Arrival

by William Dickey

“Something we can use?” repeated Lilith.

  “It’s all on the hard drive,” said Morrigan. “I have to get back. I’ve already been gone too long.”

  Morrigan took a few steps away before a beam of light came down and took her away. Lilith carefully stashed the hard drive and started back down the mountain. She had her mission.

  Chapter 32: Panic

  Archlord Quewel paced the floor of the great hall nervously. A week had passed since he’d witnessed that horrendous battle. After the slaughter of most of the Northern forces, Quewel ordered a strict embargo on all information related to the incident. If word got out there’d be a panic and it was clear what the results would be. Rioting, looting, and a mass exodus as people abandoned Crystalpeak in droves and after standing a thousand years, a great city would fall. And while all that was true, Quewel didn’t keep the defeat secret for those reasons. He was worried that when people learned of it they would rise up and lynch him. Quewel didn’t cause the end of their world, but he oversaw it. Fortunately, the only ones who saw the outcome were his closest most trusted advisors, all of whom were in the same boat.

  At this moment, Quewel was waiting for Sagemeister Parcelles to arrive. He’d just received a message from the Sagemeister that the king finally had a response. Messages by foot were slow and unreliable so most important messages were relayed through multiple scrying windows to bridge the distance and allow two people to speak.

  Quewel had used that method to petition the king for aid the moment the results of the battle were clear, but this was the first he had heard back. He had lost sleep for a week while he waited for a response. It was typical for the government bureaucracy to move slowly, but in light of the circumstances, Quewel thought it strange they had taken so long.

  “Sir, Sagemeister Parcelles has arrived,” announced one of the Archlord’s servants.

  “Yes, yes. Let him in,” said Quewel shooing the servant away. “Leave us alone and bar the door.” Quewel wanted this conversation to be kept quiet until he knew exactly what was going to happen.

  If everything went well, the kingdom would be sending troops and could be here in as little as ten days. Then Quewel could announce the events of the battle without causing a riot. To be sure, Quewel would still have many difficulties ahead regardless of the government’s response. 40,000 people had died after all.

  “Good day,” said Parcelles mechanically as he entered the room. Behind him walked in another man, a young one, whom Quewel did not recognize. “This is one of my top students, Gerald. He’ll be here to stabilize the King’s scrying.”

  Long distance scrying worked best with two experts. Scrying got more blurry and imprecise the greater the distance you tried to look. The simplest way around this required one mage to make the scrying window while another mage in the area you wanted to look at, acted as a broadcast tower. To speak with the king in real time, they used two long distance scryings by teaming up with a pair of diviners near the king.

  Parcelles could open a scrying window using one of the diviners near the king to act as a focus so that Quewel could see and hear the king. While the young Gerald would act as the focus for another of the king’s diviners, so the king could see and hear Quewel. It wasn’t a means of communication available to most people but for powerful people like the king and the Archlord it wasn’t a problem.

  “Why are you bringing a student, wouldn’t another Sagemeister serve as a better focus. I don’t want anything to disrupt this important conversation,” said Quewel.

  “There are only a handful of sagemeisters left in the city, my lord. Of which, I am the only one who specializes in divination,” Parcelles began.

  “Yes, but can the boy be trusted?” said Quewel.

  “I can, my lord,” Gerald answered. “I believe you know my father Lord Hertople. He always speaks very highly of your grace.” Lord Hertople was one of the Archlord’s staunchest supporters. He had been present when Quewel watched the battle through the scrying window. In all likelihood, his son would already be aware of the situation.

  “Ah, your Phil’s boy. Very well then let’s get this started,” said Quewel. “There’s no sense in keeping the king waiting any longer.”

  “Of course,” said Parcelles.

  Parcelles raised his arms and gently wiggled his fingers. Threads of light shot out from his fingers before weaving together into the large circular mirror. Gerald simply stood there. Being a focus was a lot easier than opening the scrying window and all of his required operations could be done internally.

