He watched as the Captain brought it up to his eyes, then flipped it over and did the same thing. Once he did it the second time, he cursed. “By the gods, I think we know how they were seeing us. Take a look at this, Lieutenant.” He passed the device back and waited while Kel looked on the same side as the Captain had.
“Astonishing, sir!” he said after a few minutes. “I can see as if it's daylight. It’s almost too bright with all of the light our lantern is giving off.”
“Exactly, Astonishing. I’ve never seen the like,” the Captain said, then looked speculatively at Aiden. “Lord Wilthorn, can you make anything of it? I’ve heard you can tell things sometimes?”
Aiden took the device in his hands even as he’d already been reaching out toward it with his mind. Contact made what he discovered stronger, but it indeed was a glimmer steel construct, and more importantly, it was one that had been made recently. Aiden had no idea what to think, but as he explored it more thoroughly he felt the faint shadow of a glimmer man’s mind, though it was not one he knew.
“Captain, it is made from glimmer steel but it has been made recently.” Aiden paused before continuing. He had a terrible suspicion but he wasn’t entirely sure. Ultimately he couldn’t think of it being anyone else so he continued in a soft whisper. “I think it’s from the Mourning Lords, sir.”
The Captain’s eyebrows descended like two storm clouds and he straightened, standing tall as he considered carefully what Aiden had said. “If I hadn’t heard your story from His Grace’s lips myself, I’d throw you off the ship for lying, Lord Wilthorn. But, I have and instead I’ll tell you both to keep this quiet. I’ll talk to the Duke about it, but I don’t want this getting around to the men.”
Aiden and Lieutenant Kel both nodded silently. The lieutenant gave the rest of the papers and map cases to the Captain silently and they both watched him walk off, making a beeline for the Duke.
Kel blew out a breath once he was out of range and looked at Aiden. “Well, guess all those stories were true. I figured Gavin was making up some of it, but now…” he trailed off, shaking his head.
“I wish they were lies,” Aiden said softly, “but even out here in the middle of the ocean, I can’t seem to get away from it. I’m sorry.”
“What are you apologizing for?” Kel said, mystified.
“For dragging you all into this mess, of course,” Aiden said sadly. “I think the worst part is putting innocent people in danger.”
Kel just laughed softly and shook his head. “Aiden, we’re the Terek navy. It’s our job to put ourselves in harm's way. Yes, it’s a little out of the ordinary, but it’s better us than civilians, right? And we came out on the good side, this time.”
Aiden nodded, turning to look out on the deck with the young lieutenant. Even in the darkness, he could see the smiles of the crewmen and feel the sense of profound relief. As most young men do, they had expected to come out of this, but to be proven right so thoroughly was still a great relief. And much of it was due to things he’d made.
How did it balance out? Yes, he was fairly sure he was what the mercenaries had been after, but he’d also been instrumental in winning the fight. Did it balance out? Did it make up for putting these men in harm's way? He wasn’t sure, so just shrugged and bid the young Lieutenant goodnight, heading to his room to get some sleep. He wasn’t sure he could, but he needed to try. The last few days had been harrowing.
Chapter 15
Aiden could feel the transition starting this time as he began to slip into the Anderealm. His friend Glowby bringing him to something that needed attention, or perhaps something else. Either way, he was ready and didn’t fight it. The strange pull and pop came faster now, slipping almost easily over him. When he opened his eyes, he was standing in the eerily quiet throne room at the castle of Terek.
Aiden blinked. This was new. He’d traveled in his earliest dreams but no further than a few meters. Now, he’d just found himself hundreds of kilometers away in the blink of an eye. The question was, why here and why now? There was little he could tell about the room. It was still and cold, lifeless. There could be a crowd of people around him and he wouldn’t know it. Still, without people here, there were large expanses of space, the thrones themselves and not much else.
