‘You’d think Nandul had enough on his plate with the Nailmarni causing so many problems, and civil war threatening to break out,’ said Laughlin.
Dale shrugged. ‘I think that’s part of the reason he withdrew from Alkira and returned to Nyinaku. I think he was so shocked to see the Nailmarni in Alkira and in such force, that he rushed back to Nyinaku to check that his own country wasn’t being overrun.’
‘And what of the Nailmarni? Who are they?’ asked Jade. She felt embarrassed that their illness had caused her and her sister to sleep through the entire attack by the Nailmarni and she had never even caught a glimpse of the strange creatures. Even now when she was recovering enough to ask questions, they had been so busy that no-one had found time to explain to them exactly what had occurred.
‘Don’t be embarrassed,’ said Danil, sensing the girl’s discomfort. ‘Lord Tiernan caused you to sleep through the battle as he was unsure you were well enough to survive the stress of the situation.’
‘I thank him,’ murmured Jade, marveling at how many people had given so much to keep her and her sister alive. ‘Tell me about these Nailmarni.’
‘The name is given by the Daoine Maithe,’ said Kelian. ‘It means stonefish. And we found out very quickly they can be just like a stonefish. Very hard to see and then they cause a lot of pain. They are some kind of ancient enemy of the guardians, and they were intent on taking our land, but with the help of the guardians and the free warriors we managed to defeat them. I hope with all my heart we’ve destroyed enough of them that they won’t be a problem any longer.’
‘I think we did,’ said Danil. ‘We have soldiers patrolling between the Ice Coast and Tarlique, and down to Emerald, and all the way across Alkira east of here, and around Khynol. Reports have been slow coming at times, but at this stage they’ve had no encounters with Nailmarni and very few with the fallen. There are the usual incidences of fallen in Alkira and the soldiers try to drive them back into Nyinaku, but that’s nothing unusual. In truth, I imagine there will be a few Nailmarni wandering around, but Lord Tiernan sent a number of the fastest of the guardians to remove any who remained. When they report back to us, or to Lady Karrijeuiga at the Dwellings, we can feel more confident. The place we are most worried about is the southern area around Tarlique. Lord Tiernan sent Alasdair down there to have a look around.’
‘As soon as we have word that Tarlique is safe, I want you and Duke Laughlin to return there,’ said Kelian to Princess Amy. He turned to General Marnol. ‘General, I want you and Lady Sophie to stay here in Castle; we need you and the soldiers of Highview here until this mess has been sorted out, particularly if I have to go to Tatharlia. Rudiger, I will accept your offer of escorting Dale, Lerise and Jade to Emerald. You have my thanks.’
‘Eibhear, Ben and Rezon will come with us,’ said Rudiger. ‘The only concern is for Raline. I know Rez wants to finish what we need to do in Nyinaku, but I can think of nothing more dangerous than taking a human woman across the Ice Coast and into Nyinaku, and Raline refuses to be parted from him.’
‘Raline and Rezon will work it out,’ said Eibhear. ‘They’ll arrive here tonight with Tiernan and you can ask them what they want to do. Raline might be a little on the frail side physically, but she’s certainly bright enough to keep anyone on their toes.’ Everyone laughed. Raline was certainly intelligent, but by human standards she was anything but frail.
‘Good,’ said Kelian. ‘As I suggested earlier, I want you to take a ship up to the Dwellings and then to East Inlet before you go to Castle. I want to be sure that none of the fallen have returned there. It’s so close to the Dwellings and there are too many of the guardians away, helping us here in Castle with our own troubles. It wouldn’t do to have the fallen take advantage of there being so few of the Daoine Maithe guarding the Dwellings.’
‘True,’ said Dale. ‘I’ll organize a ship.’
‘Excellent,’ said Kelian standing up. Everyone immediately rose. ‘I do have more I wish to discuss, however I need to see Captain Mercah now, so if everyone could reconvene here this evening please.’
Chapter 3
Invitation
It was precisely midday when Kelian found Captain Mercah. They walked together and Kelian paused when they reached the city wall, wondering what might be the most convenient and safe place to speak privately with Captain Mercah. King’s Marshall Danil was following at a discreet distance.
