by M. L. Brooks
Eyes wide and knees weak, the mercenaries clutched their wounds and stumbled away as fast as they could. Both Adair and Shea were almost just as surprised at what they had witnessed.
“Don’t say a word, and don’t tell a soul. Let’s go back to camp. We’re heading to Fort Blackrun in the morning,” commanded Petra.
CHAPTER 10
The three women did not say a word to each other on their walk back to Bosh Ragan. Adair was surprised that Petra was queen of the Valarians. Petra had even managed to battle in a tournament in front of the entire city of Guardia and no one recognized her. Adair felt like she must have been completely detached from the tension between Guardia and New Valar.
When the three of them got back to the resort, there was a mercenary standing at the door waiting for them. He was leaning against the door with his arms crossed over his black and green tabard. He had a smug look on his face as he marched up to them.
“Prince Abel has requested an audience with you in the private parlor before you retire for the evening,” he said to Adair.
“Right away,” Adair agreed half-heartedly.
Adair, Petra, and Shea headed over to the parlor where Prince Abel had been earlier. Inside he was sitting at a long rectangular table, playing cards with Raz and Dahlia. They had brass goblets and bottles of wine scattered around on the table. They seemed to be having a good time.
“My guests have arrived! Have a seat!” cheered Prince Abel as she stood up clumsily.
“Your grace, did you need anything?” asked Adair.
“I need you to join me for a few rounds of cards,” said Prince Abel.
“If that is all, I think I’m going to head up to bed,” said Shea as she started walking away.
“No. I want all three of you. Sit down,” ordered Abel, his tone more serious.
“I like a man who knows what he wants!” Petra said loudly.
Petra went around the table and sat down on the end next to Dahlia. Adair and Shea sat down on the other side of the table with Raz. They looked at each other trying to figure out what was happening.
“What are we playing?” asked Shea.
“King’s Bluff,” replied Abel as he grabbed the used deck of cards on the table and started shuffling.
King’s Bluff was a card game commonly played by the nobility. It was an elaborate game involving several hands and complex combinations of the cards. People far richer than Adair liked to think that deceiving each other in the game made them wittier than their companions, but ultimately it was a game of chance like any other. Abel shuffled the cards a few times and then started dealing them around to everyone.
People like Adair did not play the game very often, but she did her best to remember the rules. They went around the table placing bets then drawing and discarding cards. Petra’s eyes lit up like a torch in the night. It was then that Abel forfeited his hand, not wanting to lose to Petra, and they all showed their cards. Petra had been bluffing. She had a horrible hand but by tricking the others into forfeiting she had managed to save her money for the next round.
“What a dirty rotten trick,” snickered Abel.
“Come on now, love. That’s the name of the game!” laughed Petra as she picked up the cards and handed them to Dahlia to shuffle.
“It’s called King’s Bluff. Perhaps we’re all a bit under the bar here,” said Dahlia as her fingers gingerly picked up the cards and shuffled them together.
“I really don’t know what I’m doing,” said Shea.
“Good, me either,” admitted Adair.
“Then we’ll count that one as practice. Deal us in!” said Abel.
Dahlia flicked the cards across the table to each of the players. An escort slipped into the room and poured out more wine for everyone at the table. Petra tossed her goblet back, drinking away the contents then setting her cup back down. The escort looked at her with wide eyes and then came back over and filled the goblet up again. Petra gave her a wink on her way out of the room.
Adair looked down at her hand and shook her head. Shea seemed to be doing the same thing as she rearranged the cards in her hand. They went around the table placing bets again. It seemed unfair to bet as Abel was the only one with any measurable money behind him. They all played through another round. This time Raz cleaned house and raked in all of the money that was on the table.
“Now that’s what I’m talking about!” exclaimed Raz.
“I’m finding myself getting real tired of losing,” groaned Abel.
“You’re telling me. I don’t think I have any more money,” said Shea.
Abel pushed a coin across the table.
“I’ll put one in the pot for you. You’re still in,” he said.
“Thank you!” gleamed Shea.
Petra took the cards and shuffled them together. She slid the deck over to Abel who picked up the top half and set it down in front of Petra. She picked up the bottom half and dealt out the cards. She put what was left in the center of the of the table for everyone to draw from. They went around and placed their bets, Shea just leaving Abel’s coin on the table. Adair took a gulp from her wine, letting its acrid fruity flavor wash over her tongue.
They played their cards. This time Abel won. He flashed a big smile and pulled the money in toward him. He snickered aloud as he counted up his winnings.
“I think we need to up the stakes,” said the Prince.
“We really don’t have anything to up the stakes with,” mumbled Shea.
“How about this. If you win, you walk away from the table untouched. If I win, I get to rip your tongue right out of your mouth,” offered Abel.
“Wait what?” gasped Adair.
“I really think I need to go,” said Shea as she started to stand up.
“You’re going to sit down or I’m going to have you all executed. Adair, you said you would exercise discretion when returning the ledger but what you neglected to tell your lord was that you were going to run around and beat Ivor’s brother to a pulp anyway. I want to rip that treasonous tongue right out of your mouth for making enemies out of the Ragan family but I like a good bet so I’m willing to make one. If you win, you walk. If I win, I’m going to rip your tongue from your mouth,” shot Abel.
