Aram stopped him. "Are there any rules about who you pick for the preliminaries?" Victor shook his head no. "Then may I suggest you choose his two lackeys and one first year? The first year shouldn’t pose a problem and his lackeys wouldn’t dare beat him."
Victor chuckled. "It would seem young Rix isn’t the only devious mind in the family."
Rix laughed. "That’s not devious, it’s a cheap shot. But I do like it."
Aram stood up. "Well, I guess I will get ready for my trip into Warrington. I will see you all tomorrow."
Rix stood and slapped him on the back. "Yeah, we need to make our preparations for this evening’s little jaunt." Aram just looked at him and smiled.
Tollis threw a questioning glance to his father, who nodded. "Make that the three of us."
Dimsey laughed out loud. "Alas, poor Warrington, she shall surely never be the same."
Tollis, Rix and Aram decided they would spend the night in town. After all, Victor had paid for his room for two more nights. They borrowed two horses from the Order for Aram and Rix, while Tollis rode his own. There was only one road up to the compound that sat upon the cliffs above Warrington. The road wasn’t paved, but was old and well worn for easy travel. Due to the several switchbacks carved into the cliff face, the grade wasn’t too steep. This made it easier for heavy wagons to be taken up to the compound. It also made for a great defensive position. You could hold this road against an army with very few men.
Rix suddenly had a thought as they wound themselves down the cliff face. "So, just exactly how did you get into Warrington the other night? When I was looking for you I checked the stables and the stable hand had said Victor left with three horses that morning, then when he returned, you, Arlaina and Dimsey were with him."
Aram laughed. "You wouldn’t believe me if I told you." Rix looked at him with a 'try me' stare. So Aram simply said. "I flew."
They rode for a few more minutes until Rix finally said. "You're right, I don’t believe you."
They had just reached the bottom of the cliff when Tollis pointed into the distance. "It looks like there is something going on in the center of town."
They could see there was a large crowd that had gathered there, but at this distance that’s all they could tell. They spurred their horses into a gallop. As they raced closer to the edge of the crowd Rix looked at Aram. "You may want to pull up your hood, Aramis." Aram nodded and pulled the hood of his cloak over his head, hiding his features in the shadows.
They approached the edge of the crowd and from horseback could see over the people’s heads. There in the center of town was a wagon with a large strongbox attached to it. There was a fat man in fine robes taking money from people, writing their names and amounts in a ledger, then dropping the money into the strongbox. Aram got the attention of one of the men at the edge of the crowd. "Excuse me, what is going on?"
The man spat on the ground. "The king has sent his tax collectors early. Seems he don’t like the idea of someone claiming to be the ghost of Aramis. So he is going to squeeze us dry until we give him up."
Aram nodded. "I see, so the town has a crew assigned to finding this perpetrator?"
The man chuckled. "Nope, they believe he will return and put a stop to this. I’m not sure if he will or not, but I am sure that any man with the brass to kill two of those thugs deserves my loyalty, even if it does cost me a few extra coppers."
Aram nodded his thanks to the man and led his companions to the stables of the inn where they would stay for the night. Rix handed his reins to the stable boy and turned to Aram. "I counted ten guardsmen and the fat guy--ten to three. They don’t have a chance; let’s just go kill them and be done with it."Aram looked to Tollis. "Did you recognize any of those men to be loyal to your father?"
Tollis shook his head. "No, father’s men wear a braided rope on their left shoulder, under the guise of a badge of merit. Besides, those men were all wearing the red cloaks of the Royal house guard."
Aram smiled. "Good, Rix’s plan it is. But I don’t want to start a brawl in the middle of all these people. Here’s the plan . . ."
Rix sat atop a low wall watching the progress of his companions as they each made their way to opposite sides of the guardsmen’s positions. Once they were in place, they both waved to him. Rix pulled the hood of his cloak as far over his head as he could manage and stood on the wall. Spreading his arms out wide, he yelled, "I am the ghost of Aramis Blackenwood! People, hear my words!" The crowd turned as one while the guardsmen started pushing their way towards Rix. In all the commotion, Aram and Tollis crept in behind the two furthest guardsmen from Rix and quickly laid them low, then moved up to the next.
