Heima: Challenge to the Crown

by S. W. Gunn

  Chapter 24

  Daell was angered. How could these men dare to attack his wife? He would find the escaped assassin quickly and bring him to justice. No doubt another ordered these men to attack her, and he would discover who it was. The fact assassin was moving so slow let him know thatt his attack had injured the man. At the speed Daell was moving he would catch the man soon enough. Moving from side to side in order to avoid trees Daell spotted the man. Fear was written on his face as he ran and he continued to glance backwards looking for pursuers. He never looked upwards to see Daell moving faster than him. Daell passed the man and then lowered himself quickly until he was standing on the ground. The man froze in his tracks when he saw Daell standing before him. He was breathing heavily from his long run. He moved into a fighting stance very similar to the one Skyansam had held in their combat during the Bardagi.

  “False king, I shall pummel you.”

  Daell knew the injured man was no match because he could move the earth in ways that he never could during that fight. Daell simply walked towards the man. The man took a quick side step to try and avoid any attack, he then quick jabbed a closed fist into Daell. With a thought Daell simple raised a shield of earth between himself and the blow. The man bellowed in pain has his closed fist struck against the hardened earth. As the man backpedalled Daell became flushed with anger so in a backhand motion he clubbed the man to the ground and unconscious. He had examined his prisoner but he could not identify any clues as to who he was or why he was acting in the manner he was. Using the dusts of the earth around them to rise himself into the air Daell picked both himself and his prisoner with him. He knew the direction of the next village where his wife would have been taken so he headed that way. This whole incident sickened him. Daell anticipated interrogating the man once they got to the village. He quickly located the village and then lowered himself and the man directly in front of the inn. An Aldarnari guard spotted him immediately and bowed deeply.

  The guard said, “Your Highness I am happy to see you have returned, and with a prisoner no less.”

  Daell commanded, “Secure him with bindings immediately and bring him into the inn. I wish him secured to a chair so he cannot move a single limb.”

  “As you wish Your Highness.”

  Daell walked into the inn and asked the first guard he saw, “Where is the Queen?”

  The man immediately responded, “She is safe in one of the rooms within the inn Your Highness.”

  Daell nodded as he entered the inn and went upstairs. Down the hallway he identified the room Astir was in because it had two Aldarnari guards standing by the door. As he walked up to the door, the guards bowed deeply.

  One of the guards spoke, “Your Highness is a pleasure to see you have returned.”

  The man who spoke was the man Daell had assigned as the new Captain. Apparently he had taken Daell’s words to heart and was personally guarding his wife.

  “Thank you.” Daell told him.

  The door slammed open and Astir ran into his arms.

  She clung tightly to him and between heavy sobs she said, “Daell, I was so worried for you.”

  Daell stroked her hair as he held her and confidently he told her, “Everything is fine. I have captured the man and soon we shall have our answers.”

  She nodded and glanced up at him. Her eyes were red and streaked with tears. He slowly rubbed her cheeks with his thumbs to remove the tears.

  Daell announced, “I am certain the man will awake soon, I shall go and interrogate him.”

  She shook her head as she firmly stated, “No Daell, I am the Queen. I shall interrogate him.”

  Daell was unsure it was wise, but he could see the look of determination on her face. He would not win this argument.

  “Very well my Queen, let us both go and have a conversation with this man.”

  She nodded and took his arm. Daell escorted her down the stairs and into one of the side rooms of the dining hall. It was the room that they were told that the man was secured at. He was Vindiri and he was bound with his arms tied to the back of a chair and his ankles tied to the legs of the chair. He had a deep bruise on his face where Daell had struck him. Daell guessed that he was slightly older than himself and Astir. He wore a tunic and pants made of mykjask. They both were colored black as the night and oddly enough, there was no crest on it.

  Astir turned to him and asked, “Do you know this man?”

  “No Astir, I do not.”

  She looked to a guard and commanded, “Summon a bucket of water, he has rested long enough.”

  The guard left the room and returned quickly with a bucket. Daell had fully expected her to have the guard awaken him, but instead she took the bucket from the guard and splashed the water on him herself. She then tossed the bucket aside. It was a change of pace for her. Daell saw the glint of determination in her eyes, he almost felt bad for the man as he was about to be steamrolled by a powerful woman. The man spluttered awake as the water hit him. His eyes slowly rolled open and the realization of his situation hit him immediately.

  Astir spoke firmly, “You have two choices wretch, you can either tell me who hired you or, I will beat it out of you.”

  Daell was shocked by her words. She was not the type to hit people and here she was threatening to beat him. Maybe the attempt on her life had affected her.

  The man laughed and said, “How would a woman beat anything from me?”

  Anger flashed into her eyes. She glanced to her left and saw the bucket that she had tossed aside. Grabbing the handle of the bucket, she wildly swung it into the side of the man’s head. The force of the impact smashed the man and the chair he was attached to down to the ground. She tossed the bucket aside once again.

  “Pick him up.” She instructed with a tinge of anger in her voice.

