The Secrets of Brymar (The Elitherian Fragments Book 1)

by James Coy-Dibley

  “Those are the same eyes I saw in the forest,” Adriana said, “and the same eyes from the caverns. We’re being watched out here.”

  “A Fortari scout,” Elizabeth said.

  Aroden called out from behind. “If the caverns taught us anything, the rest of their foul ranks cannot be far behind.”

  Adriana and Brian started a fast trot with the others following.

  “We cannot lead them into Skee,” Brian whispered to his sister. “I fear that would be a death sentence to the village.”

  “What else can we do?” she said. “I worry for all of the surrounding villages here. Who will protect them? What hope have they against what we faced?”

  Brian shook his head. “We cannot save them all.”

  “But we can,” she countered, “if we allow them to seek refuge in Brymar.”

  “No,” Brian sombrely but firmly said. He said it loud enough that Aroden could hear, too, and noticed him taking an interest in their conversation. “We wouldn’t have any way of knowing who’s trustworthy. We’d risk compromising Brymar, our only safe place left. You already know that.”

  “He’s right,” Aroden said, riding behind them. “It would be an uncontrollable risk.”

  “But this is our kingdom,” William mumbled as he found the confidence in his voice. “How can we turn a blind eye to them?”

  Aroden sighed. “Being king is both a privilege and a curse. Sacrifice is inevitable, and we must protect the core of this kingdom.”

  He didn’t respond, and Max patted his shoulder. “It’s a reality every leader must face, brother.”

  “It doesn’t seem fair though,” William countered.

  “No, it isn’t.”

  They trotted along the road, their horses occasionally stumbling over the uneven dirt road. Any attempts to move quietly failed as their horses pounded against the hard ground, the desiccated dirt packed so tightly that it sounded as though they trotted on solid stone slabs. Clearly they were already being watched; little need for discretion remained.

  *************************************************************

  By the time the sun’s orange rays made an appearance at the northern horizon, they were galloping towards the trees, their horses gasping for air and drenched in cold sweat. Adriana obsessively checked their left flank. Though she couldn’t see the eyes anymore, she imagined them to be there, watching them and waiting to attack. At any moment, she feared that her vision would fluctuate, that the voice would return or the pain would pound in her head once more. The mental toll tired her. Too many questions, and where would she find answers? Who would possibly know what was going on? Just the thought upset her; all of this because of a noxious gas rising above a mysterious orange sap in a sick, dead forest. None of it made any sense.

  Brian maintained a fast pace at the front, the horses trampling the hard ground and sending clouds of dust into the air. The trees weren’t far away now. They represented safety, the only objective on everyone’s mind. They’d reach the trees, hide their horses, and wait for the other two to join them before returning to Brymar. This thought brought a small comfort to everyone, a glimpse of control in the sea of chaos.

  “At least the sun rises,” Aroden said to Max beside him. “We won’t be caught in the dark again.”

  “I hope that Richard is already there. I want to leave Skee as soon as possible,” Max responded. “At best we’re only being watched by a single scout. At worst they have an entire army ready to pounce on us.”

  “We will still need to briefly stop at the inn and eat,” Aroden said. “The horses must eat and drink, too, and then we will leave for the next safe village shortly afterwards.” He took a deep breath. “Besides, if we’re lucky, Victoria and Richard are already waiting for us there.”

  They reached the tree front and the Arraci poured in, dismounting and leading their horses to the small pond of water at the centre. The Arraci removed their stocks of hay from the side pouches on the horses and laid it on the ground beside them before taking out their own food supplies. Brian and Adriana stopped while the rest unpacked, preparing to do the same with their horses. Aroden and the others stayed on their horses, though their horses tried to follow the others to water. With a tight grip on the reins, Aroden held his still on the road with his sons and Elizabeth beside him.

  “We will house our horses in the village’s stables,” Aroden said. “Porter will provide us with some food and rest, and we will see if the other two are waiting for us there.”

  “We should come with you,” Adriana said while jumping back onto her horse. “You’ll need an escort.”

  “I will come, too,” Rachel added.

  “As will I,” Zed announced, with some levity, “though I won’t be coming as an escort.”

  Brian nodded. “I’ll stay here then with the rest. But Aroden, we should leave as soon as possible.”

  “Of course,” he assured.

  Adriana led them further up the road, wary of their flanks. They saw a small stream of smoke rising from the village ahead, and Aroden was anxious to reach the inn; too long had passed since he saw his youngest son. But the moment they reached the small stables beside the inn, his hope quickly faded as he saw the empty patch of straw and uneaten hay bales. He turned to Max.

  “We reached Skee first, it seems,” he said as he dismounted his horse. “At least we will see a friendly face inside. That will make a nice change.”

  “I will go in first,” Adriana said.

  “It’s Skee…”

  “But we don’t know if our enemies beat us here,” she argued. “We know nothing about who we face, or for how long we’ve been watched by them. This is no time to skip precautions.”

  “Of course,” Aroden acknowledged. “Go on then.”