  The king appeared on the other side of the scrying window, seated on his ornate golden throne beside one of his retainers.

  “May I present, his majesty, Bardis Redulfus Septionair Bos the Third, the Watchman of Beneath, the Chief of all men, the…..”

  Quewel waited patiently while the retainer continued listing all of the king’s titles. Quewel really wanted to get on with it, but he was on his best behavior, after all, he was the one asking for help.

  Eventually the last of the titles was listed and the king took over. “Archlord Quewel, it’s good to see you. We are sorry we haven’t been able to speak with you sooner. Other matters forestalled us. How are you doing?”

  “Terrible, it’s terrible. Who could have seen such a disaster? 40,000 dead. I don’t know what I’m going to do. When people find out they’re going to want to hold me responsible,” said Quewel.

  “When people find out?” said the king.

  “That’s the only fortunate part of our circumstances. I’ve managed to keep the news within a small circle of advisors and close confidants. I was afraid that there’d be riots if people knew before the kingdom had a plan to respond,” Quewel explained.

  “And how are the rest of your forces? Do you have an update to your numbers?” asked the king.

  Quewel didn’t know why the king was asking. He had delivered a rough estimate of the North’s remaining forces a week ago and while he had a more accurate number now, it hadn’t changed much.

  “I have 6,700 fighting men stationed in the city. I can get another thousand by pulling in ones from the nearby settlements. I’ve held off doing that so far because people will take notice if I take such a step. I could draft more from the public, but they won’t be professionals and I only have enough weapons to outfit another 2,500. Our biggest problem though is a lack of mages. We lost over a thousand mages. Even if I recruit some of the older students who haven’t completed their studies at the academy, I’ll only be able to field around 400,” said Quewel.

  “So ten thousand men, give or take,” the king mused. “That’s all you need to man the walls.”

  “If everyone was on the walls. You forget men can’t stand guard at all times. Men need to sleep, to eat, to relax. We need at least double the men if we wish to hold the city. Moreover, that’s not even mentioning the other settlements. When can I tell my people to expect support from the crown?” finished Quewel, trying to cut straight to the point.

  “We don’t know,” the king frowned.

  “Sire?” said Quewel.

  “The crown can’t send troops to aid the north. Not now. We have our own problems. The fighting in the south has picked up. The Drulorians have a new type of undead that’s devastating our forces. If it weren’t for the immortals I’m afraid the kingdom would have fallen already,” said the king.

  “You can’t just abandon us. If the north falls…,” Quewel began.

  “If the north falls we only lose magic items and metal ores,” the king interjected. “If the south falls we lose our food and the kingdom starves. The north will have to deal with its own problems. For now, you’ll have to settle for our prayers.”

  “But if the beastmen take the city, the confluence will surely be of great benefit to them. They are using artifacts now and…” said Quewel.

  “Perhaps, but it cannot be helped. I’d hate to say it but better to be a beastmen slave than to be transformed into one of the Drulorian monstrosities.
Who knows what remains of the original in there,” said the king.

  “B-But your majesty,” Quewel stammered, but before he could finish his sentence the scrying cut out. There was an eerie silence in the great hall. They were alone.

  “I trust you both can stay silent on these matters,” mumbled Quewel to the two mages. Both of their faces looked grim, but they nodded reluctantly.

  “Then you can go. Have the people outside remain there. I need some time to think,” said Quewel.

  The two mages left, leaving Quewel alone in the great hall. Quewel just sat in his chair looking around the empty room. A half hour came and went. Then an hour did the same. At some point a servant came in to offer him some food only to have Quewel, in a manner unbefitting his normally congenial nature, send him scurrying away. After two hours of sitting, Quewel got up and exited the great hall.

  “My lord, can I help you,” said one of his servants the moment he saw him leave.

  Quewel ignored the nervous servant and went to one of the guards.

  “Where is Captain Mercowin?” Quewel asked the guard. Captain Mercowin was the head of Quewel’s personal guards.

