“You look nothing like the fellow who went out and beat the demons,” Holbanks replied, with a dismissive emotional state.
“My healing was miraculous just now, and it changed me,” Alec responded.
“We saw it! The lightning made the walls glow, then the energy went into the tub where Alec was soaking in the healing water, and made it bubble and glow until he stood up healed!” Givens added.
“Your name is Alec? I was under the impression that it was Gordon,” Holbanks returned to Alec.
“My name is Alec, but that is not important for now. Later there will be time for all that to sort itself out,” Alec said. “Our focus right now must be on the battle to recover Oyster Bay, and then to drive the Michian invaders all the way out of the Dominion.
“The general staff knows what it needs to do,” another officer said, broadcasting an aura of smug confidence.
“Do they? What do they know about the Michian forces we face? How many sorcerers are present? Which clans are in control? How tight are the emperor’s reins chafing at their generals’ throats?” Alec asked rapidly. “Those and many other questions are critical. If we’re going to beat Michian, it’s going to take more than just having a battle with a demon every so often.”
“Captain, it appears you have a young general just waiting to take control from all our inept commanders,” another officer said with heavy irony.
“Alright,” Alec tried to sooth the situation, “that sounded more critical than I meant it to. I am here to help. I have beaten demons in battle, and I can do it again. I have been completely healed and was just demonstrating my skills to Captain Lewis when you all arrived.
“What do you know about what the Michian forces are doing inside Oyster Bay?” Alec asked. “Have you questioned any prisoners? What do they tell you?”
There was a pause of silence from everyone in the room. “We don’t take prisoners,” Givens said first, matter-of-factly. “They haven’t taken live prisoners since they began their invasion, so we return the favor.” There was no sympathy or regret coming from anyone in the room; they all felt it was a part of war, Alec realized.
Alec digested the brutality of that. “Well, what if we send a squad behind the lines to take some prisoners and see what we can learn, so we have a better idea of what we can do?” he suggested.
“I believe we should listen to the demonslayer’s suggestion,” Lewis spoke up at last, and her feelings told Alec she would cast her lot with him. “Now that he is healed, there’s no reason to remain behind the lines here in Frame. If we all move down to the Oyster Bay front, I will go with the demonslayer on a sortie behind the lines to take prisoners and gather information.”
“Really, Captain?” Holbanks asked with evident surprise.
“We’ve just been sparring, and I have confidence in his abilities.” Lewis answered. “And they,” she gestured, “will be the rest of the squad.”
“We’ll discuss that option,” Holbanks answered. “In the meantime, if there’s no further reason to use the cathedral crypt, move your young hero into the empty orphanage next door, and we’ll start sending out announcements that Gordon the demonslayer will be on his way to Oyster Bay to be part of our victory. The troops have been waiting for a parade to celebrate his accomplishments.”
“Change the name. Use Alec,” Alec said.
Lewis motioned to Alec who motioned to the rest of the soldiers who followed them out the door. As they left, Holbanks spoke to the man next to him. “Have an express message sent to Stronghold informing the queen that we are prepared to begin the assault to retake Oyster Bay.
“I’d like the third floor room on the south side of the orphanage,” Alec said minutes later as Lewis’s squad walked towards their new quarters.
“How do you know there even are any third floor rooms on the south side of the orphanage?” Stracha asked.
“I lived there growing up. This was my home,” Alec said as he looked at the vacant building. “What happened to the children who lived here?”
“We understand that when the Michian invaders took control of the city, they killed the priests and the nuns in the churches and chapels, and including the orphanage. We don’t know what became of the children,” Lewis said. “The invaders only had Frame under control for a few months. Those children may very well still be alive, living on the streets.”
Alec felt stunned and sickened; the children could be alive, but they might well be slaves now for the clans that had led the capture of the city, or worse... They reached the open gates that gave entry to the court yard, and Alec stopped to stare and remember.
