The Path Of Peace (The Cremelino Prophecy Book 3)

by Mike Shelton

Lowering his voice, he continued, “For now, you will be treated well; have no fear. You are a queen my dear and we royals need to be treated well. I will not have you blemished for your King.”

  “What if he won’t surrender to you for me?” she asked. “Darius understands his duty is to the entire realm, not just his wife.”

  “Then I will destroy him bone by bone in front of you until you beg to take his place.”

  Christine blanched and stepped back even further. She could not believe the gall of this man. “You are mad. It will never work. Darius will stop you. Your son will stop you.”

  “Don’t speak to me of my son again!” The general used his power to knock a small vase from a shelf, shattering glass all over the floor. “Your husband softened him. He will learn his place in Gildan or be destroyed with your husband.”

  The general flung open the door. A guard appeared next to him outside the room, and a servant stood close by.

  “Bathe her, and give her clothes fitting for her station. Make sure she eats, and keep her happy.” The general looked back at Christine one more time. “And make sure she stays alive. I need her.”

  Christine felt numb inside. Lightning was gone from her mind. Sitting in a foreign land, she knew her husband most likely searched for her hundreds of miles away in the wrong country. She thought of her mother back in Anikari and her father, who had passed away the previous year. She remembered their faith and hope and love. She remembered the God they spoke of who could comfort and help.

  The nausea rose inside her stomach once again. She gritted her teeth against the feeling. It had been constant since arriving in her captivity. In fact, it had been constant almost every day for the past few months. Realization dawned on her, and she gasped. Holding her hand to her stomach, she only dared to believe what deep inside she knew to be true. She had been blind not to see it before now, but things had been so busy. She must be pregnant.

  Two servants opened the door and led her to the bath chambers. She hardly noticed as they bathed and dressed her. He mind was far, far away. She reached out for Lighting only to be thwarted once again by something blocking her communication. She closed her eyes as they finished dressing her and prayed for peace in her heart and for someone to find her soon. She couldn’t let the general find out. He was a madman.

  * * *

  Mezar and his friends had a slow yet uneventful trip through Denir and up the northern road. The wagon train they rode with stopped at most villages and sold their wares. Through listening to rumors, Mezar had discovered Darius and Christine were not back in Anikari yet. Tales of their travels had them somewhere between Mar and Sur. They were sketchy details but enough for Mezar to continue north. There was no news about any troubles further south in Gildan, for which Mezar was glad. Maybe his father had given up looking for him.

  Tonight they stayed in Tean and then would be in Sur in the next few days if the weather held out. Mezar felt his ring pulsing with light and had to hide it in his pocket. It meant Leandra was close by. He was excited to see her again.

  Mezar and Leandra, a young woman from the Realm, had become acquainted through bizarre circumstances. She’d been used as a pawn by Sean San Ghant to spy on Darius and help to lure him into the trap that eventually had him kidnapped. Mezar, initially a prisoner of Darius, helped rescue Leandra from Sean’s clutches when he saved Darius and had grown to care for her. The two had spent only a short time together in Anikari surrounding the new King’s coronation.

  Mezar had given Leandra a necklace with a small light encased in it the previous summer back in the Realm. It was beautiful and unique, but it also served a purpose: Through the magic infused in her necklace and his ring, Mezar would always know where she was. He felt bad at the way she had been mistreated by Sean, even by Darius, as only a pretty prop. Darius and Leandra had made amends with how they had treated each other. She had gone through quite an ordeal and decided to stay with relatives in Tean for a while. He was happy she still lived in the area.

  Entering the town of Tean, the large wagon train of goods attracted a great many people from the good-sized town, the largest one they had been through besides Denir.

  Mezar snuck away to find Leandra. He surprised her at the shop where she was working. Her back was to him as he entered.

  “Excuse me, miss, could you help me find something?”

  Leandra turned around and ran to him. “Mezar!”

  They hugged and made small talk for a few minutes. She asked what he was doing there, but he motioned they couldn’t talk about it in the shop.

