The Woodland Tombs of Eliantar

by Gary Gaugler, Jr

  Chapter 12

  The next day they arrived back in the castle town right at midday. They’d never been happier to see Ivory Towers beaming in the suns as they approached. What Ara had once seen as a symbol of pretension, he now saw a place to finally enjoy a moment of respite. The towers touched the sky and exuded not affectation, but rather a sense of beauty and calm.

  They had barely passed through the gates when Plucid Duru, Ambassador of Errandomn, came running, as fast as his old legs could, down the white marble path. His brown robes blew around him as he came down to meet them. Behind him, walking at a normal pace came Volaticas Temed, Ambassador of Steedo, with a scowl on his face. His long, blonde hair was pulled back as usual and he wore the same gaudy yellow and white robes that he had at the Regulation Committee meeting.

  “Thank goodness you’re back, Your Highness,” Plucid gasped, completely out of breath. “We were just going down to the barracks to send the Royal Guard out to look for you when I saw you walk into the courtyard. I was so worried you wouldn’t return in time.”

  “Oh be quiet,” snapped Volaticas. “What are you going on about? All doom and gloom all of the time. Tell the Prince the good news.”

  The sneer that formed across Volaticas’s face was obvious. He barely pretended to like Vale, that much was obvious to Ara. By the look of it, it made little difference to Vale. He didn’t seem overly fond of Volaticas right now either.

  “Of course,” sighed Plucid, his wrinkled face furrowed. “Master, the Regulation Committee has met and we have named you King of Eliantar. The gala is tonight, which is why we’re so glad you’ve come home. As I said we were about to send the Royal Guard to search for you and bring you back. We couldn’t delay any longer.”

  “What?!” gasped Vale. “I’ve only been Crown Prince for less than two months. You can’t become the King until you’ve been approved by the Committee after three months of service.”

  Plucid glanced around and spoke quietly, “Lenta sent messages to all of the Ambassadors about what happened in Quale. She’s persuaded the Committee to vote in an early election. Congratulations, Your Highness.”

  “But, why would you do that?” Vale inquired. “There is no reason to speed up the process more than usual.”

  “I can assure you that I was against the majority in this vote,” Volaticas snarled, his cold eyes staring through Vale. “It seems that with an assassin attempting to murder you and then another trying to kidnap you, mere weeks later, the Regulation Committee would prefer you stay…local.”

  “You’re going to name me King so that I can’t leave the castle again?”

  “Do not think of it like that,” Plucid smiled, warmly. “Sir, you do no one good dead or kidnapped. We’ve all known for years how you like your adventures and prefer not to be in the castle, but being King will keep you and Eliantar safer by keeping you here.”

  “Welcome home,” Volaticas smiled. Ara took a step forward, but Vale stopped him with his arm.

  “In any case,” Forr went on, trying to avoid any confrontation between Volaticas and Ara, who was staring daggers at him. “We’ve got to get you both cleaned up for the party tonight. Come along.”

  He grabbed Vale and Ara by the arm and began pulling them up the path. Ara turned around and found Volaticas at the spot where they had left him, staring coldly at them as they left.

  As they crossed through the foyer, the guards present saluted, save one. Kally, the young guard who had been standing outside Forr’s chamber when Ara was first there, ran forward.

  “My liege, I beg your forgiveness for this intrusion. You must wish to rest from your journey. But, you should know that some events have transpired in your absence.”

  “What is going on, Kally?” Vale asked him quietly, so as not to draw attention from the other guards. “What happened here?”

  “I’m so sorry to make this day any more stressful for you, with your inauguration and all,” Kally’s voice was filled with fright. “I was cleaning out Opo’s room as I was asked to, in order for Ara to settle in, and I found something. There’s an item there that you should see.”

  “What is it?” Ara inquired, growing tired of the secrets. “What did you find that can’t wait?”

  “Just come along,” snapped Forr. “If it wasn’t important, he wouldn’t be so persistent. Frankly I’d like him to tell you without inquisitive ears hearing everything,” he gestured back towards the other guards who were clearly trying to eavesdrop.

  Kally led them up several different staircases and through dark passages filled with portraits of people Ara didn’t know. It occurred to Ara that they had tried to hide certain chambers in the castle. He remembered back to when Vale and he had gone to see Forr in his room and how hard it was to get to. And now Opo’s room seemed to be at the end of a gigantic maze. Surely this castle had more secrets to it than he would ever imagine.

