The Dread King: Book One of The Larken Chronicles
Page 32
Finally, Gahen came over to where he sat. An excited grin was on his face. Kneeling with a flourish near Larken, Gahen presented his Blade horizontally to Larken, and said, “My sire.” The other Warders did likewise.
Larken and Melona exchanged puzzled looks.
“What?” asked Larken.
“My sire,” said Gahen, grinning. “King Andreas has abdicated the throne. The council has elected you as king.”
“What?” exploded Larken. “I can’t be king.”
“Not only can you,” replied Gahen, “you are. You can abdicate, but you’re now the king, and you can’t abdicate until you talk to the Council. You’re it, kid.”
“Larken, this is wonderful,” exclaimed Melona.
“No, not wonderful,” sighed Larken. “Just a necessity. Did Jaris resign as well?”
“Yeah,” said Gahen. “But you can request him to stay. He’s still your best bet.”
“Nope,” said Larken. “You’re my best bet. Gahen, you’re now Commander of the Shropanshire forces.”
Gahen nodded. “I expected that. I’ll do what I can to serve you well, sire.”
“You won’t serve me, Gahen. You’ll serve Shropanshire. Don’t forget that, and don’t ever call me ‘sire’ in private. I’ll need you to keep me sane and centered.”
“You got it, kid,” Gahen answered. “And, by the way, Melona, you’ve been selected as the leader of the Healers. Amanda has also abdicated.”
“Oh, my,” said Melona. Then smiling at Gahen, she added, “That means, Gahen, we’ve got Larken bracketed. I think we can keep him under control.”
“Right,” said Gahen, grinning at the thought.
But Larken wasn’t smiling. He had closed his eyes, and his insides were clenched in fear. He wondered if the dark laughter in his head was just from his memories or something more.
Chapter 25: Watchfulness
Darkness shrouded the mountains. High on the highest peak, in a cleared space in the snow, sat twenty Elves. One came to join them in meld that was gently stronger than all combined.
“He is not the danger; his future is the danger. We will watch and wait. We will guide. We will act only if we need to. His darkness may grow; it may not grow. We will watch.”
The meld dissolved.
* * * * *
At this temperature, the fire was no longer red; it was blue. The forge itself was red, and, in a few places, white. Sweat poured down the smith’s face. His eyes, staring directly into the inferno, were glazed with searing pain.
“We will keep watch,” came from the flames.
“I will wait,” answered the smith. Not a muscle moved. The message was willed, not thought. “Will we have to act? He is one of mine.”
“Not yet. Wait.”
“Can we break him?”
“Uncertain. His Talent is powerful beyond what we have seen. We may have to weaken him first. We will watch.”
“I will wait,” concluded the smith as he drew back from the openness of the forge. With a nod to his wife, who was pumping the bellows, he turned and went into his study.
“Well?” asked his wife, appearing at the door with a flagon of ale for him.
“We will wait,” he said.
“Will the Flame have to reveal itself?” she asked.
“No. The Flame is powerful enough to hide itself even in action. Those who tinker with Talent usually cannot see Flame.”
“What a strange thing to say. If our new king heard you call it ‘tinkering with Talent,’ he would be offended.”
The smith chuckled deeply and slowly. “I think that he would be offended by any number of things that I have said, but it is true. Talent cannot hold a candle to Flame. That is why only a very few hold the Flame, and why we must keep it hidden. It is our last defense, but it will always be.”
“But he is stronger than he was before. He is stronger now than any who hold Flame,” she said.
“That is true, but he can be weakened,” he replied.
“Good,” she said, sitting down with him. “Then we will wait.”
The End
Larken's story will continue in the second book of The Larken Chronicles series, The Flame King.
Glossary
Characters
Aletha: Queen of the Elves.
Algar: First among the Elven Council.
Algowinon: An Elf.
Amanda: First Healer, i.e., leader of the Healers.
Andreas: Shropanshire’s king.
Daniel: A Warder. Brother of Joseph.
Dionne: A Healer.
Dirkston: A member of the High Council; a spy for the Dread King.
Doron: A Grealand Warder, leader of the Grealand advance force.
Dread King: Fabled king who lost the Dread Wars but rose again to threaten the three kingdoms. AKA the Dark King, the Hidden King, the Dark One.
Dwayne: A page in Sarkis.
Eleas: An Elf, the brother of Elerdan.
Elena: King Andreas’ wife and Queen of Shropanshire.
Elerdan: An Elf, the brother of Eleas.
Frederick: King of Norland.
Gahen: Warder of the 2nd rank, Taz’s husband.
Estron: Grealand Commander.
Glendra: Larken’s mother.
Glenera: One of the Elves of the Elven Council.
Henkri: The former king of Shropanshire and the current First Chair of Shropanshire’s Council.
Ilona: A Healer.
Jakard: A Warder.
Janné: A 16-year-old girl in Ox Run found to have Talent.
Jaris: Lincoln Jaris (“Link”): Commander of the Shropanshire Warders.
Joseph: A Warder. Brother of Daniel.
Larken: Main character of the Larken Chronicles. An orphan.
Leona: A Healer and Larken’s counselor.
Melona: Larken’s best friend and, later, wife.
Quinon: A refugee, formerly of Milltown in Norland.
Sam: Larken’s personal assistant.
Samuel: The engineer for the Gaptown region.