  They ascended the small wooden staircase and saw the closed door at the top. William thought about the last time he stood atop those stairs; yesterday morning he had stared out at the sunrise and felt such peace and hope for the journey to Orwell. Much had happened between sunrises; as he turned around to see the weak morning rays, he reflected on the past day’s events and worried for his brother, worried about everyone and the very future of Brymar and his family. Times had changed.

  Adriana opened the door first, smelling the smoky interior and peeking around the door. Porter sat behind his counter, his eyes closed and snoring away, with the small fire at the centre of the room barely burning with a half-empty bucket of water, the same two drunks lying beside it. She opened the door entirely, taking one more survey of the interior before stepping inside. After seeing her enter, the others followed, Aroden sighing after seeing the empty interior and reminiscing about the morning before. After walking in, they quietly closed the door. Zed headed straight for the comforts of the fire.

  “Porter,” Aroden said as he walked towards him, seeing Rachel move towards the back of the inn to check the guest quarters. “Porter, wake up.”

  He stirred slightly, but his snores blotted out Aroden’s calls.

  “Wake up,” Adriana attempted, with more force than Aroden, before reverting to the gentle tactic of patting his shoulder, “Porter.”

  “What…” he mumbled before his eyes popped open. He took a moment to look around, his eyes widening more as he saw the royal family, Zed, Elizabeth, and Adriana staring down at him. “Aroden…” he stuttered.

  “Have you seen Richard here?” Aroden asked.

  He shook his head. “Not since yesterday morning, no,” he replied, seeing the disappointment across Aroden’s face. Rachel emerged from the back and nodded towards Adriana that the inn was secure. Porter inquisitively looked around at everyone. “You are back so soon.” He looked at their clothes. “And you are very dusty.”

  “We were attacked, and had to take separate paths back to Skee,” Adriana answered. “We are now returning to Brymar but are waiting for Richard and another to meet us in Skee first.”

  “Attacked,” he repeated in shock, “by whom?” />
  “We don’t know,” Aroden responded. “But we need supplies for the journey back and need your help.”

  “Of course,” Porter exclaimed as he jumped from his seat, so quickly that he almost fell over. He clearly understood the gravity of the situation. “I’ll send you off with bread and pump some water up from the village well for you to take with you.”

  “Thank you.”

  “I can’t believe…’

  “We can’t either,” Aroden interrupted. “Please, bring us the bread and water, Porter. We sadly haven’t the time to discuss these most recent events.”

  Porter rushed into the back of the inn.

  Aroden turned to Adriana, his wrinkles creased. “It’s not a good sign that Richard isn’t here. They left Orwell long before us.”

  “Our exit from the caverns led us straight to Skee, though,” William pointed out, trying to stay hopeful. “Maybe the exit that they took led them further away.”

  “I hope that’s the case.”

  Porter returned from the back with a handful of bread wrapped in a white cloth. “This is all the bread we have here in the inn. I already have another batch baking; you can take it all once it’s done.”

  “Thank you, Porter.”

  “Of course,” he assured. “I’ll go fetch the water from the well right away.”

  “I can help,” Max said and William stepped forward too.

  “No, no,” Porter insisted as he approached the front door, “you will need the rest for the long journey ahead, and there’s only one bucket.” He was about to leave the inn when he spotted the two drunks by the fire. He practically kicked one of them. “Out!” he shouted, his patience clearly spent, and the two scrambled to leave. He gave an apologetic glance to the others before rushing out of the door, leaving the door open.

  Adriana followed close behind him. “I’m going to check that the horses have food and water,” she said, closing the door behind her.

  “I know Victoria will be here soon,” Elizabeth said to break her silence, her concern almost palpable. “She’s the most capable fighter I know.”

  “And she has the stone,” William mumbled, which didn’t help Elizabeth’s nerves. He yawned and stretched his arms, the exhaustion finally setting in. “I’m sure they’re on their way.”

  Zed, who had been sitting beside the fireplace with an open book on his lap, spoke up. “I might have found something regarding the stone,” he mumbled while his eyes ran over the text in front of him. He waited for everyone to pay attention to him. “I found a passage in my oldest book that briefly mentions Elitheria, a female deity referred to as the Master Architect,” he started.

  “Elitheria,” Aroden repeated in a shallow whisper.

  “Yes,” Zed looked at his king and then to the others, seeing everyone intently focused on him. He looked to William and Max. “The symbol that we saw beside the Eternals, the one with the circle and an object at the centre, you remember it?”

  “Yes,” both brothers confirmed.

  Zed glanced to Elizabeth, too, before proceeding. “This text speaks of an ancient war between Elitheria and Xanthos, another deity vying for control. It revolved around the object in the centre of this symbol, a stone which represents some sort of ‘cradle of creation.’” He paused, grazing over the text once more before continuing. “Xanthos challenged Elitheria’s rule, claiming that…” he stuttered over the words, struggling to read them as his finger passed over each symbol, but continued “…that Elitheria’s granting of free will led to suffering and cruelty, that only under obedience and servitude could a prosperous, happy living be achieved.” He sighed in frustration. “The text is faded, so a section is missing, but I can read some more here.”

