by T J Trapp
“Um … yes,” Alec replied. The rider smiled with pride that she now understood the source of the death rod’s power.
“I suspect that one of the Captain’s men took it as a prize of war,” Erin muttered to Alec. “Or maybe even the Captain himself.”
With no proof, there was nothing they could do, so they moved on towards the border and the Theland garrison. The day was uneventful; they encountered only one messenger heading towards the pass. By midafternoon the next day they reached the garrison. Sargent Urgan greeted them as they arrived. They spent the afternoon briefing the Sergeant, cleaning up equipment, feeding their animals, and tending to the few wounded riders.
The next morning as they were preparing to leave, while they were saying their good-byes to Sargent Urgan a messenger arrived. He had been riding hard through the night.
“A message for the Princess,” he said breathlessly, “from Queen Therin.”
Erin opened the capsule and read the message aloud to Alec.
“‘Greetings, My Daughter. Congratulations on your victory.’ Blah blah blah. Oh – here’s the main part of Mother’s message.
“‘We have received some very distressing news. Our friend and ally, Gott, is under attack by an invading army. There is a War Council of Gott and its allies in the capital city of Gott. The Council will convene at mid-day on Seft the last. I must attend the war council. I am taking Brun, as head of our Council, and two hundred members of my royal guard. I need for you to join us.’
“Seft the last is in four days!” said Erin in dismay. “Can we get to Gott City in time?”
“Not if you go through Theland,” Sergeant Urgan answered. “It is six days if you go down to the Ryn River and then back into Gott. You can only get there in time if you go back up towards Winding Pass, the way you came, and then at the fork, take the other road into the Gott heartland. Even with that, you will have to hurry – but if good fortune and good weather is yours, you should be able to succeed.”
Erin and Alec changed their plans to head back in the direction they had just come. They dispatched a messenger to inform the Queen of their plans.
They had an unremarkable trip over the next three days. They experienced the normal wagon breakdowns and logistic delays but were able to get underway again quickly. As they passed through the towns and villages in the Gott countryside they could feel an underlying tension in the land. It had been a long time since Gott had been at war or fought a significant battle. The mountains ringing their land on three sides protected them; Theland was their ally, the elves never came out of the Elf Mountains, and because generations of anarchy on the Grasslands had left the area without a leader, the only concern from that direction had been occasional marauding bands of nomads or bandits, not armed troops. Now they were facing a dangerous and unknown enemy – an enemy with death rods.
✽✽✽
On the fourth day, Erin halted her group as they arrived at the walls of Gott City, the capital of Gott. Queen Therin had arrived the day before; her camp, with its many tents and pavilions, was already set up. Erin and Alec immediately went to the Queen’s pavilion, with instructions to their party to set up camp alongside the Queen’s camp.
“Mother!” cried Erin, ignoring all formalities and rushing to the Queen.
“Daughter!” the Queen said, hugging Erin. “I am glad you are here.”
“Mother, I can sense that things are not right.”
“You are correct, as always, my Daughter.” She stroked Erin’s hair. “I don’t know all that is happening, but it is not good. It is not good for Gott, and it is not good for Theland.”
“What is the threat to Theland?” asked Erin.
“Things are not good in our land right now,” the Queen answered. “Before we left, in anticipation that this unknown blue-uniformed army might threaten our land, Brun talked the Council into giving him complete control of the country and my government for the duration of the war in Gott, however long it should last.”
“That sounds like a coup,” said Alec, frowning, as he took the Queen’s hand in greeting.
“I do not know your word, dear Son-in-law,” the Queen said, squeezing his hand in return, “but I sense the meaning – and yes, it does. The Council claims it can make extraordinary decisions in times of war. They claim they can take away my power and authority to rule and grant it to the head of the Council. And of course, the Council head is my Consort, dear Brun. All the Councilors respond to Brun’s every desire; he has an uncanny ability to sway them. I am sure that this attempt to usurp my power is all his doing.” The Queen let out an exasperated sigh. “I wish I had never been so stupid as to agree to consort with him, but at the time it looked like the best thing for Theland.”