“I didn’t mean for it to go that far. I just wanted to tell the farmer we weren’t going to be able to help,” replied Adair.
“I don’t care about a stupid farm on the edge of the world. Deal the hand,” ordered Abel as he handed the deck of cards to Adair.
Adair took the cards and started shuffling. She dealt the cards around the table. When Petra reached down to pick up her hand she accidentally knocked Dahlia’s goblet over into her lap. Dahlia jumped up and tried wiping the drink off her clothes.
“I’m so sorry! Let me get you cleaned up over here. We’re not leaving, I’m just going to grab a cloth,” said Petra as she pulled Dahlia to the side.
“Just be quick about it,” groaned Abel.
Taking Dahlia over to the corner, Adair proceeded to wipe her down.
“He’s cheating,” Petra mouthed to Dahlia.
“How do you know?” Dahlia whispered back, her voice barely audible.
“I saw him pull a card from under the table. I need you to win this next round,” whispered Petra as she slipped a card under Dahlia’s blouse.
They returned to the table and picked up their cards. Dahlia gave no indication that she had just convened with Petra on the side.
“I suppose there’s no point in placing our bets. We know what’s on the table,” gulped Adair.
“Let’s be on with it then,” said Abel.
Each of the players took their turns. Adair looked at her hand and then across at Abel. He was completely caught up in his plot. He had a huge smirk across his face during the entire round. When everyone had finished playing what they could, Adair brought the round to a close. She laid down her hand for everyone. Abel excitedly slapped his cards down, his hand trumping Adair’s. He picked up his go
blet and took a drink, splashing his wine around carelessly.
“Haha!” he laughed as he set his goblet back down on the table.
“My lord!” said Dahlia as she tapped at her cards that were lying face up on the table.
Her hand was better than everyone else’s. Abel’s jaw dropped as he looked down at her cards. He looked back at his cards in disbelief before throwing all of the cards off the table. A cloud of playing cards flipped and twisted through the air.
“You’re cheating! There’s no way you could have beaten me!” shouted Abel, his mouth practically foaming.
Shea and Adair jumped up out of their seats. Petra remained unnerved by Prince Abel’s display. Dahlia rolled her eyes and set about picking up the cards. Raz sat back and watched Abel carefully. Abel fell forward and passed out on the table in front of them, snoring loudly.
“What just happened?” asked Shea as she poked Abel.
“I drugged him. Just a sleeping tincture. He was way out of line,” said Raz as he looked around the room agitatedly.
“Don’t worry, I’ll take the Prince upstairs and put him to bed. When he sobers up I think I can work this out with him. There’s no way he could have thought killing anyone was a reasonable plan. You two should probably head to bed. Dahlia, help yerself to what’s on the table. I trust you’ll keep this evening a secret,” said Petra.
“I guess. I joined the guards because I thought it would be easy enough to beat up a few criminals or push paperwork. Not travel ‘cross the country and have me life threatened by my boss. Adair, you can expect me resignation in the morning,” said Raz.
Dahlia winked at Petra and cleaned the money off the table, stuffing her pockets with as much as she could. She cursed a “good riddance” under her breath as she collected the money. Dahlia was used to working with all manners of clientele and even she found Abel to be especially draining.
Petra lifted Abel’s arm over shoulder and carried him along with her. One of the mercenaries gave her a strange look when they saw her carrying Abel. She laughed and made a joke about him not knowing how to hold his liquor. They laughed and let Petra through without any hesitation. Adair and Shea walked out together and headed up to the guest rooms. They both went into Adair’s room.
“I was so scared Adair. He’s a monster!” cried Shea as she hugged her friend.
“We made it though. You know what’s really crazy is the king wants me to marry Prince Abel,” said Shea.
“We can’t let that happen. He’s clearly out of his mind,” said Shea.
“I told myself to just take it a day at a time. I’m still hoping I can find a way out of it,” replied Adair.
“What do you think Petra’s going to do with him?” asked Shea.
“I have no idea, but not only is she the strongest warrior I know, she’s also queen of New Valar. If there’s anyone who can put Prince Abel in his place, it’s her,” said Adair.
“I guess you’re right. Have a good night okay?” said Shea as she squeezed Adair’s hand, her soft fingers clasping her friend’s hand, and went back into the hallway and down to her own room.
Adair changed into her night clothes, casting her uniform off into the corner of the room, and then flopped onto her bed. It was late and she was tired, but she could not bring herself to fall asleep. She rolled over onto her back and stared up at the ceiling, listening to the cheers of the inebriated gamblers below.
CHAPTER 11
Reaching the conclusion of her story, Adair could feel the tears welling up in her eyes at the thought of what happened to Shea. They had become friends during their adventures, and it was hard to believe that had ended with a single thrust of a sword. Adair clenched her fist, her arms shaking. She felt like she was stumbling through a nightmare.
“Not a bad story. Could have used a little more character development and some of the plot points don’t seem fully thought out,” commented Rose as she took a sip of her tea, that was probably equal parts vodka as it was actually tea.