  He cleared his throat. “I’m not entirely sure how, but this cradle was fragmented into seven pieces to defeat Xanthos. Elitheria scattered these fragments across the barriers of time and space, protecting them from his evil grasp; where each stone came to rest, new life thrived around it and formed a new realm.” He paused again, his face darkening. “But without the fragment, time would reverse, and life would be no more.”

  Zed’s speech broke. He sat quietly as the enormity of what he had revealed set in with the group. “Legends and myths,” he finally said, his voice drained of strength. “I always thought these things were fantasy.”

  Everyone briefly thought in silence.

  “Is that the stone you’ve been referring to,” Aroden asked Elizabeth with a hint of utter disbelief and horror in his words, “one broken off from the cradle of creation?”

  “I’m not sure,” Elizabeth said, feeling everyone staring at her. Even her own anxiety had built after Zed’s revealing words. “I know only that the enemy couldn’t have it; it would explain why Tolin urged that by retrieving this fragment, my father and I were saving this realm from dying.”

  “And why that stone would be so powerful,” William added. He continued before the others could pry Elizabeth any further. “What else does the text say, Zed?”

  Zed shrugged. “The next passage is in another language.”

  Elizabeth peeked at the text over Zed’s shoulder. “It isn’t in a language from this realm,” she said. “I can’t read all of them, but I can certainly recognise each one.”

  Zed shook his head. “I can keep searching through this book to see if any more information stands out,” he said to everyone. “I’ll look for the symbol of Elitheria as the stone is clearly connected to her.”

  Aroden remained silent as William nodded, looking to Elizabeth. “And perhaps your friend, Victoria, can tell us more it, too.”

  She agreed and the room fell silent once more.

  Waiting was all they could do.

  Porter bolted through the door with a large bucket of water. He trudged along the wooden floor, spilling water overtop the rim, and disappeared into the back of the inn again. Aroden admired his sense of urgency. He thought about the inn and the number of times he’d passed through here, how much he loved this place and the history it represented; but then he thought of the conversation earlier on the road. What if Skee was attacked, too? Such a small village would be defenceless, its fate sealed; the once peaceful community would be plunged into death and misery.

  “Aroden,” Porter said as he emerged from the back again, jolting him from his thoughts. “I will pack the water into as many water pouches I can find, and the bread is almost ready. I suspect you won’t be stopping on your journey home.”

  “Thank you,” Aroden said. He paused while Porter walked towards the front door with the empty bucket. “Porter,” he said, stopping the innkeeper in the doorway. “You should come with us, too. We fear that Skee is no longer a safe place.”

  “Your offer means much to me,” Porter acknowledged, his expression saddening, “but the missus would be too sick to travel. I couldn’t leave her here alone.”

  “Sick?” Aroden repeated.

  “Oh yes, I’m afraid she’s very ill.”

  “I’m sorry to hear that,” Aroden said.

  Porter gave a shallow nod before scurrying out of the door.

  “I didn’t know his wife had fallen ill,” Max said after Porter left.

  “It’s the first I’ve heard of it, too,” Aroden replied. His expression saddened. “Had I known, I would’ve brought our best healers from Brymar.”

  “Depending on what it is,” Elizabeth spoke up, “I could try and heal her.”

  “You can do that?” William asked. “You can heal diseases, too?”

  “It is possible.”

  “When he returns, we can pose the offer,” Aroden said in admiration and hope. He paused. “Our best healers in Brymar certainly don’t use magic,” he thought aloud, “their remedies seem archaic in comparison.”

  Adriana walked through the door, wiping the cold sweat from her forehead. “The horses will be ready to leave shortly,” she said, “and there is no sign of the enemy around Skee. Orthol and Gringal scout the periphery.”


  “Good,” Aroden nodded. He sighed. “Now we wait.”

  They watched for Porter to return, William and Max both taking a seat around the half-extinguished fire and attempting to close their eyes while Elizabeth and Rachel remained standing. Aroden circled around the interior of the room, looking at a few of the painted landscapes and pacing back and forth, while Zed sat beside the wall and continued to read through the texts of his book. In Max’s mind, the only objective was to return to Brymar with everyone accounted for, including all of the Arraci. He thought about the caverns again, the harrowing sound of Adriana’s scream, and his expression darkened.

  “What happened to Brian in the caverns,” Max asked, turning to Adriana and waking his brother up beside him, “he said there were blue flames?”

  William tiredly nodded beside him. “I recognised the similarity, too,” he sleepily added while Adriana nodded, too.

  “Similarity?” Elizabeth questioned.

  “It resembled what happened to me as a child in the markets of the capital city that day, the day that changed everything,” Max answered.

  “What happened?” Elizabeth curiously asked.

  Aroden stopped looking at the walls. “Someone attempted to assassinate me and William in Criton,” he said angrily, “and they failed.”

  “Criton,” Elizabeth repeated, “the capital of the Brutean Kingdom.”

  “And our true home,” Aroden nodded.

  Max turned to his father. “I think Brian and Adriana faced a similar foe in the caverns. The similarity seems too great for coincidence.”

  “Yes, it seems they did. The same scorching blue flames appeared on that day in the markets of our home,” Aroden said to Elizabeth, “just like Brian described.”