That evening, as the small group gathered to eat dinner, a messenger arrived for Captain Lewis. “These are orders for us to proceed to Oyster Bay at daybreak tomorrow, and to report to the Dominion forces commander there,” she explained.
“Will we go by ship or horse?” Alec asked.
Lewis grinned at him. “We’re infantry, oh mighty demonslayer. We’ll walk,” she said to groans from around the table.
Chapter 25 – Journey to Oyster Bay
Alec walked among the soldiers who were slumped over, touching each with a healing spark that once again removed the sores, blisters and aches they had earned during the day’s long journey. At Alec’s urging, the troops had moved swiftly, passing many other units along the road between Frame and Oyster Bay. After four days of arduous travel, they were less than a day away from the Oyster Bay front lines, and after four days, Alec had a plan that he reviewed with Lewis while they sat near the river.
“We won’t be expected to arrive at headquarters for at least three more days, will we?” Alec asked, and Lewis nodded agreement. “So we could hit the front line tomorrow night, infiltrate the city the next day, and return to the army the next night, with information about what the disposition of forces is, and what the mood of the city is like.”
“You know, if it was that easy to cross the Michian lines, I think our forces would have invaded the city by now,” Lewis said drily.
“We can do this!” Alec exclaimed so excitedly that heads turned to look at the two. He lowered his voice and continued. “I can beat the pickets, we can get into the lines, we’ll put on their clothes and blend in. I know the city well enough to be able to get around, and I know a little bit about Michian society. We can avoid detection, and then fight our way out when we need to.”
“That all sounds extremely convenient,” Lewis answered. “How is it you know these things?”
“As an ingenaire, I was trained in Oyster Bay, and as the Crown Protector, I was often in the city. I was transported one time to Michian and lived with one of their clans for several days,” he explained. “I even had my own slave. Would you like to be my slave while we’re in the city?” he asked with a grin.
“Don’t think I won’t smack the back of your head for foolishness,” Lewis answered sharply. “Can this really work? What are the weaknesses in your plan?”
“The weakness is that we have too large a group to be able to move around unnoticed,” Alec said. “We’d be best off taking only four or five in.”
“You’ve just made these people run over two hundred miles! You can’t just leave some of them behind now,” Lewis protested.
“You’re a good officer to stick up for your command,” Alec said. “And I agree with you. We’ll all go in together, and then set up a base where some will stay safe while a few of us move around in the city.”
“Let me think about it,” Lewis responded. “Now you get your sleep for the night. You won’t have to serve watch duty tonight. Sleep well, demonslayer,” she said as she stood and walked away. Alec watched her as she walked away, and thought of her father, whose own thoughtful leadership Alec had admired so much.
He’d spent much of the past four days in prayer, asking for help as he worked to filter out the emotions around him. Especially as they had travelled on the road the first two days, the feelings of other travelers had been a distraction.
Slowly though, he had found a way to pray for freedom from being overwhelmed by his spiritual powers, and he found the prayers themselves were a filter of sort, focusing him on his relationship with God. It had drowned out the unwanted flow of feelings from others that had flooded over him. Now he felt it all worked effectively, although he realized he had delved so deeply into the sacred spiritual relationship he had blocked out too much of the world. Rubicon had told him long ago about spiritual ingenairii who became introspective to an extraordinary degree, ignoring the world around them, and now he grasped that phenomenon he had not understood.
His eyes shifted to Stracha, who sat with Danel. There was something he needed to explain to her. Now was a good time to talk, he decided as he roused himself from his thoughts.
“Stracha, would you join me for a walk?” Alec asked. “Danel, I’ll return her to you in just a few minutes.”
Stracha rose with curiosity, kissed the top of Danel’s head, then walked with him away from the others. “What is it Alec? What do you need? You don’t need me to heal or tend you any more, obviously,” she said as soon as they were out of earshot of the others.
“No, I don’t need any more healing right now,” Alec agreed, “but if I did, I know I could rely on you.
