Fractured Families (The Pearl of Wisdom Saga Book 2)

by Jason Paul Rice

  “Officers are made through actions. Many men talk falsely about their knowledge of war in arrogance, only to expose their ignorance. You know what needs done and how to get it done with only a few words.” The Man smiled.

  “As you surely know, a few early actions will reinforce your threats and that is all you need. A firm look can scream stronger than words but only if the threat is known to be enforced,” Terry said. “I see that every day now, the look of fear in a man’s eyes when he is performing his job fine. Keep the men on their toes. Have you starved them yet?” The Man wanted to know. “Aye, I got to see who the soft bellies are. I’ll talk to Tucker and Benroy about that when they rank the men,” Terry answered. “Everything sounds great. Tucker, what do we know of this new King?” The Man asked.

  “Brother of Ali-Stanley. The man has no military background and now people are fleeing the Capitol due to the regicide. He doesn’t have any support from the high lords and to top it all, he is a bloody albino,” Tucker informed him. “Albino? I thought the Wamhoffs just threw them away,” Terry joked. Tucker broke the laughter, “Queen Tomeo’s soft heart saved this one too.” “Who else did she save?” Terry wondered. Tucker quickly answered, “Ali-Samuel Wamhoff.” The Man butted in, “And it’s a damn good thing she saved Ali-Samuel or we would be kneeling to that bitch Queen of Goldenfield. We are going to take this kingdom first and go for her’s next,” The Man confidently said. He was surprised Terry had never heard of the albino Wamhoff.

  Tucker spoke, “As for this realm, the time to strike is now. I cannot believe we are the only army with Falconhurst in our sights. The new King has further fragmented the commoners from the nobles. Ali-Ster had hundreds of thousands of men ready to die for him at no cost in only a month of rule. His uncle has wiped all the good will out in less than a fortnight. Less than ten thousand armed men protect the Capitol now and half of them aren’t worth a pile of shit with a sword. It couldn’t have worked out better for our situation. All the really skilled men willing to fight for Ali-Ster have disappeared from the Capitol.”

  Terry stated, “It’s like a princess’ maidenhead, just achin’ to be taken.” The men laughed and The Man said, “Do we have any word on Ali-Samuel Wamhoff? I cannot believe the man vanished into thin air.” “All our reports say he left Donegal with the former queen but no one knows where he went,” Tucker told The Man.

  “He is a dangerous man. My bet is he has an army hidden away somewhere in Burkeville. He’s using the quagmire in that region to cover his actions. He is the only man in the kingdom who could command the respect I receive and have soldiers rush to his side. We have Waters Edge and all its forces. Bottomfoot is neutral. Mattingly just got their Duke back so they are probably only getting readjusted. The civil unrest in Burkeville means that the King will receive no military backing from any region except Fox Chapel. Tucker, you said that the high lords don’t stand behind this King. I’ve never killed an albino before,” he said with a smile.

  “Now if we could just figure out how to conquer these mountains, the King’s Castle should be a breeze,” Tucker said. “Who would have thought a few hills would be such a nuisance?” The Man rhetorically asked.

  Terry spoke, “We always went through the passes on the way to Burkeville’s border, but we had permission. That could turn into a death trap. Fox Chapel could get men to cover the openings and have men at the top, hurling boulders or arrows down on our soldiers. Suddenly, you can’t move forward or backward and men get trounced by their own side. Archers from above would have a field day,” Terry advised. “Unfortunately, my friend, we know all these problems. The solution is what eludes us. Our trackers have all found the same issues. Not one man has found a viable option worth the risk but once we get through these mountains, we could easily crush this King,” Tucker stated.

  Benroy and the Crippler entered the room and joined the men at the table. “Benroy the Builder, how many total men do we have right now?” The Man asked. “Over forty thousand and rising. We obtained two companies of four thousand each from the Pearl Islands. The Gallipo and Silent Killers should be here today or on the morrow,” Benroy answered. “Why do they call them the Silent Killers?” Terry wondered aloud. Benroy spoke, “The masters cut their tongues out so the men can’t brag about their battle exploits. They say it keeps a man humble. Strange practice if you ask me, but they are a fearsome bunch, that’s for sure. The problem now is that not all the men can stay within the city walls. We could send some of the residents away on a temporary basis.” “I’ll think about that,” said The Man, rubbing his nose. “What is taking so long for the high lords of Shadow Town and First Foot to get here?”

