“We don’t even know where our army is!” shouted Twell. “We are defenseless if these so called Tcher spies decide to attack the city again instead of our army somewhere hidden in the empire.”
“Not to worry about that actually,” interrupted Quaet as he walked out onto the balcony. He overheard General Twell shouting at their fellow Council members. “Nikali is apparently solving that issue as we speak.”
“The line?” Twell rhetorically asked.
“Yes,” said Quaet. “He’s recruiting a new army.”
“Then why wasn’t I consulted about this?” asked Twell. “I am in charge of the Capitol military.”
“I’m sure you were consulted on this as much as you were on the previous legions leaving the city,” snarked Palin.
“No budgets have been approved,” said Sharif. “Where is Nikali getting the funding?”
“With Tamor Blood,” said Quaet. “I was just down there. Nikali and his band of women are running the show. The people stumble forward, get their payment of a new drink, and then find a tent in the legion camps. He’ll have the camp filled by the evening.”
“This is outrageous,” said General Twell. “I refuse to train them.”
“I doubt he will ask,” said Quaet.
“One of us needs to take command of this army,” said Palin. “Nikali cannot be their commander. We need to talk to him.”
“Do you really think he will listen?” Quaet asked. “But you are right. If Nikali commands this army then he will have their full devotion. They will not listen to anybody else, including the commanders on the Royal Council. Nikali is pushing us out bit by bit.”
“No,” said Henri. “Nikali is a bit eccentric, and annoyed with how things have been done in the past. I get that. I remember him too when he was nothing but Heric’s cousin. He’s messing with many of you. I see it. You haven’t been exactly welcoming to him this whole time. When he’s done having his fun he’ll balance out.”
“This is not a game,” said Quaet. “People are dying and Eluan is falling apart because of Nikali’s actions. We have to do something.”
“What do you suggest?” Marais asked.
Quaet stepped forward to the balcony railing then turned around to face the rest of the Royal Council. He cleared his throat and took a moment to compose himself.
“We need to stop Nikali,” Quaet began. “His time as Emperor cannot continue. We need a true leader in place to either wait for Heric’s awakening or to see Eluan into the future.”
The Royal Council was quiet. Nobody wanted to speak up. Nobody wanted to agree with Quaet, but nobody spoke up against him. Nobody wanted to say what needed to be said.
“Walk away now if you do not agree that an intervention is needed,” said Quaet. “The Royal Council needs to be strong. We need to unite and balance the powers against Nikali. Right now. Who is with me?”
The nine other men stood motionless. Eyes darted back and forth looking for the first person to break rank.
“I will not challenge our emperor,” said Irling. He stepped back away from the balcony. He bowed his head and without another word he saw himself out of the Council room.
Then Darren, Rohmer, and Henri stepped back. They could not look directly at the council members they were leaving behind. They walked away sorrowed by the decisions being made by the Royal Council.
There was a long hesitation. Nobody else moved a muscle. Finally, Quaet had to break the silence.
“Anyone else?” Quaet asked. “Are the rest of you bold enough to push back against Nikali, stand up to him?”
“We can’t,” said Sharif. “He will have us executed.”
“That is the risk of speaking out against Nikali,” said Quaet. “It is one I am willing to take.”
“That is only giving Nikali what he wants,” said Clayton. “If you speak out and he kills you then there will be nobody left to keep him in check. He just wants an excuse to push us further out of power.”
“He doesn’t need one,” said General Twell. “It will happen sooner or later.”
“He will collapse before we will,” said Clayton. “I am sorry, but I will not aggravate the situation any further.” Then Clayton stepped back and made his leave of the meeting.
“Clayton is right,” said Sharif. “We just need to keep our heads down and we can outlast Nikali. Either Heric will wake up or Nikali will have likely killed himself with his own machinations. Good day.”
Then Sharif was gone. Quaet waited another few moments. None of the other men budged. They stared directly at Quaet, waiting on his words.