“That’s what I wanted to talk to you about. Have you tried to heal anyone since I was restored?” he asked
“No. We haven’t been around any injuries, and you seem more than able to take care of the little things, like soothing the aching muscles we get. I can’t believe the things I see you do so effortlessly! The Dominion must have been a different place back in the days when healers like you were available,” she gushed.
“I didn’t really get to find out,” Alec said introspectively, “but that is not the topic today.” He stopped walking and took both of Stracha’s hands in his, looking squarely in her eyes, until she grew nervous and shifted her gaze.
“You placed your hands into the tub of water when I was being restored, didn’t you?” Alec asked.
“I did, but only for a second or two. I was afraid something bad was happening to you, and I just reached in without thinking,” Stracha answered. “But as soon as my hands were in the water they felt, strange, electrified. The water felt like liquefied energy; I was shocked when I felt it.”
“Words don’t describe it, do they?” Alec asked, and she nodded in agreement.
“I’m sorry that I did something wrong, but I was worried about what was happening to you,” Stracha told him.
“Don’t worry Stracha. It wasn’t wrong and you won’t be punished. But what has happened is that your hands have received the fullest ability to heal. You’ll have to experiment and learn what is best, but I believe that with simple prayers and concentration, you will be able to lay your hands on almost any injury or illness and provide comfort and healing,” Alec told her. “Be cautious in your experiments, but don’t be afraid. This is a great gift from God, and I believe it was more than just accidental that it happened.”
Alec released her hands. “That’s all I wanted to tell you. The rest is up to you. If I can help in any way, please ask me.” He had sensed the change in the hands on the day it happened, but had not been able to confirm his belief until holding her hands as they spoke.
Stracha lifted her hands and stared at them. “I’ll be able to heal like you?” she asked, and her eyes moved to Alec’s.
“Yes,” he told her. “You’ll be able to amaze yourself and everyone else. You’ll allow many people to live better lives.”
Alec turned, and they strolled back to the campground, where Stracha sat down again beside Danel, a dazed smile on her face, and Alec lay down on his own blankets, slowly falling asleep as he wondered how long the campaign would take to completely drive the Michian forces from the Dominion.
Alec fell asleep soon thereafter. And bolted upright out of a sound sleep hours later, as the moon was setting on the western horizon, and only the sentry sat awake. Alec was in a panic, his heart suddenly full of fear, as he realized he did not know where the fragment of the True Cross was. Since his last battle with the demon outside Frame, he had not handled it or thought of it, and now, as he was contemplating the sight of another demon in the next battle with Michian, he did not have the Cross to vanquish the evil and hatred of a demon.
His breathing was shallow and fast, as his memories raced back to the battle he had fought against the demon in Bondell, working with Nathaniel and Moriah and Rubicon, the long painful battle that he had managed to survive only by transporting the demon to John Mark’s cave. There was the demon he had fought in Michian to save Rief, a battle he had survived only by fleeing to John Mark’s cave as well.
Alec knew he had won his last battle against the demon outside Frame, but that had happened because all the sorcerers and sorceresses had been killed, and he had held the Cross fragment in his pocket, giving him assurance of success. And he had still suffered injuries so severe he had spent weeks before miraculously being healed.
“Sir, is everything alright?” the sentry had stepped over to check on him while he sat in his state of misery.
“Yes, it’s fine. I had a cramp in my leg,” Alec said as he reached down to his calf and rubbed it. He didn’t want to panic anyone else with his concerns.
“I hate it when that happens,” the sentry said sympathetically. Satisfied that there was no alarm, he returned to his seat, and looked up at the stars. In another half hour his shift would be over, and he could turn the watch over to someone else until it was time to rouse out of bed three hours later.
Chapter 26 – Bethany Approaches
Colonel Holbanks dispatched a messenger towards Stronghold, sent to inform Queen Bethany that the demonslayer had been healed and was available for the assault on Oyster Bay. The messenger got no further than Three Forks when he learned that his journey would be much faster, and shorter, than he imagined. After learning of the two victories and the advances made by the Dominion forces and their allies, the Queen had left Stronghold and travelled downriver to Three Forks, bringing the court closer to the home she hoped to return to.