  “I’d been staying in guest quarters out of respect for the deceased,” Ara began. “I had assumed my official room, Opo’s old room, would be in the barracks with the other guards.”

  “No, sir,” Kally responded. “His room was directly next to the Queen’s. As her protector, he needed to stay close by.”

  “What could he possibly have to show us that is such a secret,” Ara whispered.

  “Mysteries are becoming more and more prevalent around here,” Forr responded gravely. “I sense that we all need to take great care from here on out. It’s best that we’ve returned when we did. Whether you care to admit it or not, Ivory Towers is the safest place in the world for the Prince and the rest of us.”

  At last Forr stopped in front of a large candelabra, hanging against the wall. He fumbled around one of the candles and a portion of the wall pushed forward and flung to the side. There, Ara saw a room the same size as Forr’s but much different. It was lit well with many windows allowing the suns’ light to pour in. Various weaponry littered the walls of Opo’s quarters and all of the furniture seemed to be in a state of disaster. Clothes littered the floor, sheets on the bed were a crumbled mess, and books on the shelves were scattered all across the room.

  “What a mess,” commented Ara.

  “What did you find, Kally?” Forr asked the young guard. “You should know that whatever you did find is confidential and no business of the other guards in the castle.”

  Kally ran over to the bed and reached inside the crumbled sheets, pulling out a ratty leather-bound book. He beckoned Vale and Ara over and opened to the middle of the book, pointing out the spot to Vale.

  “This is where I found it. It’s Opo’s journal.”

  “Forr, I can’t read this,” Vale exclaimed. “It’s personal and I wouldn’t feel right about it. It’s disrespectful to pry into someone’s thoughts and disgraceful to the deceased.”

  “It’s important,” said Kally, his eyes pleading. “Please read it. Read it aloud for Ara’s sake too. This is information that we may all need.”

  Vale looked at Forr for a moment, who merely shrugged. He didn’t want to disrespect the dead, but he could see the desperate look in Kally’s eyes. He sighed and began to read.

  The 14th Day of Seed in the Year One Thousand Nine Hundred and Ninety Nine

  I’ve just arrived back to the castle after being ordered to follow the necromancer, Sorpa Veneficus. It was a stressful trip to say the least and I’ve arrived back home to find myself more confused than I was when I left. It took me several days to locate her. For someone so frail, she was a quick mover. I was able to track her to Tacia, but then I lost track of her in the dense forest. I attempted to ask several of the local Arbestees for help, but they offered none. They are a strangely timid creature.

  Night had fallen and I decided to make camp when I was attacked by what I can only describe as a group of corpses. They drug me deeper into the forest and threw me down in a massive graveyard. I had heard the stories about the largest cemetery in E
liantar being in Tacia but I had never seen it. Headstones appeared to go for miles. It was truly a disturbing scene. Sorpa was there and said she knew I’d been following her. I closed my eyes and didn’t move as I waited for death.

  Death never came. Instead she asked me for my assistance. Her voice gave me chills and her emaciated appearance made me shudder. She asked me if I knew a force was coming that could destroy Eliantar, wouldn’t I want to side with it, rather than against it. She told me that Queen Jenneka was a fool to not heed her warnings and that even though she may appear dark and mysterious, her intentions were pure.

  I was unsure so she invited me to a meeting of the Skars Shadows, the dark tribe that practices magic illegally. Gods help me, but I told her that I would go. As protector of my Queen and my land I cannot take the chance to turn my back on an impending danger. The part that makes me uneasy is that I had to lie to the Queen when I returned. When this is all over I am sure that Queen Jenneka will be thankful for my decision.

  The 2nd Day of Reap in the Year One Thousand Nine Hundred and Ninety Nine

  I had to lie to the Queen and say I was taking a few days to train new recruits in Errandomn, when in actuality I traveled there to attend the meeting Sorpa had told me about. I had rarely traveled to that area of the world before and I don’t regret it.

  Blinding sands are all that make up the realm making it impossible to move at a steady pace. There are several mountains but they do nothing to block the dangerous sandstorms. I spotted more than one cave but knew enough not to enter any of them as they are the homes of the Tamalus, whom I find to be disturbing.