“Then it is us four,” said Quaet. “Very well. We will go down as heroes when this is over. We will save Eluan.”
“How far are you willing to go?” General Twell asked.
“Nikali must die,” said Quaet with the cold embrace of truth.
Chapter 33
Nikali was sitting in the center of the amphitheater. He was alone this time. The usual Tcher prisoners were absent for this event. A quiet sigh of disappointment overcame the usually unruly crowd, but Nikali ignored it. There were other matters that he had to attend to that day that did not involve the further harvest of blood for his arcan.
He sat on the ground cross legged. Nikali hung his head low and dropped his long hair around his head. His face was covered from the audience, but he could still hear their impatient ramblings.
“I’ve come here today to talk with all of you,” said Nikali. His voice carried throughout the entire amphitheater. He did not need to raise his voice or even raise his head. “Eluan is at a pivotal moment in its history, and it is time for its people’s voices to be heard.”
The crowd hushed to listen to Nikali’s words. Even Quaet and Marais leaned in closely to not miss a moment of Nikali’s speech. The new conspirators against the throne encouraged themselves to keep up with their appearances. Nothing could be out of the ordinary, even the usual check-ins on Nikali.
“There is an enemy across our great empire,” continued Nikali. “Farrah is turning our people against each other. There are people out there now that are thanking her, a Tcher leader. Her family killed thousands of our people. She cannot be trusted. She should not be thanked. She should be here. On her knees. Being executing for the crimes she has committed against Eluan.”
The crowd cheered their approval. Quaet nodded his head. While the Suraya wanted Farrah to take control of Eluan, Quaet was still on the fence about her Tcher origins. Marina was far more capable of ruling Eluan, and she had a kingdom to back her up, unlike Farrah, now.
“That is why I am here today,” said Nikali. “I am here to introduce the answer to Eluan’s problems. While our legions are traveling around the country weeding out the last of the Tcher spies that Farrah has sent out I dare not send them into battle against her directly.
“She is powerful. I will not deny that. But I am still stronger. And I am more generous. I will do more than heal you all. I will give you my power. I will share with you all that I have. It’s time to take Eluan to the next stage of our destiny!”
Nikali was growing excited. He fell backward onto the ground. His arms spread out as he looked directly up into the sky.
“I have formed Eluan a new legion! A more powerful legion. Fueled by my blood and my power. They will go out and put a stop to Farrah and her transgressions against Eluan once and for all!”
The crowd cheered louder than ever. Then Nikali’s legion began to march into the amphitheater. The crowd’s cheering and clapping grew even louder.
The marching was not in step. The soldiers were dressed in any clothing they could find. They were fitted with mismatched swords, shields, and ill fitted armor. Many of the soldiers played to the crowd. They banged their weapons against their shields to get more noise out of their audience.
The legion filled the amphitheater. They circled Nikali and shortly were completely filling the stage area. Soon there would be no room for Nikali to continue to lie on the ground.
>
Then the soldiers nearest Nikali picked him up. They hoisted Nikali over their heads.
Nikali basked in the moment as his soldiers held him high in the air above the legion. He began to drift from one hand to the other as the crowd roared with delight at their Emperor. Nikali crowd surfed from one end of the stage to the other and back again, waving at the people in the audience and rallying his troops.
The crowd was more than happy to see a new legion formed in the city, and one that promised to put an end to Eluan’s problems. There would be no more enemies once Farrah was eliminated.
The Eluan Emperor was riding on the shoulders of his people, and secured in the hearts of his believers. Eluan was his and his alone. Quaet could no longer deny that fact.
Chapter 34
The latest meeting of the former Royal Council was due to start over half an hour ago, but several members of the council were absent.
Quaet had sent out word to meet at a small cottage he owned outside of the city. They were far enough away from the palace and the Talons that he felt secure for the moment.
