CHAPTER 120
Seth
Seth lay staring at the ceiling above the bed he and Sara shared. He was exhausted. The revelations of days past had been eating at him slowly, making sleep a nearly unobtainable commodity. He could not recall actually waking up and he wondered if at any point he had ever fallen asleep. He slid carefully to the edge of the bed and stood to dress, moving slowly as to not wake Sara. As he pulled from his pack the special clothing he had been given for this day by his friends back in Vineleaf, he noticed Sara standing opposite him, across the bed, watching him.
“Good morning, angel,” Seth smiled at the beautiful woman before him.
“G’morning, my love,” Sara replied.
Smiling momentarily at one another they then dressed quickly and Seth sat down upon the edge of the bed. Sara joined him as he pulled on his boots and she smiled at him provocatively.
“What’s gotten into you?” Seth asked.
“You look very handsome in those clothes, love,” she said, gesturing towards his outfit. “You look very important as well,” she added.
“You think so?” Seth asked raising one eyebrow.
“Yes I do. I just hope none of the other girls at the ceremony notice,” Sara smiled slyly.
“No matter if they do, Sara. I will never want any other than you,” Seth told her honestly.
Sara smiled proudly. Seth rose from the bed and pulled Sara into his arms. Today he knew would be a life changing day. Today was The Choosing. It was a day he was sure he would never forget, and he hoped now that he would be making good memories. If it did not go well, however, he would return here to the inn to meet Sara and they would run away together to somewhere the kingdom would not care to look for them. The plan was made, the day had come, now all there was to do was see how it played out. The ceremony was scheduled to start two hours after sunrise, and sunrise was already upon them.
Gathering their belongings Seth removed the small black tome from beneath the bed and placed it within his shirt, tucking it firmly at his waist. Then without a look back, he and Sara left the room and headed to the dining hall.
CHAPTER 121
Garret
Garret and Ashton both awoke feeling renewed and well rested. They were excited about the coming ceremony, both of them fairly certain what it held in store for them. They rushed to dress and gathered their things before leaving their room. Taking the stairs two at a time and skipping the last few altogether, they made their way to the first floor and down the hall to the dining area. They were amazed to see the room full of people. They had hardly even been aware of other guests up until now, but this morning the dining hall was filled nearly to capacity. It took Garret a moment to scan the dozens of faces who looked up at him as he entered the room. Looking from table to table, Garret at last located his brother and Sara and led Ashton across the room to join them. It was not their normal table they attended this morning. Instead they had to sit at one against the wall. They all greeted one another as Garret and Ashton sat themselves with their companions. Looking around Garret noticed that most people here were their own age. Each of the four companions, anxious for their own reasons, waited impatiently for Felix to arrive.
After some time Felix appeared, accompanied by a young woman. They each carried large trays filled with plates of food which they delivered to different tables. That done, the young woman and Felix then gathered empty plates from those guests that were finished and also from tables that now were deserted. Having gathered everything there was to gather, Felix sent the woman back to the kitchen, her arms heavily burdened with plates and bowls, before turning to approach the four’s table.
“It appears you are a busy man this morning,” Seth smiled to Felix.
“Indeed I am, Master Seth,” Felix replied. “And good morning to you all.”
They greeted Felix, and when he asked what they would be having for breakfast, he was not surprised when Sara spoke for the group.
“Felix, you should well know by now that you can prepare for us anything of your choosing, as no one has better taste in food than you.” She beamed a giant smile at the man.
“Thank you for your kindness, all of you,” Felix said, looking to each of them one by one. “It is a shame your stay could not be longer. I truly hope to see each of you again,” he added in earnest.
They responded by thanking Felix for his delicious meals and friendly conversation, promising they would return as soon as they could and assuring him nothing could keep them away from his cooking. Felix left their table giving them a smile and a wink before he left, his limp more marked than it had ever been in days past.