“Where is Brun?” asked Erin.
“He is at a preliminary gathering that is meeting before the formal War Council convenes,” the Queen answered. “The formal Council starts at mid-day. After the opening ceremonies, the first formal meeting of the heads of the gathered lands is this afternoon, and the final meeting will be in three or four days. Over the next couple of days, all parties will meet in negotiating sessions. The final commitments will be made and sworn to at the final meeting. I fear that Brun intends to abandon Gott as our ally, although he will try to do it cleverly.”
“What do you need from us?” asked Erin.
“Brun said you two are expected at the meeting this afternoon, you as the Princess and your Consort as a member of the Council. He feels that your riders should be integrated with the riders of my royal guard.
“The royal guard will support me. That is probably the only reason that Brun hasn’t taken complete control – they are loyal to me and our line. But – beware. Brun brought about twenty of his men. I don’t like their looks.”
Erin looked at her mother, searching her eyes.
“Mother, has Brun mistreated you on this trip?” she asked softly.
“Goodness no!” said the Queen. “We lead our separate lives. We travel in our separate wagons. He isn’t interested in me.” She paused. “So that you know, he has brought two little maids who attend to his every need and do whatever he wants.”
“How can we help you?” asked Alec.
Queen Therin smiled at him weakly. “You are a loyal and good son-in-law, and a steadfast Consort for my daughter. You two have already helped me, merely by being here. And now I again must warn you: beware. Beware of Brun. He may be more dangerous than any other foe you will meet.”.
19 – Treachery
That afternoon Alec found himself alongside Erin in the first of the War Council meetings, which seemed to consist of long and boring introductions. Worse than meeting with the Chancellor’s Office back at the Institute, Alec thought to himself. Erin had warned him that Gott was much more formal then Theland. Bowing, formal introductions, and lots of flourishes were expected.
A formal reception was planned for the evening. Prior to their arrival, Captain Levor had sent to his superiors in Gott City a detailed accounting of the events at the pass – Alec and Erin were now minor celebrities and would probably be the center of attention at the reception.
Erin tried to describe the Gott protocol to Alec; there seemed to be a lot of rules, including small details as to how to position one’s hands or point one’s feet.
“Why can’t I just let you cue me on what to do?” he asked.
“Because we will be on different sides of the room. The men will be on one side and the women on the other side. We women are expected to parade around and strut. Most of the women – except for Mother, of course – have little to do with affairs of business or government, so we are for decoration and shown off like expensive cattle.” She wrinkled her nose and sniffed.
Alec could tell that Erin wasn’t happy with the Gott social structure, but it wasn’t her land and not a problem she could fix. After that he tried harder to learn Gott protocol and when to bow and how deeply and how often.
“But what if I do someth
ing wrong?” he fretted. “Will that be an embarrassment to your Mother?”
“If you know you made a mistake, just apologize and claim it was a ‘newcomer mistake.’ Your reputation from the Battle at Winding Pass – and as a Great Wizard – will keep anyone from seriously challenging your manners. Or lack of them.”
✽✽✽
The Queen, her consort Brun, Erin, and Alec rode together in the Queen’s wagon to attend the evening reception at the Gott palace, accompanied by the Queen’s personal guard, her lead rider Ferd. Most of the Gott dignitaries had elegant carriages; even some of the outsiders had brought (or rented) formal carriages. The Theland wagon looked second-rate in comparison. Brun was clearly upset over this.
“We are good as any of these others! Why don’t we look as good as them?” he grumbled.
They entered the palace reception hall and the formal introductions started. Gott was a much larger country than Theland and often held formal events. The palace hall was decorated with artwork, statues, fine objects, and fresh flowers and herbs, all beautifully displayed and lit with the glow of thousands of candles. In one corner some musicians played; it was oddly haunting music on instruments that Alec had never seen before. Apparently dancing was unknown here, but the music had a strange beat and would have been difficult to dance to, Alec decided.