  The Crippler answered, “High Lords Lolat and Wedgeword have respectfully declined our invitation, several weeks after accepting it. Our spies have tracked both lords, moving south with their contingents. We aren’t positive of the destination at the moment but they aren’t coming here.”

  The angered Man with the Golden Sword said, “Spare no man, woman or child in both those regions when we take command of the realm. Tell each person before they die, Lords Lolat and Wedgeword are responsible for their death. Those cowards’ heads will be on spikes outside our castle. That will be our first decoration. I want to kill the high lords myself.”

  “The young Lord Cuthbart from Fox Woods is confirmed to be on his way north to meet us. Harolg Cuthbart is only sixteen but he has aspirations of greatness. All we need to do is promise the boy more than the current King will and he should rush to sign over his fealty and land for soldiers and crossing. Fox Woods shares its western border with Falconhurst. The boy will be the key to easiest access. We should shred through First Foot and Greengrow to the friendly territory of Fox Woods. We can rest up before our final attack on the Capitol. This Lord Cuthbart is essential…” The Man cut off the Crippler and said, “Yes alright, this teenage boy is important. You don’t have to keep saying the same thing.” He had been standing up to the Crippler lately instead of blindly following his mentor’s advice.

  Later that night, The Man with the Golden Sword enjoyed some time in bed with Gamelda. The door to his chambers creaked open and a voice said, “Excuse me, my King.” The Man looked through the dim light to see the Crippler. “What is it?”

  “We need to exercise your mind,” the Crippler advised. “Can you not see that I am involved at the moment?” he returned. The Crippler argued, “I am afraid I must insist…” He stopped as The Man got out of bed. “Am I your king?” The Man asked coldly.

  “Of course, your majesty,” a frightened Crippler quickly said. “Then I insist you get out this instant. That’s an order from your king and never disturb me when I am with a woman,” The Man scolded. “I would hate for your mind to go soft when we are so close to the crown, my king. Ask your fair lady her age, my king,” muttered the Crippler before storming out of the room.

  The Man got back in bed and massaged Gamelda’s perky breasts. He caught himself before almost instinctually saying, “I love you.”

  He looked into her green eyes and wondered, “How old are you?”

  “What difference does it make?” Gamelda tried to turn it around on him.

  “None, I suppose. Are you using your magic on me right now?” he asked with a slick smile.

  “Whatever do you mean? I only used it when we first met and in our demonstrations,” Gamelda stated. “I made a promise to myself…I wouldn’t be careless with emotion. I can’t explain it well,” The Man stammered.

  Gamelda responded, “Allow me. I had sworn off love as a silly notion but the more time we spend together, the more I have to question that. I have told you I am a free woman, but my heart flutters when you come in sight. I try to fight the feeling but a flower cannot just stop in mid-bloom.” She kissed him. The Man spoke, “It’s the same for me but less girly stuff,” he smiled. “I will not say anything reckless but I will now call you my king,” she said. The Man jumped on top of Gamelda and pleasured his lady with rough, passionat
e sex.

  He awoke the next morning and did it again. After his early morning fun, The Man went to check on the recruited prisoners. He heard Terry screaming from over a hundred yards away and chuckled. In full view, the recruits were running in circles with their hands above their heads. “Pick those fucking grapes you sissies. Get high up on that vine. I want me some Abbey Grove Sweet Wine, you sissies.” The Training Master held a wooden club to smack the men in the stomach when their arms fell too low for his liking. “Now drop,” Terry screamed. The men dropped to their bellies. “Forward crawl,” he screamed. The men slowly crawled forward.

  “Stop. Get up.” The men jumped up. “Now pick those fucking grapes again. Go, go, go,” Terry yelled. The heavy breathing men continued the exercise and were lucky that hints of fall cooled the late summer air.

