her hand onto his leg without his notice. He casually rubs his leg and gently removes her hand, but she is obviously waiting for him to give her another opening.
Nyx yawns before playfully interjecting, “Fear of people forgetting that Windemere would be lost without them.”
“That is probably true,” laughs the noble. His laughter echoes throughout the porch and startles a flock of birds on the balcony above.
“Personally, I didn’t want to stay in the village and I felt driven to see the world before I settled down,” Luke declares, poking at his breakfast with his knife. “Maybe all of the stories that my grandfather had told me since I was a child made me curious about the roads and wild lands of Windemere. I really couldn’t say what triggered my wandering. When I was old enough, I just up and left against my father’s wishes.” He starts to feel a bare foot rub his right leg and looks over at Luciana to see that the thin girl is staring intently at him.
“Do you get along with your father?” the girl asks in a dreamy voice.
“Luciana, I have warned you about prying into a guest’s private life,” Lord Gideon sternly says.
“I’m sorry, Lord Callindor,” she quietly whimpers. Luciana crosses her arms with a pout and lets her foot continue to run up Luke’s leg to just past his knee.
Luke tries to stop her foot from getting higher by inching his chair away. “My father and I have different ideas on how I should live my life. I can let the rest of you figure out what that means. It shouldn’t be too hard.”
“See, father? All children have problems with their parents’ wishes,” Luciana whispers.
“Not this again,” the nobleman groans in exasperation. “Could you at least wait until lunch before you criticize my decision to have you married?”
“Well, I guess this is when I leave. I prefer to deal with only one family argument per day and it’s still morning,” Fritz announces. The gnome wipes his mouth clean and bows to everyone before getting to his feet. “Have a good day.”
“This always causes me embarrassment,” Lord Gideon states, drumming his fingers on the table.
“It doesn’t make me feel proud either,” Luciana snaps, the shy girl being replaced by a furiously defiant daughter. “I do not approve of the man you chose for me. There is something strange about him. He does not even have a last name. Do I call myself Lady Tyler when we are married?”
“You’re engaged to Tyler?” Luke gasps, choking on his drink
Nyx punches him in the shoulder before she hisses, “Did you think the cousin marrying Tyler was Sebastian?”
“There could have been a third cousin,” Luke contends. He tries to kick Nyx under the table, but hits the leg of her chair instead.
“By the gods, you’re an idiot this morning,” the caster mutters under her breath.
“Excuse me, but have you heard of Tyler? Do you know where he is?” Lord Gideon asks with a sense of urgency. “The man was supposed to be here four days ago and never arrived. Please, tell us if you know where he can be found.”
“My apologies, sir, but we’ve only heard about him from Kellia. He sounds like a very nice gentleman from her description,” Nyx states. She catches Kellia’s eyes for a second and smiles sweetly to get her to go along with the lie.
“Oh yes, I told them all I knew about Tyler, but I forgot to mention that Luciana was his fiancée,” Kellia nervously claims. “Luke probably hadn’t figured it out until now. He isn’t very good at mornings.”
“I have to agree with Luciana,” Luke declares, ignoring Nyx and Kellia groaning in unison and dropping their forks on their plates. “It won’t be a happy marriage if she doesn’t like him. It could backfire.”
Lord Gideon furiously stares at Luke for a few seconds, but quickly recovers his calm demeanor. “A person like you doesn’t understand the world of nobles. An arranged marriage is necessary to bring new skills into the family. After all, the chance of nobles falling in love with each other is miniscule. Luciana needs to be married and Tyler is an exceptional husband. His skills as a bard and his rise to nobility will give us a unique perspective for future business. We are already planning on designing magical instruments with his help.”
“You married Lady Adara for love,” Luke points out.
“Very insightful, young man, but this is my second marriage. My first wife was arranged and I was quite happy with her before she passed away,” says Lord Gideon, who is clearly enjoying the argument. “Understand that I said there was a small chance that Luciana would fall in love with a noble and she has already limited her choices. My daughter has refused every noble in Freedom. I could be in the grave before her wedding if I let her meet every noble of Windemere with the hope that one of them will woo her. She has left me no choice, but to make an arranged marriage.”
