Knight's Valor

by Ronald Coleborn

  Primus Vayjun, who wore the king’s robe draped over his shoulders, raised his hand high above his head, and silence fell over the throng. “This night, Storms Reach has fallen, as has High Court to the south.”

  The plainsmen began to shout and stamp once more, and many waved their bloody swords and maces.

  When Vayjun clenched his raised hand into a fist, silence washed over them again. “People of Glyssia, your king has ruled you long, but his rule is at an end. A successor must ascend the throne. Since there is none in the line of succession worthy of this honor, the Council of Elders has elected to grant the kingship to another—one from among the people. That man stands before you now, I, Nerus Vayjun, primus of the Valiant Order of Glyssian Sapients. But before I can rule, the king must die. What say you all?”

  Bloodlust coursed through the Dremsa men, who filled the court with cries demanding the king’s head as they waved their blood-stained weapons like banners. Primus Vayjun tightened his grip on the king’s neck and lifted him in the air. The king made a feeble attempt to grab Vayjun’s wrist with his frail hands, but his efforts were fruitless, and he looked nothing like a king as his feet dangled and twitched. Silence fell over the crowd. Primus Vayjun uttered a low growl, and then a snapping sound resonated throughout the courtyard. The king’s lifeless hands dropped to his sides.

  Vayjun’s eyes moved over the crowd. “The king is dead,” he proclaimed, and he flung Hertrigan Vame’s body to the Dremsa horde. “Behold your new king.”

  Vayjun raised his arms, and the plainsmen shouted and clapped and stamped their feet. Even the servants and nobles and knights in the crowd cheered his pronouncement. When the cheering died down, Vayjun said, “I will sit the throne in the East, in service to the Dread Lord of Prybbia, Drucephus Farisin. But soon the Great Realms will be united once more!”

  This time the Riders of the Dread Order, Farisin’s loyal mercenaries, applauded.

  The four riders spotted the spice wagon near the road that skirted Eastern Plain. Sendin and Ghendris looked to the north and west, scanning for enemies, while Jerreb and Ellerick approached the wagon. Seyalinn’s son was not strapped to her back.

  “Where is the boy?” Jerreb asked.

  “He sleeps,” Seyalinn replied. “Nineteen hours a day, as I told you. Fair chance he won’t open his eyes till morn.”

  “I wish to speak with him,” Jerreb said.

  “Best o’ luck to you,” Seyalinn said, jerking a thumb over her shoulder. “He’s in the back of the wagon.” As Jerreb moved toward the rear, Seyalinn leaned out and said, “Many’s the time I’ve tried to budge him from sleep.”

  Jerreb peered into the back of the wagon. Quarvik, who was wrapped in a wool blanket, lay on his back, his eyes open but rolled back so only the whites showed.

  “Quarvik,” Jerreb said. “We’ve returned. Are you awake?”

  Your thoughts only, Sir Jerreb. Remember? Quarvik replied.

  You’re awake, Jerreb thought.

  I knew you would return. I was expecting you. Now you have seen with your own eyes what befalls the Great Realms. Death and destruction, and worse to come.

  What have you seen, Quarvik? What is yet to come?

  A great evil arises out of the West, from Aklon, the seat of power in the Prybbian Realm. And another evil will rise out of the East. They will wage war one against the other, and many will suffer. A great many will die.

  Will the realm stand?

  The realm has already fallen, and the primus sits the throne. But there is hope.

  Tell me what I must do.

  You must leave the lands of the Great Realms and travel a great distance if you intend to free its people from the coming tyranny. You must seek the dragon tamer, who lies far to the north on the Isle of Kebriyu.

  I do not understand.

  The journey will be long and trying, but once you find the dragon tamer, she will stem the tide until such time as the Restorer comes into power.

  Your words confound me, Quarvik. Help me to understand. Please.

  You will understand, Sir Jerreb. But now I must rest. Many dreams await me. Dreams that I will share with you in time.

  King’s Vengeance,

  Legends of the Dread Realm: Chronicles the Second

  Available Friday, October 26, 2012

  DON’T MISS IT!

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