‘You would be most welcome to visit the castle.’
‘The Empress wants us back home as soon as is humanly possible. Not all is well in Tatharlia. The Empress fears... In truth I’m not sure what she fears, but something is going on. Her orders were that no-one other than myself speak with any Alkiran.’
‘Did she have any other message she wished to convey, other than her overwhelmingly generous gift and her kind invitation?’ asked Kelian.
‘She did. There are things I was instructed to say, should I have the opportunity to speak to you alone.’ He hesitated and glanced back towards Danil. ‘The Empress said I should trust none other than you.’
‘My King’s Marshall will not repeat anything that is said between us, if I ask him to be silent,’ Kelian stated confidently.
‘Can you be sure?’ Captain Mercah whispered urgently.
‘He’s of the Daoine Maithe,’ replied Kelian, and he smiled as Captain Mercah’s expression relaxed.
The Captain laughed aloud. ‘Is he now? Well, in that case I will continue. Firstly, the Empress said if you refused my invitation because you felt threatened by our presence I was to personally beg you to come. Secondly, she said if you still refused to come I was to find some way of making it impossible for you to refuse her invitation, and thirdly, she asked me to express personally to you the sincerity of her desire for friendship between Tatharlia and Alkira, and lastly,’ he paused and glanced towards Danil before proceeding, ‘she advised that you bring a strong enough escort to ensure you reach the Empress’ Sanctuary safely. Trust no-one. You will be safe once within the walls of the Sanctuary.’
‘But you can’t say why she wants me to visit?’ asked Kelian feeling frustrated by the lack of forthcoming information.
‘I can’t say because I don’t know. What I do know is that the Empress is terribly worried, but by what she wouldn’t say. I do know she’s disturbed by her parents’ deaths, and she has made comments about strange happenings even within the Sanctuary, but I may say no more. Majesty, please don’t take it as an insult that we cannot accept your invitation to visit the castle, but we must be gone the moment the supplies are unloaded.’ Captain Mercah shook his head sadly. ‘Besides, from what I can see, I doubt you could feed a visiting mouse before my ship is unloaded.’
‘It is looking a little grim,’ Kelian admitted. He stared thoughtfully towards the massive Tatharlian vessel. ‘I wonder why the Empress disallowed anyone other than you to leave the ship,’ he mused. ‘Is that difficult to control?’
‘It’s not difficult. We Tatharlians are creatures of routine and habit. On board our ships, the same routine is followed day after day. As much as is possible, nothing changes. Everyone knows where everyone else will be, and what they’ll be doing at any hour of any day. It’s the same on board any Tatharlian ship. So if someone leaves the ship, everyone would know. Unless they didn’t know someone was on board in the first place. The Empress said this message for both of us before setting sail. ‘Trust no-one.’ In Tatharlia, that’s advice we take seriously.’
‘I’ll make a suggestion,’ said Kelian. ‘Tell your crew that I have accepted the Empress’ generous invitation and will be leaving Alkira in two months when repairs to my ship are complete.’
‘Two months!’ Captain Mercah cried in alarm. ‘That’s-’
‘In actual fact,’ Kelian interrupted the Captain, ‘I’ll be leaving Alkira immediately and I’ll be there as quickly as the Swift will carry me. I’m sure Captain Gillam can have her ready even before you finish unloading. Who knows, I may even beat you to Tatharlia,’ he added challengingly.
‘So!’ Captain Mercah rubbed his hands together. ‘It’s a race!’
‘If it’s a race, it’s going to be a strange one,’ said Kelian. ‘If your crew thinks we’re not leaving for a couple of months, they might think it a little strange when we dart out of the harbor ahead of you.’
‘That would serve to confuse them,’ laughed Captain Mercah. ‘I would like to believe there are no spies and traitors amongst my crew, but in view of the Empress’ orders, I think that would be foolish. If I might make one final suggestion, don’t sail directly to Tathra. There’s an old settlement called Qinel before you pass Numher. If you disembark there and make your way to Numher, you can get cart from Numher to Tathra. You’re less likely to be stopped, if you go that way.’
‘Stopped?’
‘The Empress would like as few people as possible to be aware of your visit. You can get supplies and inconspicuous clothing at Qinel. The path between Qinel and Number is little more than a goat track, but it’s passable. Strange to ask this of the King of Alkira, but I would do anything for my Empress.’