  Two other customers came into the general store. Mezar faded to the edges behind some shelves. The men looked rough and spoke with a foreign accent. One kept trying to barter on everything until Leandra told him they had to pay the price or leave.

  The man looked around the store. “You all alone here, girl?”

  She nodded. “My family is in the back.”

  “I don’t believe you.” The man moved closer.

  “Where are you from, sir?” Leandra tried to distract him. “You have a nice accent.”

  The man smiled. “I am going to be from here soon.”

  “I don’t understand.” Leandra frowned.

  “This land will be ours soon, girl. Part of the Kingdom of Arc.”

  The other man told the first one to shut up and stop talking. “Just take the goods and leave.”

  Mezar had heard enough and came around the corner of the shelves. He smiled at them, and they looked surprised to see him there. “From Arc, huh? You’re a long way from home.”

  “There is no law about traveling,” the first man said.

  “But there is a law about taking land or property that is not yours. That could land you in jail.” Mezar moved closer.

  The hardened men didn’t seem to sense any danger from the slender and young Gildanian and held their ground.

  “Where are the rest of your men?” Mezar asked.

  “Gathering in the pass,” the first replied.

  The second man chided him again and grabbed him by the arm to leave. The first man grabbed the goods and started to walk out.

  “You didn’t pay for those,” Mezar said.

  The one without the goods pulled a knife and lunged at Mezar. In a swift movement, Mezar moved to the side, grabbed the man’s arm, and twisted the knife out of his hand. The other man started to run, but Mezar brought out his hand in front of him and, with a pull of air, lifted up a board under the man’s feet, causing him to crash to the floor. Leandra brought some rope over, and the two of them tied up the would-be thieves.

  “Now, tell me about the men in the pass. What is going on there?”

  The men were silent until Mezar used his power to pull the rope tighter. They began to gag, and their eyes bulged.

  “Tell me or it goes tighter.”

  “Mezar?” Leandra gave him a warning look that told him not to be too harsh.

  He mouthed a “sorry” to her. He was just anxious to find Darius and warn him of his father’s plans.

  The first man gave in. “Prince Bronwyn is going to attack and take this area for the kingdom. He sent some of us out to disrupt things.”

  Leandra stepped up to the men, hands on her hips and a scowl on her face. Her cheeks were red, and she looked angry. “This land is not yours to take. Our King will protect us.”

  Mezar turned to the other man. “Your turn. When is this attack?”

  The other man stayed silent until Mezar pulled tighter. The man started choking and couldn’t breathe. He signaled that he would talk.

  Between broken sobs, he told Mezar that King Darius and his queen were supposed to visit in Sur and then with the prince of Arc. The two thieves had lost track of time, but they thought the meeting would be soon.

  “We can’t let anything happen to Darius and Christine,” Leandra said to Mezar.

  Mezar nodded. “We won’t.”

  Mezar kept them tied up and took them out front. He slid away fr
om the group as he had Leandra call over a city guard to take them to jail.

  “How did you get them tied up?” one of the guards asked Leandra.

  “Can’t a girl protect herself?” was all she said.

  The guards shook their heads, seemingly confused, but took the thieves away.

  After they were gone, Mezar and Leandra went back into the store. Leandra grabbed Mezar into a fierce hug and let a few tears fall. She was almost as tall as Mezar, the top of her head reaching his eyes.

  “I have missed you, Leandra,” Mezar whispered into her soft brown hair. It was still short and framed the soft features of her face.

  “And I you, prince of Gildan.” Leandra pulled away and looked at Mezar. “Your disguise is horrible. I would recognize you anywhere.”

  Mezar laughed. “But you know me. People see what they want to see. But my speech can give me away; it is not perfect. So I must be careful around others.”

  “Is it true that Arcs are trying to take part of our land?” Leandra looked worried.

  “I didn’t know about that until now. There is even a greater threat to Darius and Christine.” Mezar paused and puffed out some air. “My father is causing problems and plans to kidnap Christine.”