As the group waited hungrily for Felix’s return, they spoke briefly about the ceremony that awaited them in less than two hours’ time. Both Garret and Ashton talked boisterously, unable to restrain their excitement. Seth and Sara tried to sound as excited as their companions, but neither of them was able to quite mimic the others’ mood.
Before long Felix returned. He placed a plate and mug before each of them and wished them an enjoyable meal before he left to see to other customers. Upon each plate stood a large muffin, the largest one any of them had seen. Its top had been cut away and hollowed out to hold a pool of thick syrup blended with raspberries. The entire muffin was also drizzled with melting frosting, crisscrossing the top in milky white lines that ran down its sides and formed small pools of sticky sweetness upon the plates. To accompany the muffin Felix had brought each of them a large mug filled with milk blended with orange juice. It was a simple meal, but even so Felix had seen to it that it was a delicious meal. Each of them ate quickly, knowing that time was growing short, and they still had to walk the distance to the castle which would take nearly half an hour. They finished eating in record time and instead of waiting for Felix to return, they decided to leave the inn. Pushing back from the table the four of them rose, and grabbing their belongings, they headed into the street.
CHAPTER 122
Seth
Entering the street Seth was amazed to find that, like the inn, it was bustling with people in a way he had never seen before. Hundreds of people of all ages crowded the street, all moving in the direction of the castle. Merging into the crowd the four headed like everyone else toward the castle in the center of the city. Garret and Seth walked side by side down the street. Sara walked on Seth’s other side, their hands entwined tightly, each of them afraid of what might lay ahead. Ashton walked on the other side of Garret from Seth, and he had stated earlier that today he would follow in the footsteps of both his mother and his older brother. Nothing could please him more. Seth noted that Garret walked more quickly than was usual. Being almost guaranteed that he would be joining the ranks of the elite Knights of Valdadore, he rushed on to his future, a future he was happy to embrace, a future sure to be filled with honor and glory. Seth wished he could feel the same, but the whole day seemed foreboding something ill at best.
Seth and Sara walked quickly just to keep up with their companions. Neither of them really wanted to attend the ceremony, both of them fairly certain it would turn out badly. Sara had told Seth that she did not care what she would be chosen to do. It mattered not at all so long as she would be able to stay with him. This he knew was unlikely, but he hoped for much the same. Sadly, if Garret was to be chosen for the knighthood, then so too was Seth likely to be.
But Seth was not afraid. He had already made plans with Sara in the event they should be separated. That being done he was comfortable in the fact that they had foreseen the possibility and prepared accordingly. Seth was also not afraid of the ceremony itself. He knew it was probable that he, like his brother, could be chosen for one portion of the army or another. Though this was in no way what he wanted, it did not worry him. Seth had no energy for fear now. Instead it now seemed as if the ceremony really held no relevance to him, what with the recent revelations. Seth was almost certain his path would lead to one predetermined point, regardless of what was to happen today
. All that mattered was that Seth should pay attention, watch for signs, gather information and knowledge in his plan to regain control of his fate and untangle himself from the goddess’s schemes.
Following the crowd like mindless sheep, Seth and his companions finally emerged into the square surrounding the castle. The crowd did not dissipate, but instead clung to the edges of the square leaving the majority of the road open to those actually traveling into the castle for the ceremony. The gate stood open and today the normal guard had been doubled. They walked slowly toward the giant gate that now resembled a massive iron maw that occasionally ate a person or group of people who dared enter. As they approached, the guards looked them over, and thus determining their age and purpose allowed them to pass unquestioned.
The companions passed through the portcullis into the stone entrance of the castle courtyard. Just inside the massive walls to either side of them stood a pair of stone staircases that appeared to be a reflection of one another across the paved street. Each set of stairs ran parallel to the massive wall up its side to a higher level. Upon that level, spaced evenly at each slit in the stone, stood lightly armored soldiers. They held a bow with an arrow already in place to draw and fire at a moment’s notice. The archers spanned the wall as far as the eye could see in either direction. It was an impressive sight.