‘What about the people of Qinel? Won’t they be a little suspicious of an Alkiran ship?’
‘I doubt it. Qinel was once a flourishing settlement, but there’s no safe harbor there and the wild southern storms make it an uncomfortable place to live. In time, people began to settle beside a harbor to the west of the old settlement. That became Numher. Now Qinel is made up mostly of people who don’t want to be found; smugglers, thieves and murderers. People go there to hide.’
‘And you want us to disembark there?’ Kelian said in disbelief.
‘If you try to sneak into Qinel in the dead of night looking like a band of smugglers you’re far less likely to be challenged than should you sail boldly into Tathra. You might be accosted by someone attempting to relieve you of your gold, but I’m sure you can handle a few thieves.’
‘And once we get to Tathra?’
‘A man will find you and take you to the Sanctuary.’
‘How will we know him?’
‘He will recognize you. He’s a man you can trust. He will help you enter the Sanctuary without being noticed. The Empress was most adamant that none should know of your arrival.’
‘Perhaps it would be easier if I went alone. Perhaps just the Knight Marshall and I should visit?’
‘Majesty, the Empress was hoping your wife would also be willing to visit. It may simply be that she wishes to meet the Queen, but she was quite adamant that she wished for you both to visit.’
‘I doubt Immosey and Louisa will let Elena out of their sight, and if my wife and her sisters come, I want with us as powerful a force as I can get away with, as I sneak through Tatharlia.’
They turned and walked in quiet conversation until they reached the docks. ‘Thank you Majesty. I’ll see you on the water...in our wake,’ said Captain Mercah. Kelian laughed. The Swift was small compared to the Tatharlian ship, and although Kelian was sure it was the fastest ship in what remained of the Alkiran fleet he knew it would be no match for the massive Tatharlian vessel. He stood beside King’s Marshall Danil and watched in silence as the Tatharlian ship swept grandly across the harbor and disappeared around the headland, and then he turned and walked back towards the castle. ‘What’s happening Danil?’ he asked as they passed through the city gates.
‘Well, the jetty held up to its first test. That was one big ship! The men are working around the clock repairing the walls and extending them around the new city. Farmers have been pouring in from all over the place with food and blankets, some of which their wives have made especially for the people of Castle. You’ll be pleased to know that most of the destruction was limited to the cities, most of our farming folk and nearly all of the smaller towns are untouched - which accounts for the greater part of our citizens.’
‘Father always encouraged people to move into the country areas,’ Kelian commented. ‘He never liked the idea of having such large cities that the people in remote areas might become neglected. He hoped if he kept the taxes low in country areas it would persuade people to move into the smaller towns.’
‘Well, it worked,’ said Danil. ‘And now they’re repaying the favor. They’re camped out on the higher hills and are helping build houses and dig wells. Apart from all the food the Tatharlians unloaded, we’ve had carts from Highvale, Barla and Starly
. We even had a cart make it across Skeleton’s Rest from Warbilla. It was filled with clothing and all sorts of linen.’
‘Payment?’
‘Yes. The strongbox was full of dirty sea water, but the gold was unaffected of course.’
‘And is anyone taking advantage of our desperation?’
‘No. I find this hard to believe, but so far no-one has asked for more than a reasonable price for their goods. The linen and clothing from Warbilla was sent as a gift, from Principal Smith and his wife Caity.’
‘Even with such generosity, and the help of the Daoine Maithe, I don’t expect things to be back to normal for many years. And I find it hard to believe the fallen will give us years of peace to rebuild. And now Tappy thinks I need to go to Tatharlia, and that it would be unwise to refuse the Empress’ invitation. Argh! It just couldn’t come at a worse time! I feel like he’s placed me in an impossible position!’
‘Perhaps you should talk to Tappy more. He’s a very wise man. I’m sure he wouldn’t have put you in such a position without absolute necessity.’
‘What if they’re just trying to get the guardians away from Castle so invasion becomes easy?’
‘I can only tell you what I gleaned from the Captain’s mind, and I went deep into his thoughts, but if that is the case he has no idea. And when he thought about the Empress he was remembering a very frightened, vulnerable person. That seems strange to me, as the rulers of Tatharlia have always been strong and clever, and none of them scared easily.’