After the Gott doorman ushered them in, a uniformed butler formally and loudly presented them to the assemblage. “Her majesty, Queen Therin of Theland! And her royal and most esteemed Consort, Brun!” There was a round of polite applause, and then Erin and Alec were introduced, both with their official Theland titles and as “the Heroes of the recent Battle at Winding Pass!” Alec noted that this round of applause seemed more sincere. Then Alec and Brun were ushered to the men’s side of the reception hall and Erin and the Queen to the gaggle of ladies on the other side.
As he knew no one and had nothing to discuss, Alec stood quietly against the wall in the back of the men’s area and observed the people. The men were all a similar age – there were no elderly men and no young men – and were dressed in similar fashion, although the officials from Gott tended to have sashes and ribbons and medals over their robes or tunics and some wore soft hats. The officials from the various realms gathered in small knots making polite conversation, and, Alec suspected, sizing up each other. Brun immediately started working the crowd, moving from one group of men to another, paying no attention to Alec. He was soon lost to view.
Across the large hall, Alec could see Erin and the Queen amid the other women. The Queen knew many of the noble women of Gott and the other realms and was introducing Erin to them as her Princess and heir. Most of the other women were dressed in fabulous gowns of fine fabrics, designed with ruffles, flounces, ribbons, slits and low necklines, all designed to show off their best features. As in Theland, the young women seemed quite plump to Alec, with pronounced rounded bosoms and backsides, and moved in a stilted, halting way. Rather like a hobbled horse, thought Alec. He noticed that a few wore decorative mitts over their hands, and one walked with a very decided limp.
Queen Therin was dressed in elegant fashion, with a regal silver robe flowing from her shoulders – Alec was sure that Brun had insisted that she represent them well, and the Queen was a striking woman for her age. Erin was outfitted in a much simpler dress, since she hadn’t planned on a formal event this trip – a long gown of pale peach, with draped bell-like sleeves. Alec noticed that some of the serving girls wore fancier dresses than Erin, but he thought she was the most beautiful of any of them. He never tired of watching her as she moved through the throng of fawning women, her natural cat-like grace in contrast to their measured steps.
✽✽✽
The night wore on. It was late in the evening and Alec found himself in one of the never-ending receiving lines that seemed to characterize Gott affairs. After greeting several dignitaries with unpronounceable names, he reached to shake the outstretched of the next person, a short dark-haired man, when he suddenly sensed Erin shout in his mind.
Danger! Watch out!
His instincts took over and he reared back, twisting away from the receiving line. He saw the concealed knife in the short man’s hand dart towards him. He tried to pull away, but the man was holding his other hand tightly – his reflexive motion was enough to change the knife’s path but not enough to stop it. The knife sliced through his shirt and along the side of his ribs. Without Erin’s warning it would have pierced his heart. Alec pulled away and felt everything going black.
This is more than a knife wound. Have I been poisoned? he thought. He reached for his medallion but was losing consciousness too quickly to focus. He fell to the floor with a thud.
The stranger pulled back and started to run.
“Assassin!” someone shouted. The crowd closed in on the short man. He looked around, pulled out his knife, and sliced deep into his own arm. He collapsed and almost immediately started convulsing.
✽✽✽
Ever alert at a gathering such as this, Erin sensed the malevolent intentions of the assassin an instant before his knife struck. With all her mental strength, she sent out an urgent thought to Alec even before she sensed where the danger might be.
Then as she turned in his direction, she saw Alec collapse and felt his mind go black. Immediately a cluster of men surrounded Alec and his assailant, either from curiosity or in assistance; she couldn’t tell which. Erin pushed her way through the crowded hall towards Alec. Women she could easily shove out of the way but the men did not readily step aside for her, and some clucked that she should go back to her place with the other women. Finally she was close enough to see that both Alec and the short man were turning white from lack of blood, and convulsing.
