Then there was the issue of the young woman. She was looking at him with abject terror on her face, though he didn’t blame her considering what she had just been through. “I apologise for the bloodshed” Leofric stated, “they left me no choice”.
The woman didn’t respond at first, before finally squeaking out some words. “Who are you?”.
Leofric put his sword back into his sheath. “I am Leofric, son of Cedric and the rightful heir to the throne of Northumbria” he declared.
“Why did you do that?” the woman asked. “Why did you save me?”.
Because you were in trouble? “Because that’s what any man would do” Leofric replied. “Now that I have done this deed however I must depart. I do not have any gold in my possession so if I am pressed for weregild I will be found lacking, therefore I must take my leave”. Well I actually have quite a bit of gold but it’s better that she doesn’t know that. Then again what does it matter when it seems like nobody uses gold in this place. “Weregild?” the woman questioned. “Wait who are you? Why are you dressed like that? What’s going on?”.
This must be the first time in this place that someone has been asking me questions and not the other way round. He stepped forward so that he could get a better look at the woman and talk to her more clearly, he stopped after a bit to make sure he didn’t scare her. Now that he was closer he could see her more clearly and he was taken aback by the appearance of the young woman. She was young indeed, probably a few years younger than he was and around a head shorter. She was pretty as well, with medium brown hair and blue eyes. I didn’t expect that. “I am a man looking for a way home” Leofric said, not able to think of anything better to say. “Unless you can help me get there then I’m afraid I must leave”.
“Where is your home?” the woman asked.
“I don’t know” Leofric admitted. “It might as well belong to another lifetime”.
His mind drifted off for a moment as he thought of Northumbria before an errant thought struck his mind. “You didn’t tell me your name” he said. Where did that come from?
The girl was equally surprised, “my name?”.
“I killed a man tonight” Leofric added, his mouth taking a life of its own. “I don’t regret it but I would like to know that name of the maiden I did it on behalf of”.
The woman looked a little confused on top of her lingering fear before she replied.
“Miranda” she said. “My name is Miranda”. Now that’s a pretty name. “Miranda” Leofric rolled over, trying to pronounce it the way he’d heard. “That’s a beautiful name” he remarked.
“I need to go now” the girl insisted in a frazzled tone. “You do too, the police will be looking for you when they find this body”.
“The what?” Leofric asked. Who are the police and why would they care about the body of some dead thug? Are they related to him or in his gang? “Come back to my place” Miranda urged. “I can give you a place to stay until the heat wears down and you can go back to looking for your home”.
Leofric felt like he’d been hit by a shovel, he couldn’t believe the words he’d just heard. “Are you sure? I wouldn’t dream of being an imposition upon you” he replied.
“No” Miranda replied solidly. “It won’t be an imposition”.
“Your father won’t mind?” Leofric quizzed.
“My father?” Miranda responded a little confused. “I don’t live with my father”.
The poor girl her father has passed away, I probably offended her with my presumptuousness. “Oh” he said. “I’m sorry I didn’t know”.
“Come on” the Miranda ordered, “we have to get going”. With that she made her way down to the end of the alleyway and Leofric followed her. This city just keeps getting weirder and weirder.
They walked down the street together side by side in silence. Leofric found it awkward but he elected not to say anything, he was lucky to be offered a place to stay for the night and he didn’t want to jeopardise that. Experience had taught him that every time he opened his mouth in this city, he ended up causing people some kind of invisible offence. They went into an underground area which had large steel behemoths running through tunnels dug out of the very earth. It awed Leofric and he noted the coarse writing on the sides of the steel behemoths and wondered if it had any kind of significant meaning. When one of the beasts rolled up, Miranda got inside one and gestured for Leofric to get in with her. He was terrified of the beast but he swallowed his fear and got in, closing his eyes as he stepped into it. The beast then closed up and began moving and he was nearly thrown to the ground by the motion. He managed to right himself and he widened his stance to keep himself stable. I did it, I’m inside the beast! The girl had a baffled look on her face as he adjusted his feet. He returned the bafflement when he looked around and saw that he was the only one in the beast with such a wide stance. Most of the people in the behemoth were standing upright or sitting down, some of them gripping locks hanging from the roof. Leofric followed their lead and held one of the locks to stabilise himself. Better to fit in and not offend anyone or I may get kicked out of the beast like I’ve been kicked out of everything else.
The fear he initially had at boarding the beast was steadily replaced by nausea caused by its motion. He was close to vomiting when the monster halted and opened its sides. Miranda got off and Leofric sent up a wordless prayer in gratitude for his safe passage before joining her. He looked back at the beast as it closed up and rolled off, he had survived the beast but he was in no rush to face it again. The pair made their way back to the surface and Leofric gulped in the cold night air with relief, the claustrophobia of being underground had been hard to tolerate. “This way” Miranda said taking a left turn. Leofric followed her and took her side and after a short while of walking they came into the ground floor of a large building. They entered a small compartment and the girl pressed some buttons and it closed up and began moving. Leofric nearly pulled out his sword in shock but he managed to halt himself in time. “Why do you have a sword?” Miranda asked in a meek tone.