  “My Training Master,” The Man loudly said. Terry rushed over to The Man with labored steps. “I like what I see already,” stated The Man as he looked around at his banners flying in the breeze. The bright sun avoided the clouds just enough to bounce off the huge golden swords on the black flags and banners. “Must make you pretty proud to see your own symbol, flying high,” Terry smiled. “Of course, I believe any man would. However, I am going to share my realm with those who help me take it,” The Man told him. “Well, I’ll sure as hell do the best I can. I’ve been through First Foot and Greengrow enough to know the lay of the land,” Terry told him. “Yes, if only we could get there,” The Man replied.

  In his peripheral vision, he saw Gamelda approaching. “There is something I must show you, my king.” He enjoyed her saying “my king” better than “I love you.” “What is it?” he asked. “Come with me and I will show you,” Gamelda said. “Excuse me, you can get back to the men,” The Man told Terry. “Of course, my king. Now drop, you fancy fucks and taste some dirt,” the Training Master screamed as he walked away.

  Gamelda and The Man walked into the castle. “Have you ever been to the library?” she asked. “Take a guess,” The Man replied. “I thought not,” Gamelda stated and they walked into the vast Etburn library. There were wooden shelves around the room that were taller than The Man. Each shelf contained seven levels with rows of books on each level. There must have been over one thousand books in the room. Gamelda pulled a torch from the wall and walked over to a shelf. She pushed a pile of books aside on the middle shelf. Gamelda exposed a hole in the wall and put the torch close enough to see the inside. The Man was intrigued to see a small room containing a table covered with maps and documents. He went to the side of the shelf and pushed. The heavy mass caused him to put his back against the wall and push out. He left enough room for himself and Gamelda to slip into the dusty opening.

  They squeezed into the room, and The Man noticed stacks of books in all four corners. He riffled through the maps and papers on the table in the middle of the room. They were battle records and strategies of great Etburn military victories. He saw some from the Battle of Blood Forest and other documents even older than that. He continued to leaf through the sloppy piles as more dust flew up causing him to rub his eyes clean. He opened them and had a revelation-- a pile of papers with the heading, The Hidden Tunnel Systems of the Blue Cap Mountains. He quickly looked over the papers and saw that along the passes there were covered entrances that led out of the south end of the mountains. He showed them to Gamelda and she said with a smile, “I told you I would help to conquer those hills.”

  “I’m going to send some trackers, but first…” The Man threw his lover up on the table. He got through her dress, underdresses and chemise and started making love to Gamelda. Enthralled in passion, The Man thought he heard something rattling around. He quickly lost himself in the woman he had desperately tried not to love. The couple didn’t even notice the Crippler staring through the opening in the bookshelf.

  Later that eve, Gamelda and The Man stared into her skull of the future. “Can you see anything?” she asked. “No, can you?” the frustrated king looked away. “I see a blond man with a crown on his head.” The Man got overly excited.

  “But he isn’t you, I am afraid to say,” Gamelda told him. “Oh, no. Oh, no…it can’t be. It just can’t be,” a worried Gamelda uttered.

  “What was that?” The Man demanded. “Nothing. Nothing you need to know,” she returned. “I need to know everything,” the angered king said. “Alright then, I saw you but you won’t like what I have to say. I saw you on the field of battle, right here within these walls. The stars shone down on a man whose life was no longer. He caught fire and burned but that wasn’t how he died. That man was you.”

  “Horseshit,” The Man screamed and calmed down for a moment before continuing, “The more you look into that stupid thing, the more it’s only a waste of time.” He got into bed and tried to sleep. A knock sounded at the door. “Go away,” yelled The Man. The persistent visitor opened the door and entered. The Crippler said, “My king, we need to keep your mental faculties sharp. We have not exercised your mind in over a week now. This is of upmost importance, your highness.”

  “My mind is fine, sharpest it’s ever been. I think we can put those activities aside for a while. Now if you interrupt me in my bedchamber again you won’t have legs to walk out of here. Use them while you have them, right now,” The Man threatened. “Don’t forget who put you in position to even be considered a king. All that can fade into night if you aren’t careful,” warned the Crippler on his way out.