  “Mezar, we have to help them,” Leandra pleaded. “You know I still feel bad about what I did to him, how I turned him in.”

  “Darius forgave you, Leandra,” Mezar said. “It was Sean’s doing. He threatened to hurt your family.”

  “I know. I know. But I want to do something to show them I am really loyal to the Realm.”

  Mezar took Leandra with him back to where his other friends remained with the wagon train. They made a plan to escape the city that night. Leandra would go with them so their accents would not give them away. She ran off to gather clothes, food, and horses for them from her uncle’s farm and to tell her uncle’s family that she would be gone for a while.

  Mezar now knew exactly where to go to find Darius. He just hoped he wasn’t too late to warn the King about Christine. He also hoped he wasn’t too late to stop a war between Arc and the Realm when the biggest worry for the Realm right now should be Gildan and his own father.

  Chapter Twelve

  A CHANGE OF HEART

  Darius and his men fought hard, but the men of Arc were stronger than Darius had realized. He wished he could use more of his power to move things along, but with the pace he had kept in recent days and lack of sleep, he was barely able to stand and fight. He didn’t know if it was his untrained abilities or if it was the same for everyone, but using the power exhausted him terribly. He was always hungry afterward, and it took some time to recover.

  Grief over his wife steered him forward through his exhaustion. He took some men with him and raced through the enemy’s camp, searching every tent for any sign of her. Nothing had turned up yet. He was getting frantic. His men were getting tired. They were outnumbered, and even though they fought better, it was becoming difficult. He hated watching his men die for him, but he hated more the thought of his wife gone from him.

  He pushed on, tent after tent, until he reached the largest tent. About to enter, Darius turned at the sounds of horns and hooves behind him. A large army came up through the pass from Sur. At first, his stomach dropped. He thought the riders to be more of the enemy ambushing them but noticed the standard of the Realm held high above one of the thundering horses.

  “Form back to ranks,” he yelled from atop Thunder. He turned the large horse around and rode back to the new group, bringing his men with him. There were far fewer returning with him than had started. He stomach churned, and his heart fought, weeping for the fallen who lay dead, scattered across the small valley.

  He pulled up by the commander of the troops and smiled in surprise at Cray, his general and old mentor.

  “Good day, my Lord.” Cray bowed his head. “Seems you need some help.”

  “Yes, General. Glad to see you. How did you know we were here?” A soldier offered Darius a drink of water.

  “We heard of a gathering of soldiers on the border, and your father sent me to investigate. When I arrived in Sur, the governor told me where you had gone.”

  Darius nodded but didn’t have much energy to do anything else.

  “You look horrible, pardon me saying, your Majesty. Have you had any sleep?”

  Darius swayed on the horse, and two men helped him off. He glanced at the other side and spotted the Arc army retreating toward their camp. They would try and get away, but they couldn’t run quick enough to get very far; the valley ended in a tight mountain pass that would only allow a few through at a time. A few minutes of rest would help his men and not give too much advantage to the enemy.

  He sat down on the ground next to Cray and informed Cray of his wife’s abduction.

  “It doesn’t make any sense for them to take her,” Cray said.

  “I know.” Darius shook his head. “But her Cremelino, Lightning, and other witnesses in the area saw the men.”

  Cray shook his head. “I am still not used to the idea of communicating with these horses. I knew they bonded with their owner, but I thought it was only a strong bond of feeling and purpose, not that they could actually communicate.

  Darius smiled. “Cray, you have no idea of the power of the bond. They are marvelous creatures.” Next to him, Thunder neighed loudly.

  “And this?” Cray motioned around him. “Your doing or theirs?”

  Darius smiled without humor. “Both. Seems they brought a five-hundred-man army as an honor guard—I am sure with other intentions. Sean San Ghant is here, sowing seeds of trouble again.” He glanced around the area, realizing he hadn’t seen him in a while. “When they didn’t offer up my wife, we attacked.”

  “Have you found her?”