Luke gets to his feet and leans on the table. “Why not let her meet someone who isn’t a noble? A different lifestyle could bring unique skills into your family while making her happy.”
“Yes, father, maybe I can marry Luke if I wanted to,” Luciana interjects. Again, Nyx and Kellia groan in unison.
“What!” Luke and Lord Gideon exclaim.
“Luke is kind and very handsome, so I want to marry him,” Luciana bluntly declares.
“I’d . . . uh . . . I’m going to bow out of this conversation now,” Luke stutters.
“Is there something wrong with me?” Luciana whines, tears already flowing down her cheeks.
“That is enough, Luciana!” Lord Gideon bellows, slapping his calloused hand on the table. “My sincerest apologies, Luke. I do not know what has gotten into her.”
“It isn’t a problem,” the forest tracker claims, nervously flashing an awkward smile. “She’s young and probably hasn’t met many warriors. A rugged forest tracker must be very exotic for a girl who has spent her life primarily among nobles.”
Hoping to break the tension, Nyx mockingly adds, “I didn’t notice any rugged forest trackers at the party. I did see a fresh-faced warrior that seems to enjoy putting his booted foot in his mouth.”
Luke is about to say something to Nyx when a servant’s scream from the doorway cuts through the air. Everyone turns to see a panic-stricken butler backing into the mansion and staring with wide eyes at the edge of the porch. Luciana screams and scrambles out of her chair when she sees the rotting form of a zombie dragging itself over the railing. Seven more filthy corpses begin to pull themselves into view as everyone gets to their feet.
“Lord Gideon! Get Kellia and Luciana into the mansion!” Luke shouts.
“Luke and I can handle zombies without a problem,” Nyx promises, watching the shambling undead. Kellia and Luciana are already running for the door before Lord Gideon can take a step away from his seat. He is a few steps behind the girls and he locks the doors soon after he closes them.
“Our friends couldn’t even wait for us to finish breakfast,” Nyx says, getting to her feet and stands next to Luke. The last zombie is already on the porch with its dead eyes locked on the half-elves.
“The Lich was never big on manners,” Luke says, licking his lips in anticipation. “So, do you have any ideas? We’re lacking in magic and swords. I don’t think a butter-knife can help us through this
.”
“You have your martial arts training,” she suggests. The nearest zombie lurches toward them, but Nyx is quick enough to hurl a plate at the creature. She grimaces when the plate gets stuck between the zombie’s exposed ribs.
“I would, but being in grabbing range of a zombie is not very smart,” Luke mentions, slowly backing away.
The zombies close in on them, forcing Luke and Nyx to scramble over the table. All of the zombies turn in unison as the half-elves continue to search for makeshift weapons. Nyx picks up a chair while Luke runs to a corner and grabs a six-foot, standing flag. She gives him an odd glance at his choice of weapon.
“What?” he snaps.
“Planning to surrender already?” she jokes.
“This thing has a point on it and a long rope that I can trip them with,” Luke contends, shifting the weapon until it feels comfortable in his hands. “The base might even work for some blunt force damage. Not everybody goes with the obvious choice.”
“Well, I’m sorry for not being original,” Nyx snarls.
One of the zombies rounds the table and lunges at Nyx, but Luke quickly stabs it in the head. Nyx is about to smash the chair over it when another zombie clambers onto the table and drools hungrily on the tablecloth. An angry shriek escapes her lips as she shatters the chair over its looming head. It topples onto the floor and trips up one of the advancing zombies before getting back to its feet.
“Bashing the head didn’t work? That is supposed to work!” Luke shouts, wrestling with the impaled zombie. He twists the weapon hard enough to snap the zombie’s neck and the body goes limp.
Nyx grabs another chair to bash the nearest zombie in the chest. “This is very bad. I think they’re enhanced. This is the worst time for us to be without our priest.”
Legends of Windemere: 02 - Prodigy of Rainbow Tower Page 39
