The Coming Chaos

by D. K. Holmberg

  The real challenge was that it wasn’t only Gabe now. There was another of the tchalit. When facing off against Gabe, he was outclassed. With two of the tchalit…

  “Would you like me to assist?” Rayen asked.

  He flicked his gaze over to her. The fact that she asked rather than intervening on his behalf made him like her even more. “Let me see how I do first.”

  With that, he Slid.

  He emerged behind Gabe, swinging his sword. The other man was quick, turning as if he anticipated where Daniel was going to Slide, and Daniel reacted, darting off to the side, ducking beneath the other tchalit, and twisting his sword around.

  He had to be careful. He didn’t want to hurt either of them, only disarm them.

  He didn’t have the same sense from either of those men. They seemed to be fighting to win. Winning meant Daniel didn’t survive.

  He Slid, emerging briefly on the other side of Gabe before Sliding once more.

  The other man likely was a Seer; if so, he would be able to anticipate every move Daniel made. The one advantage he had was that he was able to Slide, something that obscured those who could See.

  Doing it enough times would obfuscate anything his opponent might be able to observe. More than that, doing it enough times would make it difficult for them to fight him.

  In the time since he’d faced Gabe, not only had he been working with Rayen, among others, rapidly improving his swordsmanship, but he’d also grown far more talented with his ability to Slide.

  He didn’t need to prove to Gabe that he was the better swordsman. Daniel didn’t even know if that would be the case. The other man had trained his entire life to develop his skill. Daniel had only been really working over the last year or so. But he did want to end the fight as quickly as possible.

  Another Slide and he emerged next to the second tchalit. He kicked, sending the man staggering, and emerged where the man stumbled, slamming the hilt of the sword down the back of his head. Gabe was there, twisting toward Daniel, and he blocked, parrying a couple of thrusts before feinting an attack and ducking back. Daniel twisted off in a Slide, rotating as he emerged, but Gabe managed to meet his sword with his own. They attacked one after another, a flowing movement. He couldn’t help but be amazed at how effective the other man was at combating him even though he wasn’t able to Slide.

  It was time to end this. Facing only one of the tchalit was far easier than dealing with two. Daniel performed a flurry of Slides, each of them dizzying, darting from one side to the other of Gabe before he emerged, sweeping his sword around and stopping just short of the other man’s throat.

  Gabe held his hands up. “You have been training.”

  “I have. Drop it.”

  “We were instructed not to let you in.”

  “I believe it.”

  “I would like to spar with you again.”

  “Just spar?”

  “I had no interest in actually attacking you.”

  “And yet you did.”

  “As I was required to do.”

  Gabe dropped his sword, and Daniel slammed him on the temple with the hilt of his sword. The other man crumpled.

  Sheathing his blade, he turned to Rayen. She was watching him, an amused expression on her face. “You were slow.”

  “Slow? They barely got their swords up.”

  “Seeing as how I have yet to be defeated by you, I would say that you were slow.”

  Daniel chuckled. She was far superior to him in sword skill. “That would be the only way you’d beat me. Maybe when you lose playing your childlike game of Tsatsun, you could spar with me to make yourself feel better.”

  He started off before giving her a chance to react, suppressing a smile as he did.

  When they entered the palace, he paused for a moment. He had the sense he always did when coming to the palace. There was the overwhelming feeling of being in a place he’d known his whole life, mixed with an appreciation for the way the palace had been built, and then there was the overall impression of age, a mixture of power that represented everything their people had experienced.

  “It’s an impressive building,” Rayen said.

  “Most of the time,” he said.

  “Why your hesitation?”

  “I just want a moment to gather myself.”

  “Are you afraid of confronting him?”

  Was it fear? Daniel didn’t think so, but there was a time when he would have believed that to be the case. His father had always intimidated him, testing him constantly, making him prove himself over and again.

  Through it all, Daniel had never been sure if he had earned his father’s trust. That was what he had been angling for his whole life. He had wanted to serve on the Council, and he had believed he had to justify himself, which meant he constantly had to push.

  “It’s not fear—at least I don’t think it is. It’s more a sense of resignation.” When Rayen suggested he do this, he had agreed, but now it was upon him, he wasn’t sure this was the right tactic to take.

  He had to push that thought away. He knew it was the right strategy. If they didn’t do this, his father would continue to cause harm.

  “Why?” she asked.

  “When I was growing up, he was this impressive man. The ideal of what I should live up to. It wasn’t until I left the city that I saw him for what he really was.” And even then, Daniel had tried to reject it. It was hard for him to believe his father could’ve been responsible for allowing the attack on the forest, and yet… he had been.

  “Every child must grow up and see their parents for what they are. When you’re young, you view your parents as heroic, even if they are not. When you grow, you start to rebel, and it’s only upon looking back that you can judge them in the proper context.”

  “You sound as if you have some experience.”

  “I went through many of the same things as you did, Daniel Elvraeth.”