Rix was in his groove, spouting insults about the king and the speculation that the king’s mother preferred farm animals over his father’s touch. Aram was too busy to let it distract him, although he did chuckle to himself at one point.
From his vantage point, Rix was amazed at the efficient deadliness of his two friends and quickly thought to himself he had chosen his friends well. The only guardsman to make it to him alive was the captain.
The captain pointed his sword at Rix. "You are under arrest! I am taking you back to the castle, where you can answer directly to the king for your crimes!"
Rix laughed. "You are going to take me in all by yourself? Bold words captain." Rix pulled his hood off his head and shrugged.
The captain sputtered. "You’re not the ghost of Aramis!"
Someone tapped him on the shoulder and he turned to stand face to face with Aram. Aram smiled, this was the same captain he had beaten in the alley. "Miss me?" The captain raised his sword but his wrist was suddenly in a strong grip and a dagger slid up against the flesh of his throat.
Aram shook his head in disappointment. "It would seem you and your king cannot take a hint. So I will make it plain and simple, so that even you will understand. The town of Warrington and its people are no longer fodder for the king’s treasury. You will ride out of here and relay that message to your king. Tell him I said his time on my throne is coming to an end. Oh and one more thing. Should you return to Warrington, I will need to find a new messenger."
With that, Aram turned and walked towards the wagon and the fat man the town’s people had surrounded. Tollis grabbed the sword out of the captain’s hand, kicked him in the rump hard enough to leave him sprawled in the dirt and melted into the crowd.
Aram leaped to the top of the wagon. "Good people of Warrington, I have good news and bad. The bad news is there will be strife before this is done and I sincerely apologize in advance for any hardships that are sure to come. Know in your hearts that what I do is ultimately for the good of you all. The gold in this coffer upon which I stand belongs to all of you. We shall use the ledger and return to each person that which has been stolen. There will be no more of the false king’s taxes levied against you.
However, retaking a throne will require men and these men will need food and wages. I will not demand of you that you meet these needs. But I will ask you to do what you can to help me help you. Any coin or food that can be collected, I ask that it be taken to the Order, where it can be put to use to bring the rightful ruler back into power. This leads me to my good news." Aram waited for the crowd to build their expectations.
Finally he started hearing shouts. "Tell us, King Aramis, what is this good news?"
Aram threw his head back and shouted, "Queen Mayla Blackenwood lives!"
The crowd went wild! There were shouts praising the gods, hats thrown into the air, smiles and hugs throughout the crowd. A slightly plump man, with a balding head, stepped up onto the wagon. He stood above the crowd, yet still below Aram who was atop the chest and bowed to Aram. Then he turned to the crowd and started yelling for order. The crowd slowly settled down.
The man turned back to Aram. "I am Mayor Frank Elding. I ask you to take what is in these coffers to help start in your efforts. I cannot speak for everyone, but I can assure you there will be food for your
army, as well as more coin than this, brought to the Order as soon as possible. Give to me the ledger and any citizen who comes to me and asks for their coin to be returned will be paid from the town treasury. Our coffers aren’t over flowing, but I have a feeling there will be very few that come to me." Again a cheer went up. The Mayor looked up at Aram, trying to peer inside his hood. "If I may ask, my lord, who are you?"
Aram threw back his hood and there was a gasp across the crowd. Many of the older people yelled, "It is King Aramis himself!" Then they went to a knee. The Mayor’s eyes opened so wide Aram was afraid they would roll out of his head.
"I am not King Aramis, but I am truly his ghost in the sense that his legacy carries on through me. I am his son, Aram Blackenwood and I have come to tell you your true queen still lives. Mayla Blackenwood shall reclaim her throne with the help and support of good people like you." Aram looked around and noticed many people still kneeling before him. "Rise, good people of Warrington, for I am not your king, merely your humble servant. Save your fealty for my mother."