Bethany was a strong queen, and as an ingenairii in both water and healer powers, a unique one. But at the age of seventy, with no heir, her authority was eroding, and the court was riven with factions preparing for a succession crisis. She felt worn down, but still appeared healthy; her hair had turned silver long before it should have, giving her a dignified appearance that seemed unchanged over the past thirty years of her reign.
She’d stepped up to the throne after the defeat of the Michian forces in Bondell, and had sat there as queen, awaiting Alec’s return, which was widely expected. He had returned, but she’d been under the same ingenairii illness that had struck throughout the Dominion. When she and all the other ingenairii awoke, she’d returned to the throne as his consort and awaited his next return. The ingenairii had supported her ascension, Rander’s forces and Goldenfields and Stronghold and Natha’s trading empire had supported her ascension, all expecting Alec to return and join her, and expecting him to claim the crown that was encased in an enchantment.
So the scheming power-hungry noble families of Oyster Bay had acquiesced to her rule, and over the years accepted her ability to rule wisely and prosperously, even as all the Dominion had begun to lose hope for the return of Alec. His return had turned from a certain expectation to an uncertain hope, and then to a mythical dream, while all the time Bethany had sat on the throne. The rumors of the noble class eventually evolved from thoughts about Alec to thoughts about Bethany, and the potential for her to re-marry, so that much to her amusement at first, and then to her dismay for many years after, she had been covertly wooed and courted.
The queen wisely chose to keep her court populated with ingenairii and officials from her allies, and relied on wise councilors to help maintain a prosperous court and a land that regained wealth and stability, until the Michian forces renewed their invasion of the Dominion. Without Alec’s
abilities, the Dominion surrendered territory each year, and after more than twenty years of battle, appeared ready to crumble with the loss of Three Forks, which would have split Stronghold and Goldenfields apart. And her supporters were the ones who battled and died on behalf of the Dominion, so that over the years, she found fewer allies to rely on for advice and support.
Now she was returning down river, in an initiative to show her continued strength as a ruler, though she felt little energy, and she prayed that the miraculous warrior who had appeared from nowhere would continue to defeat the demons and give her forces faith. She arrived in Three Forks just two days before Holbanks’s messenger arrived. When the message was conveyed that the demon’s bane was healed and prepared for the impending battle for Oyster Bay, Bethany told her small court to be prepared to move again soon. No one could tell her where the great new warrior came from, but she heard that he now claimed his name was Alec, and was reported to be a warrior ingenaire, something not seen in years. She was curious to see him, and thankful that a warrior had appeared again.
Chapter 27 – Within the Enemy’s Camp
“Wait here,” Alec instructed the eight other members of the squad the following night. They’d had just three hours rest since arriving at a spot near the northern end of the Dominion lines. “I’m going to go through the lines and get some uniforms for us all to wear. I’ll bring them back, we’ll go through a gap in their line, and then walk in to the city.” He allowed his spirit senses to work, and detected fear, but not an unhealthy level. “Stracha, remember, we have to keep your arms and mine bandaged and covered at all times; we can’t let our ingenaire marks be seen,” he emphasized one more time, and then he was off.
They were in luck to have a dark night. The moon was only a late-rising sliver, so that with his enhanced abilities, Alec had a profound advantage over others on the battlefield. He took note of landmarks he passed, and then he stealthily crept between outposts of the Michian forces, noting the yellow uniforms of Canare clan members, and two minutes later he was upon a supply depot. He silently crept up on the quartermaster and killed him, then pulled the man’s robes over his own clothes. He pulled the body into a patch of weeds, then began looking through the supply wagons, trying to find uniforms. He came across two uniform caches, one from Canare and a red supply from Scarle. He chose an armload from each, crouched down, and began running back towards the lines, to a ditch where he dropped the uniforms and pulled out his throwing knives
Preserving the Ingenairii Page 19