“Get help!” she screamed. She could see Ferd rushing forward from the servants’ area, some distance away; too far away to be of immediate help. A couple of men stepped away – to find help? – and she dropped down to her knees alongside Alec’s body, which was still wracked by spasmodic jerks from the convulsions.
“Alec,” she moaned. “My Dear Consort!” She could tell he was slipping away. As his convulsions stopped she reached inside his torn, blood-soaked shirt to reach for his medallion to see if she could feel any dark energy. Erin couldn’t grasp dark energy like Alec could, but she did feel a little bit as she touched the medallion. She tuned out the voices and music and movements of the Gott guests milling about and, focusing best she could, fed dark energy into Alec, like she had seen him do with her and her mother. She knew that Alec could reach a flood of energy and overpower things, where she could reach only a little energy, but maybe it would be enough. She lay both of her hands on his chest, his red blood seeping into the delicate peach sleeves of her dress.
Slowly she could feel her attempts to feed dark energy into his now-still form working, but only weakly. She could sense she wasn’t helping enough – her limited ability wasn’t turning the poison around. She tried harder, but she couldn’t reach any more energy. Alec was fading fast. Behind her she could feel the assassin’s life-force ebb from his body, then felt him die – just as Alec would unless the dark energy took hold.
No Alec! Don’t be next! Erin knew that she was slowing the rate at which Alec was fading, but she wasn’t succeeding in overcoming the effects of the stabbing and the poison. There had to be something she could do.
Watching Alec over the past few months, with her finely-tuned senses she had always felt that he was wasting a lot of his dark energy in useless swirls and eddies. That worked for Alec because he could find so much energy, but it wasn’t working for her because her ability to pull dark energy was not as strong as his. In her mind she felt a wrongness in what she was doing. Could she focus her power on sensing this misdirected flow, and redirect the dark energy in the right way? She tried to move her focus on the energy and the wrongness increased; then she tried to change it differently and the wrongness decreased. She kept trying until she reduced as much of the wrongness a
s she could, making best use of the energy she could control. Finally, she could see that Alec had stabilized and didn’t appear to be declining anymore.
Three people with a stretcher eventually arrived.
“We have lots of stretchers available for these events,” one of the porters said to the throng of men near Alec. “There is always some royal getting drunk and passing out.” They put the stretcher alongside Alec and Erin helped move him onto it. As they stood with his still body on the stretcher, the porters tried to push her out of the way, but Erin refused to let go.
Then she was aware of the bulky figure of her step-father, Brun, stepping forward and peering at Alec’s ashen face.
“Let her go with you,” said Brun to the porters. “She might as well use the night to mourn him.” He chuckled. “No one survives blue thorn poison. Take him to the morgue and she can watch him die if she wants.”
Blue thorn poison? Erin thought. Then Alec was poisoned, and Brun knows it.
Erin went with the porters, holding Alec’s hand all the while. They took Alec to the morgue, a nearby stone structure with small slit-like windows, and laid him on a stone slab. Then they left, and Erin was alone with Alec in the dark room, lit only by the faint light of a waning moon and a few stars shining through the cold night sky, tracing the edges of the narrow windows.
Alec. My Alec. My Great Warrior. Erin could feel that he wasn’t getting any worse. As the night wore on she kept trying to reduce the wrongness with the little energy she could impart. She could sense the fog slowly clear from his being, and late in the night she felt his mind had cleared enough that she could communicate with him.
Alec, my love, you are poisoned. She let this sink into his consciousness. I am barely able to keep you alive. I need you to find your focus and pull enough energy so that we can beat this. Responding faintly to her summons, Alec tried, and failed. Rest a bit, my Dear Wizard, and then try again. For the next hour, as his mind cleared, Alec kept trying and finally found a little energy. It coursed out in his usual undirected stream.