  They appear like men, albeit much taller. They walk and talk like men but their skin is the color of oil and they only come out at night, scavenging the desert. They each carry long staffs, which add to my fear. Who am I to say whether or not they will use their weapons aggressively? I know that they’ve seen me and it was much to my benefit that they appeared to be loners and kept to themselves.

  I trudged through the golden sands for hours and hours. As I went further, sinkholes began to become a common obstacle. But, at last I reached the coordinates that Sorpa had provided. I wasn’t thrilled to see that it was a cave.

  When I entered there were several chairs around a long, black table. Sorpa Veneficus sat at the head of the table. This was getting worse and worse. Not only was I attending an illegal meeting, but the woman I claimed to have killed, was its leader. A frail, pale man stood behind her, who she immediately introduced as her assistant, Scurus. She gestured me to sit beside her. All of the others in the room wore black cloaks and masks to hide their identities. I took my seat and Sorpa did most of the talking.

  Everything that she had to say made perfect sense. She spoke of the fallen god, Skarsend, and how the seal on his prison was growing weak. He was nearing escape and appeared to her in a dream, to ask for her assistance. As the leader of the Skars Shadows, she had to oblige. The reward would be significant for the danger. He promised that he would not attempt to destroy Eliantar as he had before, and that his war was one for the gods. He realized in his weakened state, from years of captivity, that he would be susceptible to attack and asked Sorpa to provide him with an army. The army need only protect him from those who would hunt him, until he regained his god-like powers. She would be granted anything that she wished in return. If she declined, he would eradicate every living thing on the planet as he waged war against the other gods.

  I pointed out to her that she had propositioned the Queen to create the army in order to fend off Skarsend, to which she scoffed that we could never hope to fend off a god. Joining Skarsend was the only way to be on the winning side. She offered me the chance to lead this new and improved Royal Guard. I agreed to help her immediately. When I left, Sorpa promised me again that the only way to truly protect Queen Jenneka and the kingdom was to follow her plan. I pray she’s right.

  “I don’t want to read anymore,” Vale fumed, throwing the journal to the ground. “This is despicable!”

  Ara sat with his mouth agape in complete shock. How cruel to make the Prince read about his mother being betrayed so shortly after her death.

  “Please read the last section,” Kally picked the diary from the floor. “I know it’s difficult, but the last section is the most important of all.”

  “He betrayed my mother,” yelled Vale. “I don’t want to read any more about him. The one person my mother had to trust to protect her was conspiring against her.”

  “I understand but please,” Kally begged. “If you have any interest in avenging your mother and stopping this awful woman, you have to read his last entry.”

  With a great deal of difficulty, Vale grabbed the book and fought back his tears. After a few moments, he began to read aloud once more.

  The 86th Day of Reap in the Year One Thousand Nine Hundred and Ninety Nine

  She’s dead! She died this morning and it’s all my fault. I had been wasting so much time meeting with Sorpa and neglecting my duties that I hadn’t known she was sick. If there was one thing that I hadn’t counted on, it was that Queen Jenneka would catch the Iniquitous Virus. She killed herself, rather than face the onslaught of illness that was coming. She was always so bold. She’d rather die on her own terms.

  I knew Sorpa was staying right outside the city and I met with her. She had no sympathy and no respect for the amount of failure I was enduring.

  I pointed out to her that the only reason we were going to create an army of dead soldiers was to protect the kingdom, the Queen! It made sense at the beginning, but now…

  Now that the Queen is dead, I don’t know if it was ever worth all of that. I told her I wasn’t interested in her plan any longer but she kept insisting that I was merely upset and that the time had come for her next move in the cemetery of Tacia. I walked out on her. She called me a coward and said she wasn’t surprised that I would betray her as I betrayed the Royal House of Procer, the family I was to protect.

  I feel like a fool. I’ve betrayed my Queen, my land, and that necromancer. I fear with all of this deception it’s only a matter of time until I can no longer show my face so publicly. The Royal Guard will eventually find out what I’ve done or perhaps even Sorpa herself will come after me if her plan succeeds. I’m so sorry that I got myself into this. And I’m so sorry that Prince Vale is entering into a massacre. May the gods forgive me for all that I’ve done. If I stand any chance at redemption, I will get the Prince away from this before he too meets his demise, which will surely come soon if I do not intervene. The god of death rises and I fear we may all fall because of it…