  Daell lifted the man and his chair from the ground. He was again unconscious. Astir stepped in front to him and then violently slapped him across his face, which awoke him again. He was in obvious pain from her blows.

  “Shall we try this again wretch?” She asked angrily.

  The man had a look of fear. It was clear that a bucket across the head with a hard slap to the face had been enough to catch his attention. She stared intently at him, but he did not speak. Daell did not believe the man would respond. It was clear to him that Astir had noticed this also.

  “Daell, hand me your sword.”

  Daell was stunned by her request. Surely she would not kill the man, even with his crimes. Daell looked at her, very unsure how to respond.

  She stared at him intently and then said in a firm voice, “My love, please hand me your sword.”

  Daell unsheathed his sword and passed it to her. He was very concerned because he would hate to see his wife do something that she would regret later.

  She began to speak, with a powerful voice that Daell had never heard from her, “Wretch how much do you know of the Queens of Heima?”

  “It does not matter what you know wretch.” She paced briefly from side to side and before he could reply, she continued, “The reason that the Queens of Heima are destined to rule Heima is simple; we are touched by the gods.”

  With a dramatic pause she stopped pacing and then turned to look at the man before she smiled evilly at him.

  “Now ask yourself wretched foul pile of scum, how could the gods possibly touch such a tiny little woman such as myself?”

  In a display of power in earthcrafting that Daell had not seen from her, she extended her free hand and called forth a hardened ball of earth. It floated above her hand and then gently dropped into her open hand. She tossed it lightly into the air.

  Firmly she said, “Earth.”

  On catching the ball, she violently tossed it into the chest of the man. He grunted as it struck him. Another wicked smile crossed her brow as she flicked her open hand and then thrust it towards the man. A shower of water seemingly appeared from nowhere and splashed into his face. She continued to let the water splash o
n his face. He twisted and turned to try and avoid the water. It continued until the water pushed the man and his chair over. She dropped her arm, which caused the water to stop.

  In a loud voice that stunned Daell she yelled, “Pick him up, I have not finished with the wretch.”

  Daell moved quickly to lift the man from the ground. He was coughing violently to recover from the attack.

  “Water.” She said with a sneer on her face.

  She raised her open hand above her head. The air in the room began to vibrate. Daell was impressed by her display. He knew she could control the elements, but he had never seen it. With a wave of her hand, wind began to batter the man. It was so powerful that it caused him to tumble backwards while still bound to the chair. The wind pushed him violently until he collided with the wall behind him. She let the winds dissipate.

  “Daell bring him forth.”

  Daell began to become quite nervous about this. She was clearly not of her normal mind. He nodded and dragged the man to an upright position and in front of her again.

  “In case you lost track wretch, air.” She said the word ‘air’ almost violently.

  She raised Daell’s sword and showed it to the man.

  After a brief pause and with venom in her voice she asked, “Wretch have you ever seen the Aldarnari in combat? It is an impressive sight to see them wield their swords, they are fine warriors.”

  She stepped back before she continued speaking, “What makes it so impressive is what they do with those blades. Have you ever seen it?”

  She extended her right arm holding the sword away from herself.

  With a sneer on her face she said, “Of course you have wretch, you saw it this night from a distance when you and your cowardly friends dared to assault me. Your friends are now dead, as you will be very soon, if I do not receive the answers I wish to get. At least if you do not answer, you can go forth before the gods and proclaim that you were the first man ever slain by a Queen.”

  Daell was shocked by her words. She had intended to kill the man if he did not answer. His blade that she held ignited in flame. Daell’s jaw dropped. She was more powerful than he had ever given her credit for being.

  “Fire.” She said and then she took another step towards the man and raised the flaming blade close to his neck.

  Firmly she said to him, “Now wretch, your options are clear here. You can either tell me who sent you and your cowardly friends to try and assassinate me or you can remain silent and I will run this flaming blade through you,”

  Daell was appalled. He could not believe his wife would take such an action. The man was trembling in fear.

  She yelled so loudly that the room seemed to shake, “SPEAK!”

  Finally the man relented, “I was sent by the leadership of Kunnadi.”

  Daell was flabbergasted by his words. The leadership of Kunnadi had sent this man and his compatriots to assassinate the Queen! Daell could see his wife was stunned as well.

  “Is this true wretch?” She asked him again.

  He nodded solemnly and then looked to the ground. Astir waved Daell’s sword, which caused it to extinguish. She handed it to him and then slowly walked towards the door.

  In a loud clear voice she said, “Execute him. Attempted assassination of the Queen has a penalty of immediate death.”

  Daell was stunned by her words. He quickly walked out the door and began to follow her as she walked through the inn. He followed closely behind her as she went up the stairs and into the room assigned to them. As soon as he entered and closed the door, she raced to his arms and began sobbing uncontrollably. Daell held her close. It was obvious that the whole event was a show to get the man to speak but he was still stunned at her final command. He gently reached down and stroked her hair. He could not think of the words to speak to her. They stood there for some time before she finally recovered.