‘The beach, Kelian,’ Danil’s thoughts came clearly to Kelian. ‘The Captain is concerned about being overheard, and there is no-one on the beach between the docks and the watchtower. I’ll stay with you.’
Once they were far enough away from the docks to be out of earshot, Captain Mercah spoke. ‘I’m sorry our meeting must be brief, but the Empress ordered me to extend her invitation, deliver your gift and return immediately.’
‘Immediately?’ Kelian wondered how immediately the man meant.
‘Literally,’ replied Captain Mercah, ‘as soon as we’ve finished unloading. No crew member is to venture further than the docks.’
‘You would be most welcome to visit the castle.’
‘The Empress wants us back home as soon as is humanly possible. Not all is well in Tatharlia. The Empress fears... In truth I’m not sure what she fears, but something is going on. Her orders were that no-one other than myself speak with any Alkiran.’
‘Did she have any other message she wished to convey, other than her overwhelmingly generous gift and her kind invitation?’ asked Kelian.
‘She did. There are things I was instructed to say, should I have the opportunity to speak to you alone.’ He hesitated and glanced back towards Danil. ‘The Empress said I should trust none other than you.’
‘My King’s Marshall will not repeat anything that is said between us, if I ask him to be silent,’ Kelian stated confidently.
‘Can you be sure?’ Captain Mercah whispered urgently.
‘He’s of the Daoine Maithe,’ replied Kelian, and he smiled as Captain Mercah’s expression relaxed.
The Captain laughed aloud. ‘Is he now? Well, in that case I will continue. Firstly, the Empress said if you refused my invitation because you felt threatened by our presence I was to personally beg you to come. Secondly, she said if you still refused to come I was to find some way of making it impossible for you to refuse her invitation, and thirdly, she asked me to express personally to you the sincerity of her desire for friendship between Tatharlia and Alkira, and lastly,’ he paused and glanced towards Danil before proceeding, ‘she advised that you bring a strong enough escort to ensure you reach the Empress’ Sanctuary safely. Trust no-one. You will be safe once within the walls of the Sanctuary.’
‘But you can’t say why she wants me to visit?’ asked Kelian feeling frustrated by the lack of forthcoming information.
‘I can’t say because I don’t know. What I do know is that the Empress is terribly worried, but by what she wouldn’t say. I do know she’s disturbed by her parents’ deaths, and she has made comments about strange happenings even within the Sanctuary, but I may say no more. Majesty, please don’t take it as an insult that we cannot accept your invitation to visit the castle, but we must be gone the moment the supplies are unloaded.’ Captain Mercah shook his head sadly. ‘Besides, from what I can see, I doubt you could feed a visiting mouse before my ship is unloaded.’
‘It is looking a little grim,’ Kelian admitted. He stared thoughtfully towards the massive Tatharlian vessel. ‘I wonder why the Empress disallowed anyone other than you to leave the ship,’ he mused. ‘Is that difficult to control?’
‘It’s not difficult. We Tatharlians are creatures of routine and habit. On board our ships, the same routine is followed day after day. As much as is possible, nothing changes. Everyone knows where everyone else will be, and what they’ll be doing at any hour of any day. It’s the same on board any Tatharlian ship. So if someone leaves the ship, everyone would know. Unless they didn’t know someone was on board in the firs
t place. The Empress said this message for both of us before setting sail. ‘Trust no-one.’ In Tatharlia, that’s advice we take seriously.’
‘I’ll make a suggestion,’ said Kelian. ‘Tell your crew that I have accepted the Empress’ generous invitation and will be leaving Alkira in two months when repairs to my ship are complete.’
‘Two months!’ Captain Mercah cried in alarm. ‘That’s-’
‘In actual fact,’ Kelian interrupted the Captain, ‘I’ll be leaving Alkira immediately and I’ll be there as quickly as the Swift will carry me. I’m sure Captain Gillam can have her ready even before you finish unloading. Who knows, I may even beat you to Tatharlia,’ he added challengingly.
‘So!’ Captain Mercah rubbed his hands together. ‘It’s a race!’
‘If it’s a race, it’s going to be a strange one,’ said Kelian. ‘If your crew thinks we’re not leaving for a couple of months, they might think it’s a little strange when we dart out of the harbor ahead of you.’