Quaet sat vigilantly in his favorite seat near a window of his home. He could look over the road and the front of his property. He was joined by General Twell, Marais, and Colonel Palin.
“The others still won’t join us?” Quaet asked.
“They want no part in this,” said Marais.
“They are cowards,” said Twell. “They will not stand up to Nikali. They remember how fond Heric is of him. When Heric wakes up they do not want to be seen as enemies of the Caning family.”
“If Heric wakes up,” said Quaet.
All eyes drifted to Quaet in a moment of silence.
“We know nothing of Heric’s condition. He may never wake up,” said Quaet coldly.
“It is our duty to help him,” said Marais.
“Is it?” Quaet asked.
“Careful what you say,” said Palin.
“Why?” asked Quaet. “No, we’ve already decided to go down this road, but how far are you willing to go? It isn’t going to stop at Nikali. Yes, Nikali was out of favor of Heric before Heric went down, but that does not mean he wouldn’t change his mind again.
“Nikali is the Caning family. If we go to war with Nikali we are challenging Heric as well. We need to strike before Heric wakes up. If Heric wakes up then we lose our advantage. We can still sway the rest of the royal class to our side before then.”
“If Heric wakes up then he will take back control of Eluan. Isn’t that what we are fighting for?” Marais asked.
“Heric made several poor decisions in the past year. We could have made a deal with Tcher and avoided the war entirely. He locked away Marina and threw away the key. Our alliance with Louson is all but gone now. Do we really want a leader like that? A man that is so stubborn he will not ask for help even when it is in his people’s best interest.
“I agree,” said General Twell. “I like Heric. I was honored when he chose me to join him in the Royal Council, but he does not listen to us. We were put here for formality, not for the betterment of Eluan. He kept Nikali and his squad a secret for a reason, and now it has backfired. I cannot let that stand.”
“I’m in,” said Colonel Palin. “Nikali needs to be stopped, and Heric will have to follow.”
The three conspirators looked over at Marais. The Eluan scholar appeared deep in thought. He couldn’t look any of the other men in the eye.
“I never agreed with Heric’s vision of the future,” said Marais. “And Nikali’s is only getting darker. I agree it’s time we took back control of Eluan for the better of the people.”
“Good,” said Quaet. “This is good. Eluan can be saved. We need to free Marina. I have spoken with her several times now. She is growing impatient. As we speak she is working on her own escape.”
“Does she have a plan?” General Twell asked.
“Yes,” said Quaet. “And she needs something of us. She wants us to give Heric Tamor Blood.”
“Why?” asked Marais.
“I do not know,” said Quaet. “She would not say. But it is important. If we are in then we have to be all in. If Marina needs us to do something then we do it. Understood?”
“Yes,” said Marais. “I will look into it.”
“Great,” said Quaet. “I believe Marina and Louson can give us the strength we need to get Eluan back up on its feet. But it will take sacrifice.”
“We will need to act quickly. We need an army,” said Twell. “Nikali has left the Capitol with little force left.”
“No army will back us,” said Palin. “Nikali is their emperor.”
“There is one,” said Quaet. “And they’ve been waiting for this opportunity for a long time.”
Chapter 35
The Royal Council member, Henri, was gathering the things he needed for his next visit with Heric coming up. He was in his study collecting a few books that contained papers on treatments for death sleeps. Most of the writings were only for how to care for a patient and stall their inevitable true death. That never stopped Henri from browsing the Eluan library in the hopes of finding more research done on death sleep and hoping to find a solution to waking Heric up. Henri believed in the Caning family and was a full supporter of Heric’s.
Even though Heric’s plans on powering Nikali with arcan to fight for Eluan was misguided Henri could not help but see the boldness in the plan. It was progress that Heric believed in most of all, and that was what kept Henri around.
A knock on the door stopped Henri from finishing his packing. He went to answer the door to find Marais standing at the entrance.