The crowd cheered as they all stood. The Mayor wrung his hands nervously. "Prince Blackenwood; if I may, will we be able to see your mother for ourselves?"
Aram nodded. "However, I cannot say when and where in advance, else our enemies will lie in wait. Rest assured, good Mayor, your doubts will be forgotten soon."
As Aram pried the ledger from the hands of the fat accountant, he noticed many people walking past the wagon, tossing coins inside. It seemed the Mayor’s assessment of his people’s desires were well founded. Aram pushed the fat man out into the arms of the crowd. "This man must answer to you. Treat him as fairly as he has treated you." The last look Aram saw on the man’s face was sheer terror; he obviously knew he had a lot to answer for.
Aram pulled the Mayor off to the side. "Find yourself ten men you trust completely and drive this wagon to the Order. Once there, ask to speak to Master Camen. Tell him Aram asked if you could meet his guest."
The Mayor nodded and bowed several times as he backed away. Tollis walked up close to Aram. "Do you think he can be trusted?"
Aram watched the Mayor walk through the crowd selecting people. "That’s what I intend to find out. What I do trust, is that between Victor, Arlaina, Dimsey and your father, I need not fear any ten men will be a threat to my mother. I do have a good feeling about him, though. I could tell in the way he looked at me that he knew my father; not just that he was king, but knew him personally. Let’s find Rix and get to the inn; I’m starving."
Tollis clapped him on the back. "You are a man after my own heart!"
They found Rix regaling a small crowd of people with how he was related to the one-day-king Aram and how favors today could mean favors returned on a later day. Tollis leaned close to Aram. "You will have to watch that one closer than you watch the Mayor, it would seem."
They both laughed out loud at that remark. Rix looked up at them, shrugged and hopped down off the wall. He walked over like nothing was out of the ordinary. Aram had to chuckle to himself at that thought, because when Rix was involved, nothing could be called 'out of the ordinary'.
They made their way out of the crowd slowly, as many people wanted to tell Aram how they had prayed for this day and how awful King Langstam treated his people. A lot of the older people just wanted a closer look at him. They looked into his eyes, nodded to themselves and went on their way.
Aram leaned towards his friends and whispered. "This is kind of creepy, I feel like I’m on display or something."
Rix was grinning from ear to ear. "Are you kidding me? These people would eat right out of your muddy hand! I bet we could do anything we wanted in this town and get away with it! King Langstam must be as big of a goat turd as his son!"
It had taken a couple of hours to escape the crowd. The sun was just about to lose its battle for domination of the sky when they entered the inn. The proprietor met them at the door, wringing a bar rag in his shaking hands. "Excuse me, mi lords; I have a private room set up for you with food and friends waiting. If you would all be so kind as to follow me?"
Aram looked to the others, who both just shrugged. Aram looked back at the proprietor and held out a hand, saying, "After you."
They were led to the same room where Aram had sat with Victor, Arlaina and Dimsey. There were two men in the room; one Aram recognized right away as the captain of the royal guard. The other, was a man he had never met.
Tollis drew both daggers, but Aram held him in check. The man was sitting at the table with a large meal spread before him. The captain stood against the far wall, looking for all the world as if he would rather be anywhere else. The man at the table looked to be in his later thirties or early forties. He was wearing fine silk clothes and had a well kept goatee.
He spread his hands out to display the feast and several rings glittered on each hand. "Please, sit and let us speak as civilized men."
Aram sat across from the man while Tollis remained vigilant behind him. Rix, on the other hand, clapped his hands together and rubbed them with a look of joy on his face. "You don’t have to invite me twice." Then he began loading up a plate with assorted food.
"Rix," Aram warned. "You would accept food from the enemy so readily?"
The man smiled. "You have mistaken me, Master Aram. I am not your enemy. My name is Yantis and I merely want to talk with you."
Aram looked doubtfully at the captain. "You keep odd company for an ally."
Yantis just smiled. "Again you misunderstand. I caught this idiot fleeing the town in terror. He was only here answering some questions."
Aram thought for a moment. "So what business do you have with me and this town and what hold have you over our friend the Captain there?"