He watched carefully as Glowby floated over toward the thrones and began to circle above a large table placed between them. He walked over and looked down at its curious occupants, consisting of a glass and a large picture of liquid. Even as he watched, the goblet seemed to move, and before he knew it, disappeared into thin air.
“Well, that was odd,” Aiden said, stepping back at the strange sight. “Does it mean someone picked it up? If that happens, then why don’t the chairs disappear?” Shaking his head he looked at the two thrones, and one clearly had the imprint of someone’s behind upon the soft cushion. A few moments later, the goblet reappeared in a slightly different place just as if someone had placed it down after taking a drink.
“So, what do I do now, Glowby? There are people here, but if I just pop into the air, I’m fairly sure I’ll be stabbed straight away by an overanxious guard.”
In answer, his friend drifted down and then passed through the heavy tablecloth and underneath. Glowby then ducked back out once or twice, retreating back under the cover of the table a few times until it was clear Aiden got the hint. Crouching down, he followed his friend until he was secured under the tablecloth itself. It was a tight fit, but he wasn’t a large boy and now if he reappeared, he was sure he would be hidden from view.
Aiden took a deep breath, looking at Glowby anxiously. “I certainly hope I’m not interrupting anything that will get me killed, Glowby. Seriously, I’ve not been a lord long, but I’m fairly sure no one likes to have someone spying on them from under a table.”
Glowby bounced quickly a few times, then glowed a determined slate gray color. Whatever his friend had brought him here for, Aiden decided he didn’t have any choice but to pop back into the real world and see what was going on. It had to be better than pirates, at least.
Closing his eyes, Aiden concentrated on easing himself back into the real world slowly, gently crossing the boundaries. Immediately, the gentle sounds of life intruded itself on his ears as there were people close at hand, talking, and other movements just outside of his little sanctuary.
“…Your Grace! I do not wish to bring you this ill news, but it is important you know!”
Aiden listened to someone stand suddenly from one of the thrones next to him. “From a Feldar Trader?” Duchess Ahnarad’s voice was chill and even as she spoke, Aiden could tell she was upset from the slight waver in her voice, but even so she held it well. “Terek hasn’t seen your ilk down here for several seasons, Master Nellun. What would possibly bring you this far south when your mines have clearly run dry? Certainly not just to tell me you’ve stood idly by while my husband and sons were killed in a pirate raid?”
“Oh, no, Your Grace,” Nellun said, his voice reedy and far too happy for Aiden’s liking. “No, I actually came down to reestablish some small bit of trade. The Elueth Mine recently come into several crystals. Even a breeder stone was discovered. We’ve heard you were having some…eh…difficulties with yours here in Breen, so I was sent to see what we could do to assist. But of course, I came here first after what we witnessed.”
“Indeed? How noble of you, Master Nellun. And how come these pirates went after a full ship of war instead of your far richer pickings?”
Aiden heard some rustling as if the man were bowing. “They would have tried, Your Grace, but the Dawn Tide is a fast schooner. It may not hold a great deal of merchandise, but it does offer other incentives. One of which being it is usually faster than most pirates. We were running from them, in fact, when dawn came and we literally came upon the Gerevat by accident. The pirates literally ran against her just as the light was enough to see by. Eh… She fought valiantly, your Grace, but against five other ships?” The man's oily voice trailed off
into silence.
Aiden held his breath as the silence deepened before finally, Duchess Ahnarad settled back into her throne. She sounded brave, but there was a note of worry and sadness in her voice as she continued. “Very well, Master Nellun, you have our thanks. Please let the steward note the coordinates of this before you exit the castle? We will have to verify your story.”
The man mumbled a few things before Aiden heard him hustled out of the audience room and the large doors close. Shortly thereafter, He heard the Duchess order everyone out of the room. As the last of the steps receded, Aiden heard the woman slump in her chair next to him before breathing out a long breath.