  “My own people in Kunnadi have turned against me.”

  She looked miserable and sad. Daell knew no answer he could give her. She broke her hug with him.

  “We must return home quickly Daell, this action cannot stand. I do not know what these people in Kunnadi are thinking.”

  “My Queen was your decision for that man down stairs right?”

  Firmly she said to him, “I hate to be responsible for any man dying, but if I do not rule with a firm hand when needed, it will cause my ruin. Word will spread of my command and those who have decided to oppose me will realize that while I may be a small woman, my will is not small. We shall fully investigate those people in Kunnadi who dare to call forth assassins. Once we find out who they are, they will suffer the same fate as those they have sent to kill me. I do not relish this Daell, but I have no choice.”

  Daell could see her point. His wife was much stronger than she had ever led him to believe.

  Daell stated, “I understand. I do not know if this is the time to mention it, but your display of the elements was impressive.”

  “That was the first time the earth responded easily to my call. It must have been the stress of the moment. I do not think I can sleep here, could we ask the caravan to head back on the leid? I wish to complete our promised tour of Heimili and get home as soon as possible.”

  “Astir, your wish is my command; I shall go call the caravan.”

  Daell turned and left the room.

  Chapter 25

  Astir was brokenhearted. Her own people had, for some reason, turned against her. She could not understand what had happened. All she was left to do was to ask what could she possibly have done during her brief reign to cause their action? As they rode through the night on the leid to Heimili she sat quietly thinking about it. She could see the concern written on her husband’s face. The interrogation of the man had gone as well as she could have hoped, even though she probably upset her husband on some level. She did feel bad about having the man executed, but she knew sometimes as Queen she would have to make decisions that she did not like. Hopefully he would be followed by those who tried to have her killed, and then no one else would have to suffer. She leaned against Daell’s shoulder as they rode through the remainder of the night. Her eyes slowly flickered and she finally fell asleep.

  * * * * *

  Astir’s eyes opened as the sun rose. She lifted her head from Daell’s shoulder and as she rubbed her eyes, she looked out the window. They were well onto the plains of Gjor and she was certain they would arrive in Heimili soon. Originally Astir had planned to fulfill her promise to tour Heimili, but she had a change of heart. She felt that the danger had not passed and it would be unsafe for her to tour. She looked at Daell; he was sound asleep, with his head resting against the side of the carriage. Resting her head against his shoulder she unconsciously placed her hands on her belly, which only reminded her that she was with child. After she sat there for some time quietly, he finally awoke.

  He rubbed the sleep from his eyes and said, “Good morning.”

  Astir smiled weakly at him. She did not think it was a good morning at all.

  Daell stated flatly, “I was thinking we should skip the tour of Heimili, it might still be dangerous.”

  They thought alike.

  “I had thought so too Daell. Let us just go home and then we can work to resolve our issue.”

  “I agree my love. I feel bad for our guards as it must have been a rough night for them with the constant movement.”

  “As do I, but we had to keep moving. I shall explain to the Mayor what happened to us. I am certain that she will understand why we are canceling the tour.”

  They arrived in Heimili just after the morning meal and immediately headed to the building where the mayor resided.

  Daell turned to her and said, “Remain here. You should not be exposed to possible danger. I will go explain to her what happened and then we will head immediately to the docks.”

  She had planned to speak to the Mayor herself, but she knew that he was right so she just nodded at him. He opened the door of the c
arriage and exited quickly. She sat alone nervously for some time before he returned.

  As he relaxed in his seat he stated, “She understood once I explained to her what had happened. She was completely appalled by what I told her.”

  Astir had expected as much. The carriage rocked and then slowly pulled away. Thankfully the trip to the docks was quick and they found the Gjalfur sitting proudly at the docks. Their carriage stopped and they exited quickly. They were greeted by Captain Farmadir, who bowed deeply as they boarded. The Captain had them guided to their quarters and Astir could feel the ship rock a bit as it began to move. As they had gotten fully underway there was a knock on the door of their quarters. Astir was curious who it could be so she nodded at her handmaidens. Captain Farmadir entered with seven other Vatune sailors; oddly enough they all had swords drawn. She grew immediately concerned. Daell stood and stepped between her and them.

  Farmadir spoke, “You both are under arrest.”

  Astir was shocked.

  She announced angrily, “No authority has the right to arrest me for anything.”

  Daell placed his arm in front of her.

  Farmadir stated, “Incorrect Queen, the cities of Hellir and Kunnadi have declared themselves independent from Heima and they both have placed orders to have you captured immediately.”

  He indicated behind himself with his sword and said, “Now I wish to take you both to the brig below, along with all of your Aldarnari guards and handmaidens. Either come peacefully or I shall make you come forcefully.”

  Daell drew his sword. Astir suspected that his abilities to earthcraft could not work on the ocean, which was why these foul men choose now to attack.

  Daell stepped forward and firmly stated, “There will be no arresting of anyone. You will take us back to Heimili and submit yourself for arrest; the charge being treason against the Queen.”