  EMILIA

  “He is Red Fish. He catch red fish for his name. She is Big Nose,” Pariah explained, pointing to a teenaged girl with a wide nose. Emilia agreed with the naming. The Histoman didn’t phrase physical differences in a derogatory way. In Donegal the term would be an insult, but here it was a term of affection. People considered fat in her former kingdom were healthy and simply bigger than others in this society. The Histoman didn’t judge appearances harshly like the western world. Emilia had learned some names, but most of the dark-skinned natives looked the same to her. They had different tattoos and markings which helped distinguish them. Some of the Histoman received their names from their appearance and others from actions witnessed by others.

  “She is Red Beetle. She eat red beetles to get name. He is Eagle from climbing all to the top of the tree near the sky,” Pariah said as she continued teaching Emilia the names of the locals. An unusually hot, thick breeze rushed through the overcast day to hit the former queen. Cries and screams of pain from a short distance away followed. Pariah and Emilia rushed down to the Histoman’s living grounds to a horrific sight of scorched earth. People had been charred alive and black bodies and bones littered the area. Other natives had been burned severely and the healers hastily showed up to help. Carnal shrieks of pain raised the short hair on Emilia’s head and haunted her soul. She saw the man named Brown Dirt, rub purple, singed skin from his forearm to expose inner muscles and some bone. Some of the affected Histoman jumped into the lake to ease the pain.

  Emilia wanted to do something but stood helpless. She spotted Krys Colbert. The poor young man’s face and most of the front of his body were boiled skin. The flesh looked like a bubbling bowl of red beet soup garnished with coarse-ground black peppercorns. “What happened?” Emilia asked the only one who spoke the common tongue. “Dragon. A big black dragon. I could feel the wind from its wings as the beast swooped down and spit hot fire at us,” a dumbfounded Krys said. “Did you say a dragon?” Emilia asked. “Yes, a giant black dragon. I couldn’t believe it either,” the tortured man barely managed to get out. She looked skeptically at Pariah. “No, yes, it is true. All Histoman saying big black dragon.”

  Most of the Histoman had been performing their daily chores, but about one hundred of them and Krys were in the field when the dragon struck. Seventy-five were dead and the rest were fried badly by the beast. Word spread quickly and the working Histoman ran back to the living grounds to check on their loved ones. They returned to see the pile of charred bones and dust in the form of dead brothe
rs and sisters growing bigger by the moment as the Histoman collected the scattered remains.

  “Princess? Was Princess down here, Krys?” Emilia frantically asked. “I don’t believe so,” he replied. “Well, we need to get you up to the apothecaries near our buildings to take care of these burns.” Emilia walked Krys up to the housing area.

  What have I gotten myself into? They have dragons in this Godless part of the world. Dragons. The Gods must be trying to punish these barbarians for eating the Colbert boy’s heart.

  Ali-Samuel stormed onto the scene and said, “What in all the hells has happened here?” “Dragon attack,” Emilia responded. “What?” an exasperated Ali-Samuel asked. “I know this sounds mad, but look at the boy. Look around, what else could have done this?” Emilia rhetorically asked.

  “Get him up to that building,” Ali-Samuel said, pointing up the hill. “There are plenty of counts and apothecaries that the Histoman won’t let touch them. They rely on their witch healers. Send a few of the counts down to see if the Histoman will listen to reason and accept their help.” Ali-Samuel took off toward the field to help.

  Emilia worried about her precious Princess. She had grown attached to the young girl despite the barbaric heart-eating episode. Emilia sent Krys inside the building with a black cross on it and waited outside. She thought about why they had left the safety of the Capitol of Donegal to brave the dangers of the unknown world. The adventure had been grand in scale but she now had to keep checking the sky for dragons. All of the westerners were running around, trying to figure out what had happened. The chaotic scene included men from Donegal, Goldenfield, Harbor Valley and Livingstone running up and down the hill. The men had served as officers when they fought for their respective realms and banded together under Ali-Steven. She hadn’t seen a foreign-looking woman her entire time in Histomanji. Her hair had grown back some and Pariah helped her to even it out. Emilia missed playing with her long locks and tried to rub the short hair but it wasn’t the same.