  Rayen was reserved about her past, and he had come to expect that she would dole out what she wanted on her own terms. He respected that, knowing he couldn’t push or he would probably drive her away rather than drawing her closer. Instead, he smiled at her.

  “Are you ready to go and meet with my father?”

  With a nod, they started off through the palace. Daniel hurried up the stairs, wandering through the halls, and found himself before his old door, staring at it. He paused for a moment before knocking. When his father’s voice sounded from the other side of the door, Daniel pushed it open.

  Two tchalit met him, grabbing him.

  8

  Daniel

  Daniel tried to jerk free, but they were strong. He glanced over to Rayen, and she frowned at him, shadows swirling around her. He shook his head. Let his father see he could handle this.

  Daniel Slid backward, barely a step, but the two men who’d been holding on to his arms were pulled with him. When he emerged, he twisted, slamming them together and then Sliding again. He dragged them down the hall like that, Sliding again and again, each time forcing them against each other. They bounced along the walls before finally releasing his arm and sinking to the ground.

  Sliding back to where Rayen stood, he entered his father’s room. “That’s quite the greeting, Father.”

  His father sat in a chair near the crackling hearth. A book lay open on his lap, and he looked up, almost lazily, as Daniel entered. “You aren’t allowed here any longer.”

  “Because you decided to exile me? You know that punishment is forbidden.”

  “I have chosen to exile you. Not the Council.”

  “That changes nothing for who I am.”

  “It changes everything.”

  Daniel nodded to Rayen and she followed him in. Closing the door behind him, he said, “Can you seal off the room?”

  She cocked her head to the side, frowning for a moment. “Are you sure?”

  “Most definitely.”

  Shadows twined around the perimeter of the room. He didn’t know if h
is father could even See them the way Daniel could.

  “You’ve betrayed our people.”

  “That’s why you came here?”

  “I didn’t say anything when I saw you in the dining hall, but it’s time for your reign to end.”

  “I think not.”

  “Cael Elvraeth knows what you did.”

  “It’s a good thing Cael Elvraeth doesn’t lead my family.”

  “She leads the Council.”

  “For now. Do you actually believe she will continue to do so indefinitely?”

  Daniel had heard this line of thinking from his father for most of his life. “I do. Partly because she has outmaneuvered you all these years. The great Malin Elvraeth, who thought all this time that he was manipulating others to do his will. Through it all, Cael Elvraeth was the one doing the manipulating.”

  He watched his father’s face as he said it. It was the one thing he could say that would enrage his father the most. In this case, Daniel wanted to enrage him. He wanted that anger, if only so that he would react predictably. He knew his father could be difficult to gauge, and he was determined not to be outplayed. If nothing else, his time with Carth had taught him that lesson.

  “Do you think I don’t know what you’re doing?”

  Daniel smiled, taking a seat across from his father. “And what, exactly, am I doing, Father?”

  “You think to manipulate me.”

  “Says the master of manipulation.”

  “You say that as if I should feel ashamed.”

  “I say it as if you should recognize that you have used people along the way.”

  “I have done nothing but attempt to strengthen Elaeavn.”

  Daniel sat back, watching his father. He glanced over briefly at Rayen. “Father, let me introduce you to Rayen.”

  Rayen bowed her head slightly. “Malin Elvraeth. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance.”

  His father didn’t even look in her direction. “What are you doing here?”

  “Clearly I’m acting quite rudely. Oh, wait, that appears to be you.”

  “I’m not the one who attacked two tchalit, including one who trained you all these years when you were young.”

  “The same tchalit who were instructed to prevent my access to the palace. Access that my birthright grants me.”

  “I have revoked your birthright.”

  “As I’ve told you, you can no longer do that.”

  “As you’ve seen, I can. You will find there are a great many things I am capable of doing, Daniel.”

  He regarded his father for a long moment before smiling. “You know, there was a time when I feared you.”

  “You still should.”

  “I thought you a man worthy of fear. Then again, I also thought you a man worthy of respect. You claim that you have acted in order to strengthen Elaeavn, and yet by trying to exclude those who live in the forest, you weaken it.” Daniel leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees as he glared at his father. “I’m well aware of the deal you made with the C’than.” He watched his father as he said it, noting the corners of his eyes twitched slightly. “Yes. I’m also familiar with the C’than. There are a great many things I have learned.”

  “You know nothing.”

  “Let me tell you what I uncovered. You plotted with Alera, thinking you could remove Lareth from the city and make yourself stronger. You gave no thought to the fact that, in doing so, you actually weakened the city. In fact, your action very nearly gave the Ai’thol the power they were seeking.”

  No look of recognition flashed across his father’s eyes.

  “What’s that, Father? You don’t know the Ai’thol? Let me explain what they are. You may know part of the Ai’thol as a different name. Lareth has pursued them his entire life.”

  “Forgers,” his father spat.