“What do you think?” Aiden heard her say, loudly, and clearly not to herself. There was an uncharacteristic note of worry in her voice, but Aiden had to admit if he’d been told a husband and son had just died, he couldn’t have sounded a tenth as put together as she was.
For a moment, Aiden was sure he’d been found out, but then a sonorous voice answered her from somewhere behind the throne. It was Count Viridian.
“I am thinking the same thing as you, Ahnarad, and that is things are not as they seem. My contacts were made aware of Master Nellun’s arrival several days ago, not tonight as he would have you believe. Also, the timing sounds odd, since it was only four days ago the Duke was scheduled to be leaving Reid. Nellun’s schooner would have to be considerably fleeter than even the Skywitch to have traveled backward in time to view his demise.”
Duchess Ahnarad blew out a sigh of relief, and Aiden heard the woman let out a soft sob as she recomposed herself. As she did so, Aiden could hear Count Viridian come up and sit on the throne next to her, waiting for her to speak.
“That… yes, that is as I was thinking, but it certainly helps to hear someone else say it. Saying it to myself sounded too much like wishful thinking.” She shifted in her seat, pausing for a moment more. “What else can you tell me about our friend Nellus? Should I have him arrested? Maybe his ship searched?”
“No, Your Grace, I think for the moment, it is more important to have him free and feeling safe. He has been in close contact with Lord Dolgren, and I wish to see what odd requests I may get from that channel. It may tell us more about what they are planning, if anything. He assuredly knows you are not his friend, but I think I will endeavor to make his visit more comfortable and see what we can tease out of that rat's nest.”
“Very well, but please, be careful. I know you’ve not seen any sign you’ve been betrayed, but you know very well it’s a many layered cake that they bake. If it were anyone else but you, I’d have you hidden away but… well, you are good at this game, aren’t you?”
“Quite, Your Grace.” Count Viridian agreed. “Have no fear, I am operating many times more cautiously than I normally practice. Now, have you thought about sending your older son to the council on the Skywitch? I know you don’t wish to send the skimmers, but if we send the fleet? Perhaps that would be enough to guarantee their safety, even in that nest of vipers at the ducal council?
“I’m still deciding, Viridian. We have a week and a half left before I need to decide, and as accomplished as Erasmus is and even though the council is being held in my sister's city, I don’t know if it would do any good. Clearly, they wanted to give us no time to contact Valeran. It’s clearly a trap of some sort.”
“I agree, Your Grace. But I am not sure of the choice we have. We may be forced to act to protect our interests.”
Ahnarad sighed, leaning back in her chair. “I wish I could communicate with Valeran. Those communicators you speak of the ancients used to have would come in handy right now.”
Right about then, Glowby buzzed in front of Aiden's face, breaking his concentration. He realized what his friend wanted, and gently cleared his throat, speaking in a soft voice so as not to startle them. “Uh… I may be..uh…able to help with that. Just don’t kill me. Please?”
He heard Ahnarad immediately stand and take several steps away from the table. He didn’t hear Count Viridian move, but could only imagine what the tall, stately count was pulling out of his robes. Aiden winced, closing his eyes and waiting for something loud and painful to happen. When it didn’t, he cautiously began moving the table cloth aside and peeking out.
Ahnarad was several steps away from the thrones, her face frozen and her eyes narrowed and Count Viridian was in a similar state though he was holding something metallic in his hand. Aiden hadn’t a clue what it was, but he waved his hands in the air slowly. “No threat! No threat! Don’t kill me, I can explain.”
“Aiden?” Count Viridian said, not lowering the thing in his hand but a question clear on his face.
“Yes! Just me, Aiden. Can I come out? I’m no threat, but I do have news!” He felt his eyes close as he grimaced before peeking out at one of them. The Duchess had a look on her face which seemed to be warring between startled and curious, but Count Viridian was expressionless. Still, Aiden was quite relieved when he lowered his hand, letting Aiden continue crawling out before standing up.