‘What else could you tell of the Empress?’
‘Not much; just the presence of someone who needed help, perhaps that they were ashamed to have to ask, but determined to do so anyway.’
‘This only gets more confusing,’ said Kelian.
The conference room was filled with people when Kelian and Danil entered. Kelian was pleased to see that Tiernan had arrived. He stood speaking with Timbul, Araas, Valeska, Louisa, and Milgorry. Kelian felt a moment of surprise that Valeska and Louisa had been allowed to leave the Dwellings whilst expecting babies, but he suspected the defensive capacity of the guardians surrounding them was probably enough to keep them safe and to prevent Nandul from attempting to snatch Louisa away. Louisa waved across the room to Queen Elena and her sister Immosey and the two ladies smiled at their sister. Kelian moved to Elena’s side and kissed her.
‘Where are Lerise and Jade?’ he asked.
‘They were here,’ replied Elena, ‘but they went back to their rooms for some rest. They’re still so very weak Kelian. I’m really worried about them.’
‘Eibhear assures me they will survive,’ said Kelian comfortingly.
‘They will,’ Eibhear confirmed, appearing beside Kelian and Elena, ‘but it’s a long road of recovery. They will be weak for a long time.’ He turned and gestured to his brother Rudiger who immediately joined them.
‘We’re going to the Dwellings before we head for Emerald,’ said Rudiger. ‘They can stay in the Dwellings for a while if they want to. We’ll take all the time they need.’
‘Thank you,’ said Kelian sincerely. ‘I owe you so much. If you return to your own country now, Nandul will want to hunt you down and return you.’
‘He already wants to hunt us down and return us,’ said Rudiger, shrugging. ‘Even if we’d stayed in Nyinaku, I’ll bet Nandul would know by now that we’ll destroy him if we can.’
‘So when do we leave for Tatharlia,’ asked Timbul, appearing so suddenly beside Kelian jumped in surprise. ‘Sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you,’ he added with a grin that contradicted his words.
‘Captain Gillam,’ called Kelian and Gillam looked up expectantly. ‘When can we be ready to leave?’
‘Just say the word, Majesty.’
‘Where’s Tappy?’ asked Kelian, gazing around the crown of faces.
‘Here, Majesty!’ Tappy called from the corner of the room, where he stood with Duke Percy and Duchess Vera.
‘Good. Let’s begin,’ Kelian commanded. Everyone immediately crowded around the huge table. An assortment of chairs had been brought into the room, but there was not enough room for everyone, so General Marnol and his wife Lady Sophie opted to sit on the long lounging chair with Princess Amy, Duke Laughlin and a guardian from the Dwellings called Alasdair, who had returned an hour earlier from Tarlique with the comforting news that there were none of the fallen in the area of the city and many people had returned to begin rebuilding. Duke Laughlin and Princess Amy were already making plans for their return home. Tappy spread a piece of parchment and dipped his quill into a small pot of ink. He waited for Kelian to speak.
‘Where’s Dale?’ said Kelian, noticing the Baron was missing from the sea of faces.
‘He was helping clean out the old stables near the city gates,’ General Marnol replied. ‘With a bit of work it will be good enough housing, for the time being.’ There was the sound of footsteps approaching and seconds later Dale stood in the doorway. He was covered from head to toe in filthy mud, and he wore a look of resignation.
‘Oh, for goodness sake Dale! Not again!’ cried Eibhear crossly. ‘Surely you didn’t get Nailmarni blood on you again! Why didn’t you call one of us to help you?’
Dale’s face seemed to crumble. ‘There were children there Eibhear,’ he said and his voice was barely a whisper. ‘They were playing around the stable and one of them accidently dislodged a beam. The Nailmarni must have died hiding in the roof, and when it fell, one of the children was pinned under a whole lot of wood and the dead body dropped on top of her. I couldn’t wait for anyone! I dragged the body away and it kind of ripped open and splattered...urgh!’ Dale rushed across the room and managed to get his face through the window before he vomited violently. The guardians had moved through the ruined city before the citizens returned, removing as many of the bodies of the Nailmarni as possible, but several more had been discovered as the wreckage was removed from key areas.
‘And the child?’ said Kelian anxiously, rising to his feet.