  “I’m here,” said Mercowin from down the hall.

  “Good, we need to talk,” said Quewel.

  Quewel and Mercowin met in the emptied out great hall where no one would overhear. Mercowin was already aware of the events in Monstone Pass. Quewel told him so that he could arrange increased protection.

  The doors to the great hall were made of six inches of solid ironbark but still, just to be on the safe side, Quewel whispered. “The kingdom isn’t sending any support troops. I need you to arrange for us to leave the city.”

  “Lee-leave,” Mercowin stuttered.

  “Yes, gather some men that can keep their mouths shut. Cerise and I will depart for Castlemere as soon as the sun is down and we have the benefit of darkness. You are to tell no one who isn’t coming,” said Quewel.

  “But what about,” Mercowin began.

  “You and the men who accompany us will be rewarded well once we reach our destination. You may bring your family as well, but I want to limit our group to that. The larger the group the less likely we can leave unnoticed. Select men that don’t have any problematic ties,” said Quewel.

  Mercowin understood what Quewel was doing. That by leaving, the Archlord was neglecting his duty, abandoning it to a few days of chaos and despair before the ax came down. But he also knew he would follow the Archlord’s orders anyway. Without the support of the kingdom, Crystalpeak was doomed. Mercowin had a family of his own to consider and this was their best chance to set themselves up elsewhere.

  “Understood,” answered Mercowin. “I must begin immediately if you wish to be ready by nightfall.”

  “You’re excused,” said Quewel.

  Quewel returned to his seat in the great hall and reopened it to everyone. He had already engaged in too many strange activities today. He must keep up the appearance of normalcy for at least a few more hours. Quewel felt sickened by what he was doing, but ultimately it came down to one thing: if the king could abandon this city so could he.

  Tap. Tap. Tap.

  “Hey Mai, is something wrong with the copy machine?” I said. “I thought you said it was supposed to be silent.” The thing was ten thousand years old. It wouldn’t be surprising if there were a few more kinks to work out.

  After I spent a few days making Titania’s flying claws, it took another week to fix up the copy machine. It was a pain in the ass, but well worth it. As long as I had enough raw materials and mana crystals, the copy machine could make as many duplicates as I wanted. I could see it in my mind, a massive factory producing unlimited copies of intricate objects and all the piles of money it would bring.

  Tap. Tap. Tap.

  The same noise echoed again.

  ‘No it’s not the machine. It’s coming from outside,’ said Mai.

  “Outside?” I wondered. “What could be outside?”

  The complex was large and I had really only spent my time in the engineering bay and the command center. With the plant monsters cleared out, the rest of the base was largely empty.

  Brrring!

  ‘Now that came from the machine,’ corrected Mai.

  “Thank god,” I said reaching into the template area of the copy machine to retrieve my spear. Even though the ancient Traveler city had already been completely cleared out, I didn’t want to investigate the noise without a weapon. I pulled out the copy as well. It was as perfect as was imaginable, even down to the nicks and scratches. I couldn’t help but marvel once again at the device.

  Tap. Tap. Tap.

  I got up and left the engineering bay. I had to find the source of the noise.

  My search eventually led me out to the lobby and then up the stairs. I stopped at each of the seven floors to wait for the taps and correct my direction. Each time the sound came from up higher. At the top of the stairs, I knew where the sound was coming from. Someone was knocking on my front door.

  I tapped the keycard against the door and melted it away.

  “Oh, it’s you,” I said. Rose and Zelus were standing at my door.

  “Who else did you expect? You’re so secretive. No one else knows about this place,” said Rose.

  “What brings you here?” I asked.

  “We came for you,” said Rose.

  “For me?” I queried.

  “Zelus, you explain,” said Rose. “You’re the one who found out about it.”

  “So I am useful after all,” said Zelus.

  “Get over yourself and tell him,” said Rose.

  “Tell me that you need me,” said Zelus.

  “I’ll admit you’re not a complete waste of space,” Rose offered.