‘That would serve to confuse them,’ laughed Captain Mercah. ‘I would like to believe there are no spies and traitors amongst my crew, but in view of the Empress’ orders, I think that would be foolish. If I might make one final suggestion, don’t sail directly to Tathra. There’s an old settlement called Qinel before you pass Numher. If you disembark there and make your way to Numher, you can get cart from Numher to Tathra. You’re less likely to be stopped, if you go that way.’
‘Stopped?’
‘The Empress would like as few people as possible to be aware of your visit. You can get supplies and inconspicuous clothing at Qinel. The path between Qinel and Numher is little more than a goat track, but it’s passable. Strange to ask this of the King of Alkira, but I would do anything for my Empress.’
‘What about the people of Qinel? Won’t they be a little suspicious of an Alkiran ship?’
‘I doubt it. Qinel was once a flourishing settlement, but there’s no safe harbor there and the wild northern storms make it an uncomfortable place to live. In time, people began to settle beside a harbor to the west of the old settlement. That became Numher. Now Qinel is made up mostly of people who don’t want to be found; smugglers, thieves and murderers. People go there to hide.’
‘And you want us to disembark there?’ Kelian said in disbelief.
‘If you try to sneak into Qinel in the dead of night looking like a band of smugglers you’re far less likely to be challenged than should you sail boldly into Tathra. You might be accosted by someone attempting to relieve you of your gold, but I’m sure you can handle a few thieves.’
‘And once we get to Tathra?’
‘A man will find you and take you to the Sanctuary.’
‘How will we know him?’
‘He will recognize you. He’s a man you can trust. He will help you enter the Sanctuary without being noticed. The Empress was most adamant that none should know of your arrival.’
‘Perhaps it would be easier if I went alone. Perhaps just the King’s Marshall and I should visit?’
‘Majesty, the Empress was hoping your wife would also be willing to visit. It may simply be that she wishes to meet the Queen, but she was quite adamant that she wished for you both to visit.’
‘I doubt Immosey and Louisa will let Elena out of their sight, and if my wife and her sisters come, I want with us as powerful a force as I can get away with, as I sneak through Tatharlia.’
They turned and walked in quiet conversation until they reached the docks. ‘Thank you Majesty. I’ll see you on the water...in our wake,’ said Captain Mercah. Kelian laughed. The Swift was small compared to the Tatharlian ship, and although Kelian was sure it was the fastest ship in what remained of the Alkiran fleet he knew it would be no match for the massive Tatharlian vessel. He stood beside King’s Marshall Danil and watched in silence as the Tatharlian ship swept grandly across the harbor and disappeared around the headland, and then he turned and walked back towards the castle. ‘What’s happening Danil?’ he asked as they passed through the city gates.
‘Well, the jetty held up to its first test. That was one big ship! The men are working around the clock repairing the walls and extending them around the new city. Farmers have been pouring in from all over the place with food and blankets, some of which their wives have made especially for the people of Castle. You’ll be pleased to know that most of the destruction was limited to the cities, most of our farming folk and nearly all of the smaller towns are untouched - which accounts for the greater part of our citizens.’
‘Father always encouraged people to move into the country areas,’ Kelian commented. ‘He never liked the idea of having such large cities that the people in remote areas might become neglected. He hoped if he kept the taxes low in country areas it would persuade people to move into the smaller towns.’
‘Well, it worked,’ said Danil. ‘And now they’re repaying the favor. They’re camped out on the higher hills and are helping build houses and dig wells. Apart from all the food the Tatharlians unloaded, we’ve had carts from Highvale, Barla and Starly. We even had a cart make it across Skeleton’s Rest from Warbilla. It was filled with clothing and all sorts of linen.’
‘Payment?’
‘Yes. The strongbox was full of dirty sea water, but the gold was unaffected of course.’
‘And is anyone taking advantage of our desperation?’
‘No. I find this hard to believe, but so far no-one has asked for more than a reasonable price for their goods. The linen and clothing from Warbilla was sent as a gift, from Principal Smith and his wife Caity.’