Smith: A blacksmith.
Soran: Commander of Norland forces.
Taz: Tazmarta, A Healer, Gahen’s wife.
Thaddeus: A Warder of Norland, leader of the Norland advance force.
Tragen: Warder of the Second Rank with telepathic ability.
Trent: A Warder.
Places and Organizations (see map)
Alliance: See the Three Kingdoms Alliance.
Driskan Mountains: mountains to the east of the Seagrave Desert.
Elven Council: The ruling body of the Elves subject only to their Queen.
Gaptown: Town at the intersection of the Travelers Road and the Elkhorn River.
Grealand: The Southern Kingdom. See “Three Kingdoms.” Grealand’s commander is Estron.
High Council: Ruling body of the Shropanshire consisting of the king, former kings, upper level Warders and Healers, and various other officials. The High Council can recommend action or decisions to the king, but the king has the final authority.
Milltown: A small village in Norland.
Norland: The Northern Kingdom. See “Three Kingdoms.” Norland’s king is Frederick. Its commander is Soran.
Ox Run: Larken’s and Melona’s home village.
Ox Tale: The Ox Run’s trade store owned by Melona’s parents.
Sarkan Mountains: Mountain range on the east side of Shropanshire, Grealand, and Norland. West boundary of the Seagrave Desert.
Seagrave Desert: Desert to the east of the Sarkan Mountains.
Shropanshire: The middle kingdom between Norland and Grealand. See “Three Kingdoms.” Shropanshire’s king is Andreas.
Three Kingdoms: Norland, Shropanshire, and Grealand.
Three Kingdoms Alliance: A military alliance formed by the three kingdoms to fight the Dread King.
Travelers Road: Road from Strollie in Norland to Calles in Grealand.
Concepts
Bonding: Creation of a Talent-driven dedicat
ion and link to the king and kingdom through Crystal or Blade. Bonding changes quartz and steel to Crystal and Blade.
First Chair: Leader of the High Council. In The Dread King, Henkri is the first chair of the Shropanshire High Council. By tradition, a king becomes the first chair of the High Council when he abdicates.
First Healer: Leader of the Healers. Usually the strongest Talented Healer. Amanda for Shropanshire.
Flame: A psychic ability to burn objects or people. It has a different source than Talent.
Healing Talent: The psychic ability to speed physical or emotional healing.
Healer: A member of the medical organization of one of the three kingdoms, who has Healing Talent.
High Council: The High Council of Shropanshire functions like the United States’ Congress, but on a much smaller scale and with much more efficiency. The king can always overrule the High Council, but rarely does so. The Elves also have a similar High Council. However, the Elves have a queen instead of a king.
Mind Lance: A weapon devised by the Dread King which combines the Talents of a Healer and a Warder in a psychic attack resulting in death, unconsciousness, or mental disability.
(the) Source: The origin of all Talents.
Talent: A psychic ability.
Telepathy: The psychic ability to read or send thoughts to others.
Warder: A member of one of the three kingdoms’ armed forces who has Warding Talent.
Warding Talent: The psychic ability to push others away or to confuse and discourage others.
Veil: The psychic ability to convince others that they do not see you.
About The Series
The Larken Chronicles will continue in the second book of the series, The Flame King in which Larken and the three kingdoms face new challenges. The Flame King will be available late in 2017 or early in 2018.
The third book of the series will be The Hidden King. It will be available in late 2018 or early 2019.
If you have enjoyed The Dread King, go to www.RLPoston.com for news of The Flame King and subsequent books. While you are there, sign up for monthly updates on the progress of R. L.’s next book.
R. L. can be contacted at RL@RLPoston.com or through www.RLPoston.com.
If you like fantasy books, please check out Craig A Price, Jr.’s website at www.craigaprice.com. Craig gave me invaluable assistance in publishing The Dread King. A list of Craig’s books can be found quickly at www.craigaprice.com/novels.html.
About the Author
R. L. Poston lives with his wonderful wife in Mobile, Alabama. Previously, he has lived in South and North Carolina, Illinois, New Jersey, and Virginia.
R. L.'s background includes education and work in the fields of biology, biblical studies, telecommunications, business, and finance. He enjoys writing, reading, fishing, and woodcarving.
Contact R. L. at at RL@RLPoston.com or through www.RLPoston.com.
Table of Contents
Chapter 1: Larken, Melona, Crystal, And Blade
Chapter 2: Leaving Ox Run
Chapter 3: Sarkis—Blade & Crystal
Chapter 4: Training
Chapter 5: Melona’s Bonding
Chapter 6: Audience with the King
Chapter 7: Elven Training
Chapter 8: Larken’s Bonding
Chapter 9: The Aftermath
Chapter 10: Larken’s Missions
Chapter 11: A Matter of Priorities
Chapter 12: Strange Request from the Elves
Chapter 13: The Elven Fellowship
Chapter 14 The Invasion
Chapter 15: Wedding
Chapter 16: Weather and Spies
Chapter 17: Desert Campaign
Chapter 18: Battle
Chapter 19: Preparation
Chapter 20: Reconnaissance
Chapter 21: Skirmishes
Chapter 22: The Final Battle: The Beginning
Chapter 23 The Final Battle
Chapter 24: Homecoming
Chapter 25: Watchfulness
Glossary
Characters
Places and Organizations (see map)
Concepts
About The Series
About the Author