Leofric looked at her, in the bright light of the compartment she looked drained and fragile, but still very pretty. “Because I’m a man” Leofric bluntly remarked, he could think of no other answer. It was like asking why a man wore clothes or slept in a house. “You’re not from New York are you?” Miranda inquired.
“No” Leofric admitted, “it doesn’t take a seer to see I don’t belong here”.
“Neither do I” the girl remarked. “I should have stayed in Albany”.
The compartment opened and they both stepped out in a hallway. The girl led Leofric down the hallway until they came to a door which she opened with a key. Huh, and that’s only one door out of many in this hall. They all live in the same building like fish stuck in the same pond. I think I would go mad if I had to live that way, even the lowliest peasant in Northumbria has his own hut. Miranda stepped through the doorway and flicked a switch which instantly bathed her living quarters in light. Leofric wished that they had something like that back in Northumbria, instead of having to make do with candles and lamps. Her quarters were cramped with nothing but a wood floor room with a bed, a closet and a drawer with a metallic cube on top of it. There was a small bench top near the door with a metallic machine that lightly hummed. There was also a door next to Leofric and he opened it to see a white panelled room with some strange devices in them and a mirror on the wall. “You’ll be sleeping in my bed tonight” Miranda said, taking off her shoes while she sat on her bed.
“I see” Leofric replied.
“There’s cereal in the bottom cabinet behind the bench top for breakfast” she added.
“Got it” Leofric lied.
Miranda finished taking her shoes off before getting up and pulling back sheets of cloth at the back of the room to reveal a balcony. He walked over to her and stood next to her on the balcony, looking at out at the city sprawled before him. It was incredible, the multitude of lights cre
ated a sight unlike anything he had ever seen. “I can’t thank you enough for giving me a place to stay” Leofric intoned.
“Don’t mention it” Miranda replied. “I’m going to be the one regretting it in the morning”.
Leofric was out of place in this city but he was aware enough to feel awkward in that moment. “It’s a beautiful view you have” he said changing the topic.
“It’s the only good thing about my apartment” Miranda replied. They stared at the view for a while longer before Miranda turned to go back inside. “I’m going to bed”.
“I should get to sleep too” Leofric reckoned. Miranda turned out the lights and then lay down on the right side of the bed and curled up. Leofric got into the bed and made sure to keep a wide space between himself and the girl. He felt awkward and improper to be lying in the same bed as her but he brushed it aside as he closed his eyes. Come the morning he would thank Miranda for her hospitality and then leave to continue his journey. He’d had a wild day and only time would reveal what further trials he would have to endure before he could return home. Sleepiness ensconced him and after a short amount of time he was snoozing like a baby.
4.
Aethelred was in a ferocious mood for the next few days after Leofric had escaped from him. He had blamed his Pictish guards for the failure and had them executed, their tongues cut out through their necks. He then turned his attention to ruling his new kingdom, sending out messengers to demand pledges of loyalty from his subjects. The nobility he had taken captive during the feast had mostly acquiesced to his rule, they were too terrified to do otherwise. Some of them however had been intractable and Aethelred had those ones beheaded with their heads being sent to their domains as warnings to their successors. He found the time to issue a royal edict that doubled taxes on the common folk which led to a peasant delegation coming to his throne hall to plea for a return to the status quo. Aethelred had them all executed, their mangled bodies chopped up and served as food for his dogs. When a second delegation had arrived to plea for the bodies of their kinfolk he had them executed as well, their bodies dumped back in their villages with their ears, eyes and noses missing. All in all it had been a busy few days and despite his hectic work schedule Aethelred remained consumed with rage over Leofric’s escape.
His soon to be queen, the witch Siana, had taken up residence in the house that had once belonged to Offa. Since then the witch had promised him that she would rectify the issue of the missing prince. True to her word she was finished a few days after she began and a messenger informed the king of her request for his presence. The king left his throne hall, crossing over to the dungeon where Siana waited for his arrival. He descended into the dungeon, grimacing from the smoke and hideous smells that wafted up. At the bottom near one of the cells, Siana waited with several Pict warriors, their skin covered in woad. “My lord” Siana said smiling, “we are so honoured to have your presence”.
“You said you had something for me” Aethelred grunted in a smouldering tone.
“My lord” Siana continued, “I have finished preparations to eliminate the prince”.
“Is that so?” Aethelred drily responded.