“Henri, I hope I’m not too late,” said Marais. “I know you have a treatment with Heric today. Has that already passed?”
“I was heading to him shortly,” said Henri. “How can I help you?”
“I think I may have found something that can help him,” said Marais. He gestured to come inside. Henri obliged and stepped aside so Marais could enter.
“I had my servants go through my personal library,” said Marais. “They were looking for anything that could help. The Eluan library is extensive, but frankly, mine is a bit better.”
“I see,” said Henri. It was hard to hide his suspicion of the situation. After the meeting with Quaet about challenging Nikali the tension between the Royal Council members was high. Secrets were forming and trust was slowly dissolving.
“I only want to help,” said Marais. “I want Heric back as much as you do. He appointed us. If we can get Heric back then Nikali is no longer our Emperor. I think that is a goal that every one of us, even Nikali, would agree to.”
Henri thought about it for a moment before he spoke. “What did you find?”
“There’s an old book from the northern region near Shiro River. There was an epidemic once. Their people were falling asleep, and never waking up. Eventually they were dying. It’s a very similar case to Heric’s.”
“This sounds of different origins,” said Henri. “The symptoms might look the same, but this could be an entirely different case.”
“It is the same results,” said Marais. “They had a doctor that mixed together a cure. People began to wake up. He documented it all. I have the ingredients.”
Then Marais pulled a small bottle out of his bag. He presented the small elixir to Henri.
“Can I see the papers?” Henri asked.
“Of course,” said Marais. He shuffled through his bag and pulled out a handful of scrolls. “My servants made copies of the reports. You can keep this.”
Henri skimmed through the pages. Most of the writing was about the event itself. The village was almost completely gone by the time the doctor showed up. He was a stranger in the area, but the people welcomed him when he began to wake up the first of his patients. On the last page were the ingredients.
“There are roots from the tamor tree,” said Henri. “It was arcan that woke them up?”
“That was my thought,” said Marais. “We have
n’t gone down that avenue yet. I don’t believe Heric ever did partake in the stuff.”
“We all do a little bit,” said Henri. “The plants grow heavily in several areas where our cattle and flocks feed. And there is enough in the Talons alone to contaminate other sources of food. I’m sure Heric has a little in him already.”
“Then perhaps that is what is keeping him alive,” said Marais. “Maybe he needs a more concentrated dose.”
Henri debated in his head on what to do. The Royal Council needed Heric back, quickly. The treatments so far had done nothing to revive Heric. They were only keeping him alive, but not improving him. Maybe it was time to try something new.
“I think Heric would go for this,” urged Marais. “He was not afraid to use Tamor Blood in the past. He would not be afraid now.”
That was true, Henri thought. Heric believed arcan could be the future. Heric would have tried it if the opportunity presented itself.
“I’ll have a look at it,” said Henri. He took the bottle from Marais. “Thank you. I hope we can begin to mend the tarnished relationship between the council members.”
“That is what I hope as well,” said Marais. “We are divided against Nikali. I understand that. But we cannot let him destroy us. We have to outlast him. On that, many of you are right.”
“I appreciate your help,” said Henri. “Now, I must go. Heric is our only hope, now. Stand tall against Nikali if you must. I will focus on Heric’s health.”
“Very good,” said Marais. Then he moved out of the doorway so Henri could continue on with his day.
Henri bowed his head and left his quarters closing the door behind him. He firmly held Marais’ gift in his grasp. The future of Eluan was in his hands.
Chapter 36
Nikali’s newest decree was announced across the Capitol. Whenever new Tamor Blood was dropped off on the streets the carriage riders and their workers repeated Nikali’s words. Farrah was the enemy and anybody that had contact with her would be seen as an enemy of Eluan as well.
Then Nikali announced his second order of command for his citizens. If any enemies of Eluan were found within the Capitol they were to be brought to the feet of Nikali for their execution.
Eluan Falls: A Whisper of Fate Page 16