The room was starting to darken as the sun lost its battle fully. Yantis waved a bejeweled hand and all the candles on the table lit of their own accord. Rix, who had taken Yantis at his word and was eating in earnest, let some food escape his mouth as his jaw dropped open. "You’re a mage! That is flaming awesome! Do it again!" Then he promptly blew out the nearest candle. Yantis chuckled and waved his hand again.
Aram’s eyes came back into focus before Yantis turned his attention from the excited Rix. Aram asked, "So you have come to do parlor tricks? Why?"
Rix spoke around a mouthful of hot potato. "Ease up, Aram, he is a mage; if he meant us harm he would have blasted us as soon as we walked in."
Yantis shrugged. Noticing Tollis’ careful watch on the captain, he said. "Captain, I believe Master Aram has sent you on a task. You should probably get to it before his giant friend here rips you to pieces." The captain eased his way towards the door. "One more thing captain, the spell I put upon you will burn you to a crisp should you ever set foot in Warrington after tonight." The blood drained from the captain’s face and he turned and bolted for the door.
Yantis looked at Tollis. "Can you relax a little now and put away those daggers?" Tollis looked to Aram and he nodded. Tollis sheathed his daggers and took a seat opposite Rix. "There now, isn’t this better? Please, eat and let us get to know one another."
Yantis started filling himself a plate, so Aram and Tollis shrugged and followed suit. Aram looked up at Yantis. "So who are you, where are you from and why are you here waiting for me?"
Yantis smiled and quickly finished chewing. "All valid questions that I fully intend to answer, after I have had a decent meal. I have been on the road for weeks and travel rations are for men made of stronger stuff than I."
Tollis nodded. "They truly are disgusting until you get hungry enough." They all ate with gusto in relative silence. Once they had their fill, they pushed away their plates and leaned back in their chairs.
Aram was the first one finished, followed by Rix, then Tollis and finally, Yantis leaned back. "Well now, that is better and well worth the wait. So where were we? Ahhh yes, who am I?
As I have already told you, my name is Yantis and I am from the Isle of Ilsador. The final question as I recall, w
as why was I waiting for you? That is both simple and complicated at the same time.
I was commissioned by the queen to find her husband’s murderer. I used every skill I had, but failed. For five years I searched. When I finally gave up, I tried to find the queen to report my failure." He chuckled at this. "It seems I even failed in finding her. Ashamed of myself, I returned to Ilsador to continue my training in the magical arts. I had left provisions in place should any news of the queen or King Aramis arise. I received word that King Aramis’ ghost was walking the streets of Warrington and I thought, 'who better to tell me the truth than the ghost of the man himself?' Alas, here I am. Now I believe it is my turn to ask a question. Why are they calling you the ghost of Aramis?"
Aram considered his words for a few moments. "I suppose you have a means of verifying your story?"
Yantis smiled. "Only this." He pulled one of the rings off of a finger and tossed it to Aram. Aram caught the ring deftly and looked it over. It held no meaning that he could identify. He passed it to Tollis.
Tollis’ eyes went wide and he stood up so fast his chair crashed against the wall. "Where did you get this?" He demanded.
Yantis held his hands out before him. "As I said. I was commissioned by the queen. That is the ring she gave to me as payment. I have kept it all this time so I may return it to her, since I failed the task she assigned me."
Aram looked at Tollis with confusion on his face. Tollis held up the ring. "This is a house ring of Blackenwood. Not just any Blackenwood, but King Aramis’ ring."
Rix leaned forward in his chair. "Ring? Who gives a rip about a ring? Master Yantis, take me as your apprentice. I would make a fine mage, if I say so myself."
Yantis looked at him like he was a curious bug. He stood up, walked over to Rix and placed his forefingers to Rix’s temples. He stood that way for a few moments and then opened his eyes with a surprised expression. "Most astounding--Rix, is it?" Rix nodded. "It would seem you do have a rather large capacity for magic, but I fear you lack the focus required for becoming a mage."
The Trials (Assassin's Intent Book 1) Page 8