‘Even with such generosity, and the help of the Daoine Maithe, I don’t expect things to be back to normal for many years. And I find it hard to believe the fallen will give us years of peace to rebuild. And now Tappy thinks I need to go to Tatharlia, and that it would be unwise to refuse the Empress’ invitation. Argh! It just couldn’t come at a worse time! I feel like he’s placed me in an impossible position!’
‘Perhaps you should talk to Tappy more. He’s a very wise man. I’m sure he wouldn’t have put you in such a position without absolute necessity.’
‘What if they’re just trying to get the guardians away from Castle so invasion becomes easy?’
‘I can only tell you what I gleaned from the Captain’s mind, and I went deep into his thoughts, but if that is the case he has no idea. And when he thought about the Empress he was remembering a very frightened, vulnerable person. That seems strange to me, as the rulers of Tatharlia have always been strong and clever, and none of them scared easily.’
‘What else could you tell of the Empress?’
‘Not much; just the presence of someone who needed help, perhaps that they were ashamed to have to ask, but determined to do so anyway.’
‘This only gets more confusing,’ said Kelian.
The conference room was filled with people when Kelian and Danil entered. Kelian was pleased to see that Tiernan had arrived. He stood speaking with Timbul, Araas, Valeska, Louisa, and Milgorry. Kelian felt a moment of surprise that Valeska and Louisa had been allowed to leave the Dwellings whilst expecting babies, but he suspected the defensive capacity of the guardians surrounding them was probably enough to keep them safe and to prevent Nandul from attempting to snatch Louisa away. Louisa waved across the room to Queen Elena and her sister Immosey and the two ladies smiled at their sister. Kelian moved to Elena’s side and kissed her.
‘Where are Lerise and Jade?’ he asked.
‘They were here,’ replied Elena, ‘but they went back to their rooms for some rest. They’re still so very weak Kelian. I’m really worried about them.’
‘Eibhear assures me they will survive,’ said Kelian comfortingly.
‘They will,’ Eibhear confirmed, appearing beside Kelian and Elena, ‘but it’s a long road of recovery. They will be weak for a long time.’ He turned and gestured to his brother Rudiger who immediately joined them.
‘We’re going to the Dwellings before we hea
d for Emerald,’ said Rudiger. ‘They can stay in the Dwellings for a while if they want to. We’ll take all the time they need.’
‘Thank you,’ said Kelian sincerely. ‘I owe you so much. If you return to your own country now, Nandul will want to hunt you down and return you.’
‘He already wants to hunt us down and return us,’ said Rudiger, shrugging. ‘Even if we’d stayed in Nyinaku, I’ll bet Nandul would know by now that we’ll destroy him if we can.’
‘So when do we leave for Tatharlia,’ asked Timbul, appearing so suddenly Kelian jumped in surprise. ‘Sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you,’ he added with a grin that contradicted his words.
‘Captain Gillam,’ called Kelian and Gillam looked up expectantly. ‘When can we be ready to leave?’
‘Just say the word, Majesty.’
‘Where’s Tappy?’ asked Kelian, gazing around the crown of faces.
‘Here, Majesty!’ Tappy called from the corner of the room, where he stood with Duke Percy and Duchess Vera.
‘Good. Let’s begin,’ Kelian commanded. Everyone immediately crowded around the huge table. An assortment of chairs had been brought into the room, but there was not enough room for everyone, so General Marnol and his wife Lady Sophie opted to sit on the long lounging chair with Princess Amy, Duke Laughlin and a guardian from the Dwellings called Alasdair, who had returned an hour earlier from Tarlique with the comforting news that there were none of the fallen in the area of the city and many people had returned to begin rebuilding. Duke Laughlin and Princess Amy were already making plans for their return home. Tappy spread a piece of parchment and dipped his quill into a small pot of ink. He waited for Kelian to speak.
‘Where’s Dale?’ said Kelian, noticing the Baron was missing from the sea of faces.
‘He was helping clean out the old stables near the city gates,’ General Marnol replied. ‘With a bit of work it will be good enough housing, for the time being.’ There was the sound of footsteps approaching and seconds later Dale stood in the doorway. He was covered from head to toe in filthy mud, and he wore a look of resignation.
Child Of A Guardian And Of The Free (Book 3) Page 4