‘The child is fine,’ Dale managed to gasp, before vomiting again. ‘Jemia didn’t get any blood on her from the creature. She’ll be fine.’ Dale wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and smeared more mud across his face.
‘Dale, why don’t you bathe before you lose consciousness,’ Eibhear suggested. ‘I know who’ll get stuck with the job of shoving pelgavik into you to keep you alive, and it’s bad enough dealing with the fact that you are ungrateful and bad mannered, without being so filthy and stinking of vomit that you’re practically unapproachable. At least you can be clean if I have to spend the next week feeding and watering you!’
‘Thank you Eibhear,’ said Dale gratefully, seeing right through Eibhear’s sarcasm.
‘At least this time you won’t have to sleep on bare rocks,’ said Danil encouragingly. ‘Where’s our physician? Do we have any pelgavik?’ he asked, referring to the herb used to treat illness caused by exposure to Nailmarni blood.
‘He was killed in the first attack at the Dwellings,’ said Dale sadly.
‘I’ve got pelgavik in my pack,’ said Captain Gilgarry. ‘Remember we collected it before we went to the Dwellings, and we didn’t use all of it. I don’t suppose it matters if it’s completely dried out?’
‘It shouldn’t make any difference,’ said Eibhear. ‘Bring it to me.’
Dale leaned against the wall and slid down until he was sitting on the floor. Already he was finding it almost impossible to keep his eyes open.
‘Bath! Now!’ Kelian ordered, and Dale opened his eyes with difficulty. He clambered to his feet, stood poised for a second, then crashed face first to the floor.
‘Now what do we do with him?’ said Eibhear in dismay. ‘He stinks like he fell into the dunnigin!’
Callian knelt beside Dale and placed his hand on the Baron’s forehead.
‘Dale?’
‘Bi ciuin.’ Dale opened his eyes and stared up at Callian. He clutched at his pounding head. ‘Ta tinneas cinn orm.’
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‘You’ll have more than just a headache if we don’t get some Pelgavik into you right now,’ Callian muttered. ‘I can make him stay awake long enough for him to bathe himself, if he’s quick,’ said Callian.
‘Bathe?’ said Dale looking confused.
‘That’s where you clean yourself in a tub of water. I don’t know that you’ve ever taken one before,’ said Eibhear sarcastically, though he looked relieved.
‘I know what bathing is, idiot!’ Dale mumbled dragging himself to his feet. ‘Supreme Majesty! I just hope I can stay awake long enough that I don’t drown in there!’
Eibhear studied Dale’s thoughts for a moment and was suddenly serious. ‘I’ll wait outside the bathing room, Dale, and if I can’t hear your thoughts I’ll come in and drag you out of the water.’
‘Thank you,’ said Dale, stumbling towards the door. As it turned out, he managed to stay conscious long enough to bathe, dress in his night shirt and eat a good quantity of pelgavik before he finally succumbed to unconsciousness. Eibhear picked him up easily, carried him to his room and dropped him on his bed. ‘Sleep well,’ he muttered. ‘And if you can hear me, Dale, you can stop worrying. I’ll probably keep you alive even though I think you’re the most bizarre human I’ve ever met, and probably the clumsiest. And definitely the most accident prone,’ Eibhear finished, raising his voice slightly as he saw Dale’s eyelids flicker slightly. ‘As I said, sleep well. I’m off to gather some noxious weeds.’ He chuckled wickedly as Dale squirmed slightly, then dragged a light cover over Dale’s body and opened the window to let in a breeze. His face turned serious and he sighed sadly. There was a larger possibility that Dale would not survive this time.
Chapter 4
Hunted
Kalinya woke to find himself surrounded by complete chaos. He gave a cry of surprise when he saw the cart was on fire. He leapt from the cart and landed on Kindalin who was lying face down on the ground, with blood covering the back of his crushed skull and his arm severed at the shoulder. There was a crunching sound as Kalinya’s ankle wrenched sideways and he crumpled to an agonized heap. He rolled away from the body, crying in pain. A cacophony of shouting rang out around him, and without thinking he crawled frantically towards the long grass at the side of the road. He could see the bodies of three more of Kindalin’s team. They were all dead. He clutched his ankle as he peered back through the long grass towards the cart. Men worked feverishly to unload the cart as it burned but these were not men Kalinya recognized.
The Fallen (Book 1) Page 57