“Is this a joke to you?” asked Adair.
“Oh, certainly not. I do wonder though, what are you going to do next?” asked Rose.
“I’m going to go back and get the Guardian forces and take Bosh Ragan,” replied Adair.
“You mean take revenge. I’m going to do you a favor, and trust me that’s worth a lot coming from me, and fill you in on what happened to you. Your job was to protect the crown prince of Guardia. You were derelict in your sole duty on that mission. You won’t be welcomed back by Guardia. You’ll be thrown into a prison cell at best and killed on sight at worst. You tangled with the brother of the richest and most powerful man in Bosh Ragan who was then hired by someone who must have been richer and even more powerful for the job of killing you. I’m not going to bother trying to figure out who that was, I’m just going to point out that you weren’t strong enough to stop them. Someone like you doesn’t get to go back. You need to pull yourself together and move on,” lectured Rose.
“You’re right… I’m not strong enough, but you’re clearly a master warrior like Petra. Can you train me?” asked Adair.
“No. The student does not choose their master. When the student is ready, they learn,” said Rose, looking away disinterestedly.
“I don’t know what that means. But please, I don’t want to lose everything. Just teach me what you can. I promise I’ll make myself useful. I’ll cook and clean and work as hard as it takes,” pleaded Adair.
Rose rolled her eyes, considering whether Adair was even worth training.
“I’ll give you one chance to prove yourself to me. To the east, in the Crystal Waste, there is a… Temple… Grab me a piece of parchment from that table,” she said, waving her hand toward a desk in the next room over.
Adair scrambled over and retrieved a sheet of paper, a quill and a small ink pot from the desk. She brought it back over and set it on the dining table for Rose. Rose walked over and picked up the quill and started sketching out what looked like a detailed map.
“Inside this temple is a pedestal with an orb sitting on top of it. Touch the orb. If it activates for you then I will train you. Bring me proof of the orb’s activation and then we can negotiate your contract of servitude to me,” she finished.
“There are servant’s things through the pantry there. Pack a bag, and then rest. I expect you to be gone by nightfall tomorrow,” said Rose as she threw her robes behind her dramatically and walked away.
Adair walked over to the pantry and opened the door leading inside. It was a small room with shelves on the left and right overflowing with various foods. Cans, jars, bags, and packets with a wide variety of foods. On the floor were baskets with potatoes, lemons, and other fresh items that were not going to perish quickly. Past the food was another door.
Continuing through the next door brought Adair into another room that was just a couple feet larger than the pantry. In one corner was a broom, a bucket, a mop, and some other cleaning supplies. Against the far wall was a cot with a crate set next to it like an end table. Adair sat down on the cot and ran her hand along the unfinished wood of the crate.
There was an unlit candle on the table and the only light pouring into the room was from the door leading through dining room. Adair looked under the bed and found a crude animal skin satchel and a change of clothes that looked like it belonged to the servant who had previously lived there. Adair took off her pajamas and put on the clothes, including booties. It was all slightly too big for her.
She stuffed her pajamas into the satchel and carried it over to the kitchen where she found a pair of shears. Using the shears, she cut up her pajamas. With the extra fabric, she tied bows around her shoes to hold them in place. She cut a few strips for bandages and stuck them in her bag. The rest of her pajamas she cut up into rags and set them neatly out of the way on a counter in the kitchen.
Stopping by the dining room table on her way back to the pantry, Adair grabbed the map that Rose had drawn for her and tucked it into he
r satchel. When she got back to the pantry she loaded the bag up with some food and a water skin. She grabbed a chunk of jerky out of its cloth wrap and started chewing on it as she browsed through the items in the pantry. After she had foraged sufficiently through the pantry and the servant’s room, she laid down on the cot and passed out.
The cot was not the most comfortable bed Adair had slept in, but she was exhausted and when she awoke several hours later her body felt more rested than she had been since leaving Guardia. There was something about the house that put her at ease. Rolling over toward the door, she opened her eyes. Lurking in the doorway was the black robed mage. Adair grunted and quickly jumped to her feet. Her eyes darted around trying to find her sword that was still outside in the garden.
The man waved his hands.
“I mean no harm!” he gasped, his throat still not fully healed.
“You killed my friend!” cried Adair.
“I was hired by Ivor. I wasn’t on his side. There’s a difference. I didn’t kill the mage girl either,” he wheezed.
“Be off with you then!” shooed Adair.
“The lady of this house chose to spare me. I’m indebted to her and she told me to accompany you on your quest,” reasoned the man.
“You’re a killer. I can’t have you on the road with me. I can’t trust you,” shot back Adair.
“Don’t think you’re above me. I have honor. I will work with you until your quest is resolved or until my life debt is repaid. Besides, I’m not going for you. Rose ordered me on this quest. I have to go with you, unless you want to take it up with her,” he said, coughing vigorously at the end of his sentence.
“Fine, but we’re not friends and if you cross me I won’t hesitate to do what needs to be done. This is just until my quest is over. Do you have a name?” asked Adair.
“Of course, I have a name. It’s Emin Tycho. Let’s gather our supplies and head out while there’s still daylight to guide us,” he said.