  “Not just the Forgers. The Hjan before them. I’m sure there have been other names, and other atrocities that they have committed. Through it all, they have sought to gain power. There was one thing they weren’t able to reach, even when Lareth hadn’t fully come into his powers. And you, the great protector of Elaeavn, very nearly overturned that.”

  “You think that it matters?”

  Daniel sat back, smiling to himself. “It matters. It also matters that I found a way to stop it. They no longer draw upon the power of the sacred crystals, trying to drain the energy of the Elder Trees. We have that power back, though I don’t know how much longer we will be able to maintain it.”

  He sat for a moment in silence, glaring at his father. The other man said nothing.

  “You’re not even going to deny it?”

  “What’s there to deny? I acted in a way I believed would protect the city.”

  “Only you knew it would not.”

  “The Council sees it differently.”

  “Do they? I would suggest Cael Elvraeth would say otherwise.”

  “Cael Elvraeth. Have you decided to throw your lot in with her? Perhaps she will adopt you the same way she adopted Galen.”

  Daniel grinned. “It would be an honor if she did.”

  It was another statement he made to irritate his father. At this point, he was determined to keep saying whatever he could to agitate him even more.

  “The Council has already voted on this issue, if it matters to you at all. Seeing as how you have abandoned the city over the last few months—”

  “I’ve abandoned nothing. I have done far more than you to protect the city. And now I’m here to finish the job.”

  “Finish what?”

  “That’s why I came, Father.”

  “To do what, Daniel? Do you think you’re ready to sit upon the Council? Do you think the family would even support you? Let me tell you the answer to that. No. The family recognizes the value I add. They would much rather see me maintain my position of authority then have someone like you involved in the running of the city.”

  “I have no interest in sitting on the Council.”

  “I’m impressed you can say that with a straight face.”

  “Are you? I’m so pleased I can impress you.”

  “You’ve had nothing but naked ambition your entire life, Daniel.”

  “Because of you.” He needed to continue baiting his father. The longer he could do it, the more likely his father would say something foolish. Even if he didn’t, his father had lost. He just didn’t know it yet.

  “I am surprised you came back here,” his father said.

  “You wouldn’t be if you were paying any attention.”

  “Indeed? And just what should I be paying attention to?”

  “Perhaps had you paid more attention to your family, and those around you, none of this would have been necessary.”

  “None of what?”

  Daniel smiled tightly. “None of this whole conversation, Father.”

  His father cocked his head, and Daniel smiled to himself. He had often wondered how skilled a Listener his father was, and though he might not find out now, the fact he resorted to using that ability suggested it was not insignificant. He had known his father was a capable Reader, and yet, he had nothing on Cael Elvraeth when it came to that particular ability.

  “Do you hear anything?”

  His father frowned at him. “And what am I supposed to hear?”

  “That would be the sound of your failure. You’ve lost the Council.”

  “I’ve lost nothing.”

  “You have. The rest of the Council has determined that your role is no longer needed. Considering the impact you had on allowing the C’than to attack the city—and the Elder Trees—others have decided they will no longer work with you.”

  His father sat quietly. “The rest of the Council was a part of the discussion. Do you think I could take any action independently? Only two families weren’t a part of it. The Council had a majority before we acted, as is custom.” He leaned back, crossing a leg over the other. “And soon other customs will return. It is long past
time.”

  “Such as exiling those you disagree with?”

  “It’s more than just that. It’s maintaining a certain purity within Elaeavn. Within the Elvraeth.” His father flashed a dark smile. “Unfortunately for you, there might be a test case far sooner than we had anticipated.”

  Daniel glanced over to Rayen. She had been standing there, the shadows around them angled in a specific way, augmenting their voices.

  “I’m not terribly concerned about exile, as I once was. In fact, I wonder if perhaps that wouldn’t be a better outcome.”

  “You understand what exile means. We’ve had that conversation. It means you won’t be able to return. You will be stripped of your titles. Stripped of your heritage. You will never see your mother or me again. If you return to the city, you will face a more violent punishment.”

  “You made it quite clear what’s involved in exile. And I have spoken to Galen.”

  “I’m not surprised you’ve done that.”

  “Galen shares a particular insight. Did you realize that there are entire communities of exiles living beyond the city?”

  “They matter not to me.”

  “And yet, if you truly cared about Elaeavn, they would. They are our people. Some of them were like Galen, doing little more than attacking an Elvraeth who deserved every bit of punishment Galen inflicted.” Daniel leaned forward. “Yes. I’m well aware of what Galen did to earn his exile. Do you think that Cael Elvraeth did not know?”

  “Cael is a foolish girl who dabbles in things she cannot understand.”

  “I’d be careful about using terms like that around Rayen.”

  “You would like me to believe that this friend of yours”—he said friend so derisively that Daniel almost grinned—“is someone that I should fear? What talent does she have? She’s pretty enough, and she has lovely full lips, so I—”

  His father was suddenly silenced. Darkness swirled around his mouth and throat, and within moments, his eyes began to bulge.