“Sorry! I know it is strange and, well, I have an explanation. But first, Valeran and the rest of us are just fine. We are not dead, though we were attacked by pirates. Strange how that man watched us be attacked when it just happened an hour ago.”
Duchess Ahnarad finally gathered herself at the sound of her husband's name and rushed over, patting around his shoulders and head like a concerned mother. It felt nice, though unusual because the Duchess was usually quite collected. He couldn’t blame her for being out of sorts.
“Aiden, how did you get here?” Ahnarad said, blinking as she tried to make sense of what was being said. “What did you say about Valeran? Is he okay? My goodness, it has been a night.” She took a deep breath and sat down, picking up her glass of water and taking a large drink.
Aiden waited politely for her to settle herself. He’d always liked Ahnarad, and despite everything, he was quite glad he could refute the news the merchant had brought. Having grown up with no family, he took it quite personally for anyone to be told theirs was dead.
“Was it the Anderealm, Aiden?” Count Viridian said slowly, measuring Aiden with his eyes. “I know you had spoken to Reivus about it, but I had…assumed he was still having you create silverware. Has something changed?”
Aiden nodded in relief. He and Viridian had spoken about his difficulties with just making silverware, but the Count had refused to gainsay the Professor. “Yes, honestly we had some issues on Reid. I…well, I hate to say this but when they stabbed the Duke, we were a bit upset and I made some armor and swords for us.”
Duchess Ahnarad’s eyes flew wide again and she sat up straight. Count Viridian also looked alarmed, though for him it was more of a blink and an eyebrow-raising. Aiden saw the shocked look on Ahnarad’s face and held his hands out, realizing what he’d just said. “Oh! No, no he didn’t die. They healed him and we didn’t end up needing the armor and weapons, at least not for the Naiadens. When the Scratchers attacked, we needed it, but not for the Naiadens. It’s okay. Apparently, they stab him every year.” Aiden bit his lip, not having a clue how to actually describe this without it seeming bad. It was bad, actually. Being stabbed each year seemed a little extreme to him.
The Duchess closed her eyes and took a deep breath, nodding. “I…I think I see. The blood price. I always thought it might be just a name, but apparently, they mean it literally. Okay, I can work with that. He’s come back each year and you say he’s okay, yes? What about the Scratchers?”
Blowing out a deep breath himself, Aiden nodded emphatically. “Yes. He is fine and healthy. Not three days later we were sitting on the beach in their new university town. But the night after they…uh…stabbed him, we were attacked by Scratchers.” His voice became a bit more subdued as he remembered the chaos, and more importantly the charred remains of the ones he’d killed. “I had made some armor and weapons for Gavin, Chari, and Ashrak which came in handy. But I broke faith with Professor Reivus to do it.” He
paused, then looked up at Count Viridian with sad eyes. “I think he changed his mind after that, but it wasn’t easy for him.”
Count Viridian nodded slowly, looking thoughtful. “Yes. He’s been around longer than any of my kind. I can understand his worry. Chaos, especially for the long-lived, is difficult. Now, tell us about this pirate attack? What exactly happened?”
Aiden nodded and recounted the story from when they saw the sails until the attack that evening. Both Ahnarad and Viridian stopped him several times to ask pointed questions, but he didn’t know all the answers. He knew they suspected Lord Dolgren, but he wasn’t privy to what they might have found on the ship except for the night viewer they’d recovered. He also let them know about the strange state of Professor Reivus and how much it worried him.
“Aiden, do you think you could make something like that? To see at night?” Ahnarad asked speculatively, tapping her chin in thought. “That may come in handy. Or, perhaps you could come up with some communication devices.” She trailed off as she said the last before nodding with more certainty.” Yes, now that I think about it, I think that is definitely something we need. What do you think Viridian? With Professor Reivus in his state, do you think it might be too dangerous to try?”
The Glimmer Steel Saga, Boxed Set, Books 1 - 4 Page 49