Upon passing the stairs that led to the upper levels of the outer wall to the castle, the group arrived in a giant courtyard. Here stood massive towers and spires of varying height and size. Each of these rose great distances into the sky above, casting long shadows across the paved courtyard. Above them, spanning great distances, elegant web-like catwalks ran between the giant structures, crisscrossing the sky this way and that. Flags and pennants waved in the early morning breeze at various locations and levels among the towers and spires. The entire castle was awe-inspiring and the four companions could not help but gawk like tourists as they walked.
Walking between two giant towers, they came to an even larger portion of the courtyard. This consisted of several levels. The paved courtyard ran for hundreds of feet before rising three steps and then running another couple hundred feet to yet another set of steps. The trend continued with a large, open expanse rising steadily a few steps every so far, as if smaller and smaller courtyards had been stacked one upon another, creating dozens of layers. At their very center sat the castle proper. The actual castle was not as impressive a sight as the group had expected. It was a large building for sure, but it stood small next to the towers and spires that had been built around it. It rose only a few stories higher than the massive outer castle wall, but was dwarfed by some of the towers by nearly a dozen floors. It was still some ways off, but at this distance it was not as magnificent as any of them had expected.
The companions noticed that people were gathering on the next tier of the courtyard and so they continued towards the steps ahead of them, assuming that this is where the ceremony would be held. Topping the five steps that rose to this tier, they looked around at what lay before them. This level held no towers or any other structure for that matter. In fact, besides the small groups of people gathered here and there, the only other item upon the tier was a small canopied tent that stood across from them at the opposite edge where the steps again climbed to the next tier. The tent had no walls, consisted only of poles supporting a roof, and beneath its canopy more than a dozen people stood speaking, though they were too far at this distance to see clearly let alone hear. Looking around at the others inhabiting this level of the courtyard, it was apparent that those gathered were here to be chosen as well. Realizing they had come as far as they needed to, the four companions stopped, and not knowing what else to do, they waited for some sort of instructions.
Chapter 123
Seth
Trumpets blared across the open expanse of the immense courtyard, reverberating off the stone walls and paved road around and under all who now stood within the castle’s shadow. As the trumpets announced the beginning of the ceremony, a deafening roar exploded over the castle from outside its walls. Thousands upon thousands of voices cheered in unison as their many small voices joined and twisted together through the air to become one great blast of sound. The four companions remained standing apart from the many others who had gathered here this day, and watched as dozens more quickly poured onto this tier of the castle’s courtyards.
As the crowd gathered outside the castle began to fall silent, a thunderous drumming could be heard coming from somewhere within the walls. The sound beat like a giant heart and shook the stone beneath the companion’s feet. They looked around as far as the eye could see to locate its source. The rhythm continued growing ever louder as time progressed, and all of those gathered for the ceremony looked around in anticipation.
It was not long before the source of the pulsing drum beat was revealed. It was not what anyone had expected, and many exhaled loudly at the sight that they saw. From beyond the castle proper a line of heavily armored soldiers appeared. At first all that could be seen was their helms, polished to a mirror surface, gleaming in the sun. As they approached they climbed the steps of each tier revealing more and more of themselves to those who were gathered to see them. A solid line of soldiers marched in step, their swords drawn, spanning the entire expanse of the castle’s courtyard. Their feet pounded the stone-paved road as they came, creating the drum-like rhythm that sounded so much like the heart of some giant beast. As they neared, the soldiers looked more and more menacing. A giant wall of polished armor, thundering ever nearer with weapons bared, marched across the open expanse, driving before them those who had gathered for the ceremony.