“Come and let me show you” Siana said in a her siren tone. For a moment Aethelred felt his soul become calm and entranced, the witch’s voice had an effect like that. It could soothe a man, filling him with bliss, making him compliant and submissive. Aethelred focused his mind and cold contempt returned to his senses, his will force was too strong to be enchanted by the witch. Siana and her Pict warriors walked further down into the dungeon, the king followed her with his bodyguards. She stopped at the far end where a cage with two crows inside was sitting on a table. All over the table and walls were markings which Aethelred took to be spells and charms.
“These crows are meant to kill my nephew?” the king asked dismissively.
“Oh my lord” Siana remarked, “these are only meant to find the prince”.
“Then who will kill the worm?” the king said. “Who will gut the wretch?”.
“Why these men of course” Siana gestured to the seven Pict warriors that accompanied her.
“You told me that the place you sent the prince to could only be accessed once” Aethelred stated. “That the powers you called upon would only make the deal once”.
“There has been a change in circumstances” Siana imparted. “I have been offered a second chance to open the gates to the other realm, in return only one sacrifice is needed”.
“And what would that be?” Aethelred questioned.
“The hearts of a hundred first born sons” Siana intoned.
Aethelred contemplated his witch’s offer and then made a decision. “Go out into the country” the king told his chief bodyguard. “Round up all of the common folk for the next ten leagues and find out which among them is a first born son. Kill a hundred of them and then bring their hearts here for my witch, is that understood?”.
“Understood sir” the massive Pict replied before setting off to fulfil his order.
“I have done as you requested” Aethelred said, “now fulfil your side of the bargain”.
Siana nodded and started waving her hands in circles over the cage with the crows in them. She started chanting, the air becoming heavy and vibrating, while a deep humming filled the silence. The chanting become more enthused and Siana lost herself to her dark magic, her eyes rolling back and her body shaking. Then there was an unearthly screech and a portal of orange flame burst into existence behind the witch. The Picts fell to the ground screaming as their bodies were transformed into something hideous and evil. Siana let out an inhuman howl, opening up the cage of the crows which flew out, their eyes glowing balls of orange malice. Siana flung her hands towards the portal and the crows flew into it, the mutated Picts rushing through as well. Snorts and growls echoed out as the transformed soldiers, which resembled demons more than men, jumped through the portal. When the last of the barely human monsters leapt into the flickering hell gate, Siana let out one final cry and threw herself to the ground. The portal evaporated almost instantaneously and Aethelred was left looking at an empty, cold room with nothing distinguishing in it besides hastily drawn markings.
Siana breathed in and out rapidly for a bit before getting up with great effort. She was drenched in sweat and evidently exhausted. “Your nephew has been taken care of” she said. “There is no hope for him now”.
“How will I know when he’s dead?” Aethelred interrogated..
“I will watch through them” Siana gestured towards the unlocked cage. “You will know soon enough my lord”.
“I expect his death shortly” Aethelred declared, turning and making his way out of the dungeon. “The hearts of the first born sons will arrive for you soon”.
Siana licked her lips as she watched the king leave. She had succeeded in her mission and exceeded even her own ambitions. The prince would be lucky to survive for even a day.
5.
Miranda awoke to a man sleeping in her bed next to her. It wasn’t a surprise, it was the same man she’d invited back after he’d saved her from a fate worse than death. She had been so overwhelmed with emotions that she’d invited her saviour back to her place without even thinking. At least that’s what she had told herself, in truth she had no idea what had led her to extend the invite to the sword wielding hobo. She got out of bed, rubbed her eyes and went over to her kitchen and got out some cereal. She had a university lecture at around midday and some work to get done but otherwise she had no other obligations. She ate breakfast while keeping an eye on the man still sleeping in her bed. Despite the fact that she had witnessed him kill a man the night before she found little discomfort at his presence in her apartment. Her only real fear was that he would be tracked down by the police and she would be listed as an accomplice to murder.
There was a groan and the man, who called himself ‘Leofric’, stretched out his arms. Miranda felt a burst of anxiety and apprehension at the sight of the st
irring figure. She had been in such an emotional daze the night before she had been too numb to even process most of what had happened after he had saved her. Now though she was fresh, collected and unsure of what to do when the cryptic man awoke. Another groan went out and Leofric sat up, his eyes fluttering open, groggily focusing in on Miranda. “Thank you for your hospitality” he said.
“It’s no problem” Miranda replied. “There’s breakfast here if you want it”.
“That is much appreciated” Leofric mentioned, standing up and taking his robes off, revealing a tunic and trousers. “Wearing these around in the heat is no fun” he said. I can only imagine. “You didn’t take them off during the day?” Miranda asked, trying to force conversation and prevent awkwardness from incubating.
“I would have had nowhere to put it” Leofric replied in his slightly antique accent.
“You can have a shower too if you need one” Miranda offered.
“A what?” Leofric replied as he walked over to the kitchen bench top.
The Prince of Manhattan Page 7