  “I’ll take it,” Zelus accepted. “And so begins the whirlwind called love.”

  Rose seethed. It took a visible effort for her not to smack Zelus right then and there.

  “As you know I have an ear in certain circles,” Zelus began.

  “I’m familiar with your debaucherous outings,” I said.

  Zelus grinned. “No, in this case I mean my connections in court,” said Zelus. “You know the army that was deployed against the beastmen?”

  “Of course,” I said. Everyone knew about that and I held a special interest in the outcome so even while I remained mostly hermit-like, I still was up to date about the latest information. “They’re still marching north.”

  “No they’re not. They found the beastmen,” Zelus corrected. “And there was a massacre.”

  “So it’s over. The beastmen have been defeated. Mill Valley has been avenged,” I said. I should have felt better, but this victory seemed somewhat hollow.

  “You misunderstand. Our side was massacred,” said Rose.

  “What?” I said. “But didn’t everyone say this would be easy that the beastmen don’t pose a serious threat. That they hold onto their lands only because no one wants them.”

  “That’s what everyone thought. Guess everyone was wrong,” said Zelus.

  “When did this happen?” I asked.

  “A week ago,” said Rose.

  “Okay, message delivered. If that’s all…” I started backing into the Traveler site.

  “We didn’t come to tell you this, we came to get you to leave,” said Rose.

  “Leave?” I said.

  “A couple hours ago, just after sundown, the Archlord and a handful of his guards fled the city,” explained Zelus.

  “Why’d they wait until now? They’ve known about the defeat for a week,” I asked.

  “According to the rumors, the Archlord just received word from the king. Hostilities with the Drulorians have picked up lately so they can’t send reinforcements anytime soon. Our fearless leader doesn’t like the sound of it and decided to leave,” said Zelus.

  “So the whole town is evacuating?” I asked.

  “No, that’s just the thing, the rest of the town is completely clueless,” said Zel
us.

  “They don’t know the kingdom has abandoned them,” I said.

  “They don’t know that our army was destroyed,” said Zelus breathlessly.

  “Why are they keeping it a secret?” I asked.

  “They’re probably worried about refugees. Too many people fleeing south will put a strain on other cities,” said Zelus.

  “They’re sacrificing the city and everyone in it,” I said.

  “Basically, they’d rather hold on to it but at this point if the beastmen come, they have no way to stop it. A skeleton crew is remaining in the Archlord’s household to keep up appearances,” he said. “But many of the nobles are starting to get wise of it and making their own travel arrangements.”

  “So what are you doing?” I said.

  “We already said. We are leaving and you’re coming with us,” said Rose.

  “Leaving?” I said.

  “What else can we do? Do you want to hole yourself down here for months maybe years until the beastmen are pushed back? No. You’re coming with us. That’s the end of the story.” Rose grabbed me by my arm and started dragging me out.

  “Okay. Okay, I’ll come,” I said trying to brush her off. She wouldn’t have it.

  “So where are the three of us going, Dermentine?” I asked. Even though Dermentine was the closest major city, it was still almost 500 miles away.

  “Five of us. Titania and Albert are waiting upstairs,” said Zelus. “And we aren’t going to Dermentine, we’re going to Castlemere.”

  “The capital. Why are we going all the way there?” I said.

  “It’s where I’m from,” said Rose. “I know the place so we’ll have an easier time settling in. Besides it’s not much farther than Dermentine.”

  “It’s an extra hundred miles. You’re just homesick,” teased Zelus.

  “Yeah, what’s wrong about missing home,” said Rose.

  “You don’t see me wanting to return to Aquivane,” said Zelus.

  “You’ve said yourself that no one lives there, so you have no one to return to,” said Rose.

  As we left, I sealed the Traveler base back up. I wasn’t worried that someone might come and mess with it. I still held the key and I didn’t think that anyone, human or beastman, was capable of breaking in. The place had lasted ten thousand years, it would last a few more until I could return.