As the wall of shining steel approached the canopied tent, those soldiers that stood behind the tent stopped immediately, creating an impassible wall. From the ends of this wall that was created by a dozen soldiers, another wall began to form from each side. As the remaining line of soldiers continued to move, with each step two more soldiers would stop, one from each side where they had been split at the tent. This created a diagonal line of sword and steel fanning out from the back corners of the tent. These two lines of soldiers continued to form across the entire stone tier that the companions stood upon. When the line of soldiers had finally reached the end of this particular tier, they marched straight down the three steps without hesitation, never missing a beat. As their feet reverberated off the bottom step, all the soldiers turned on some silent command and marched inward upon themselves in two lines, slowly closing the gap that had been created by those who had stopped to form lines across the courtyard. As the two lines came together, the soldiers halted in perfect time. Driving their heels together, both lines turned to face toward the courtyard they had just surrounded. Raising their swords above their heads as if to attack, the immense line of soldiers that stood at the bottom of the steps to the courtyard crouched, as if all controlled by one mind. Then as before, as if at some unspoken command they lunged. A hundred soldiers moving as one body gained the four steps in a single bound, bringing them like a wave from an ocean made of steel onto the tier where their brethren held those attending the ceremony captive.
As the soldiers landed, swords drawn as if for battle, a sound arose that landed on hundreds of unfamiliar ears. It was the first time anyone attending the ceremony had heard the sound, at least anyone but Garret. He had heard these words many times before. It was the same words, the same sound, as he had heard in his dreams.
“For Valdadore!” every soldier roared valiantly as their precision display came to an end.
All those who had come to The Choosing had been penned in by the soldiers’ procession and now stood in one giant mass of bodies between the walls of gleaming armor like herded sheep. There were more than five hundred of them, yet no one spoke as they all stood together unsure of what would happen next. It was an awkward silence that seemed to last an eternity as the many faces looked around for any sign of instruction. After many long moments, movement finally stirred from within
the canopied tent as the people there parted to allow a solitary figure to emerge into the open. As the man stepped into the sun, light gleamed and glinted off his gem-encrusted and gold-inlaid armor. Upon his head a myriad of colors gleamed from the many gems set into the crown of gold that rested there. With this man’s approach, all the soldiers creating the wall around them sank to one knee and bowed their heads to the ground in reverence. Following the soldiers’ lead, the mass of young men and women too dropped to their knees at the sight of their king, though none took their eyes off him.
The king strode forward only a few paces from beneath the tent before he stopped. Beckoning for everyone to again rise, he watched as they got to their feet to again regard him on an even level. The king waited a moment longer before he spoke. When he did speak, it came as a surprise that a single man could speak so loudly without shouting that his voice carried clearly through the air to each and every set of ears that had come to listen.
“First I should like to thank you all for heeding the call of your kingdom,” the king boomed across the stone courtyard, giving his words a moment to settle upon the ears of those who listened before continuing. “Today you shall each start a new Chapter in your lives, a Chapter that too will be written in the history of our kingdom. Think not lightly of the triumphs or failures you may experience from this day forward, for what you are and what you may become, and what deeds you may or may not accomplish will all be combined in the histories of our homeland. We live in perilous times. Armies gather at our borders and seek an entry into our kingdom. Each and every one of you has the chance to help keep our kingdom alive and safe. No matter if you are chosen as a cook for the soldiers, or if you are chosen to join the ranks of my personal guard, the fierce Knights of Valdadore, every one of you will play an important role in the survival of our people. If you have a particular skill you think useful, be not afraid to tell my advisors and generals what that skill is. We can help you to perfect it, to master it, to use it to the kingdom’s advantage. I am afraid that this Choosing ceremony will be much different than those in the past. We face many enemies, and many challenges, the worst of which is time. Normally you would spend no less than half a year here within the castle to train and master your skills before venturing out to perform the kingdom’s duties. However, at present time is not a luxury we have in ample supply. Many of you will only have weeks to train. Some of you may have a few months. Learn well, young men and women, for your lives and the lives of those you love depend upon it. Now as I have said, we are short on time, so in order to get The Choosing process started may you spread out to form a single line starting here at the tent and following the soldiers’ line around to end back here at the tent.” The king did not wait for his command to be followed before he turned and strode back to his peers who stood within the shadow of the canopy.
Age of the Gods: The Complete, twelve novel, fantasy series (The Blood and Brotherhood Saga) Page 29