  Darius groaned with exhaustion. He couldn’t think straight. He barely sensed his own power. He struggled to hold his grief in check. “No. We haven’t. Maybe they took her up the pass.”

  “You need to rest, my Lord. I have fresh troops.” Cray motioned around. “We can finish off this skirmish and find out what they are doing here and where your wife is.”

  Evening came early in the mountains, and the sky began turning dark. Without warning, down the mountain behind the Arc camp came another group of men.

  “Who is that?” Darius asked out loud.

  “More troops from Arc, I surmise. It seems they might have been planning a little more than an honor guard.” Cray frowned, dark lines showing on his forehead. “Now the battle won’t be so easy. I think it’s best to plan tonight and attack in the light of day tomorrow.”

  Darius just wanted to find his beloved. “No. We attack now.”

  Cray saluted and ordered the ranks to form up. The fresh men rode out in front, getting to the enemy before their troops arrived down the pass.

  Men fought from horseback and the ground. Sounds of swords striking and men’s yells filled the valley and echoed off the walls of the steep cliffs. Cray had brought with him a company of archers, who began to decimate the Arc troops.

  Soon their enemy’s reinforcements arrived, and they, too, had archers, who began pushing back the Realm army. They battled deep in the night; however, at some point both sides slowed to a stop. The dead littered the ground, the wounded still groaning. All suffered exhaustion. The battle was not going to be won that evening.

  Cray’s men, to speed their ride, had little provisions with them. Cray sent a few men back to Sur to procure more food. Some men set up a makeshift tent for the King. Darius stumbled inside hardly able to stand. Men helped him out of his armor and he quickly fell into a deep slumber. He dreamed of Christine’s face. He could see it but never seemed to be able to touch it. The stable presence of Thunder in his mind brought a modicum of peace. Lightning had retreated to the back of the battle without a rider and also lent the King some of her power. Finally, he was able to relax and slipped into a deep sleep.

  In the morning, a group of men returned from Sur a
nd handed out food. The enemy began forming ranks. The air, cloudy with fog hanging low over the valley, lent an air of doom to the battle.

  * * *

  Off to the side, Sean had stayed hidden from the battle the previous day. He found himself now in a precarious situation involving enemies on both sides. Not for the first time that day did he curse the Preacher and his plans. This was a disaster. Darius didn’t trust him, which Sean felt very little remorse about. He didn’t care what the upstart King thought about him. Bronwyn, on the other hand, was going to be his ticket to invading the Realm and establishing chaos to hand to the Preacher. Still confused on what had happened, he tried to piece together a new plan, one that kept him alive.

  Darius had been ranting about the abduction of his wife, but Bronwyn had been as surprised as Sean about the information. Another player had entered the mix, and Sean planned to find out who it was. His best bet would be to side with Bronwyn.

  Sean caught the sounds of battle beginning again. The King’s men were on the offensive against the prince. He went to the battlefield to find Bronwyn and assure him of his loyalty. The battled roared around him. Twice he had to duck from being hit by a stray arrow. The two sides fought each other fiercely on horseback, hacking away at each other’s army.

  In the middle of the foray, Sean spotted Darius on his white horse, flashing with brilliance through the fog. His golden sword glowed with power.

  Sean, not dressed in Realm attire, was attacked by a soldier from Anikari. Paring his way around the man, he left him bleeding and clutching his side.

  Looking around, he saw Bronwyn. The prince had fallen from his horse and fought off a trio of enemy soldiers. Sean joined in.

  “The traitor returns,” Prince Bronwyn spat.

  “I am not a traitor, my Lord. I had nothing to do with the King’s men, the taking of his wife, or this new army.” Sean swatted away a sword strike and dove into the battle, eliminating one of the men attacking the prince. “My intentions with you have always been clear.”

  “I should never trust a man who is willing to sell out his own kingdom.” The prince continued to fight off his attackers, taking a slice across his arm. He returned it with a stab to the gut. One more fell. “I still don’t even know who you are working for.”