by Pdmac
Up another set of stairs and down three more hallways, Karl noted that they passed few people, and those they did were all fixed on their jobs, whether maid, butler, or attendant. They passed one or two nobility to which Jethdar deferentially nodded, yet none seemed the slightest bit interested in the newcomers.
Finally, Jethdar stopped them before an artfully carved door of woodland scenes, flanked by two tall burly guards who nodded in recognition at Jethdar. Seeing the stretcher, one of the guards turned and knocked. Though no ‘Come in’ sounded, he opened the door and waved them inside.
Karl found himself in a large anteroom almost as long as one of the hallways. At the far end, a woman stood near the fireplace, reading a book on a bookstand. She looked up when they entered then calmly placed a bookmark in the book and closed it.
“Lady Gwen,” Jethdar reverently said as they approached. “These are visitors who have just arrived. One of them, an elf woman, has sustained a mortal wound. This one,” he indicated Karl with a tick of his head, “is called Karl the Viking.”
Karl sucked in his breath as he approached for Lady Gwen was of exquisite beauty. Her strawberry blond hair fell off her shoulders to below her breasts, which were neither large nor small but firm and covered in a gown of flowing white silk. Her waist was narrow as were her hips. But it was her bright emerald green eyes on a porcelain smooth face that immediately caught his attention, for her eyes spoke even before her lips moved.
“Welcome,” she said, her voice warm and mellifluous, staring intently at Karl, holding him captive with her gaze before breaking away to take in the rest of the company. “You are all welcome. Karl the Viking. I believe I have heard of you.”
Though flattered, Karl wasn’t sure what benefit it was that someone might have heard of him.
“Now let’s see what we have here. Put her on the couch there.” She pointed to a thick cushioned settee by the tall windows of the outer wall.
Kendra and Tina carried Carole over and gently laid her on the settee then stepped to the side as Lady Gwen glided gracefully over to stand beside her. Reaching down, she felt Carole’s forehead then took hold of her hand.
“There is death here, though life lurks along the edges. Tell me what happened.” Though it was a command, it was said like a request.
“We were on the way here from Abeloft –” Karl began.
“It’s true then,” Lady Gwen said with keen interest.
“Yes, m’Lady,” Jethdar answered.
“Continue,” she said to Karl, “but you will tell me about Abeloft when we are finished here.”
“Yes, m’Lady,” Karl answered, mimicking Jethdar’s respect. “We were on our way here from Abeloft and stopped at a house midway between here and there. The house was infested with spiders.”
“Spiders of Iria,” she nodded in understanding, “very poisonous. They capture the unsuspecting by luring them to abandoned houses, wrapping them up in spider silk when they sleep and take them away to dine on their flesh. Yes, we know the stories, though none venture into the forest anymore to confirm them.”
“We killed many of them and in the battle, Carole was bitten several times. We would have left had it not been late and the mist. During the night, we were attacked by goblins but managed to inflict a severe loss upon them.”
Lady Gwen nodded as she listened then hiking up her silk dress, she dropped to her knees, twisted her head and placed an ear on Carole’s chest, listening to her breathing and heart. After a few moments she held out her hand to Karl to assist her to standing.
“I will do what I can. The rest will be up to her.” Twisting her head to narrow her gaze at Karl, she added, “But it will come at a price.”
“I understand,” Karl nodded thinking they had more than enough gold to pay whatever the cost.
“No you do not,” she stated. “My price is that you, all of you, will owe me a favor. All of you or there is no healing. Do you accept?”
Karl stood to full height, initially irritated at the demand. How dare this woman hold them hostage in order to heal Carole. Perhaps there was another, more reasonable healer in the city. He was about to infer as much when Conrad spoke up.
“What kind of favor?”
“You will know when I decide to tell you,” Lady Gwen answered. “But you must choose quickly. I fear she will not last the remainder of the day.”
His lips pursed, Karl war-gamed the worst that could happen, realizing the worst that could happen was that they all would be killed. But then, they would all respawn and life would resume. It was the pain of death and respawning that concerned him. Hearing Conrad retell it, it was not something one took flippantly for it involved immeasurable pain. Still… He turned to the rest of the company. “I will not make your decision for you. She has stated her terms, all or nothing. Are you willing to abide by the terms?”
“What choice do we have?” Tina asked. “She dies and respawns back in Abeloft, and we have lost one of our company.”
“At least she’d be alive,” Conrad pointed out. “Knowing what she does, it wouldn’t take long for her to get back here.”
“On her own?” Ross countered. “She was out when we fought the goblins, remember?”
“Then all she has to do is wait for another group to come by and join them.” He countered.
Raquel fixed him with an intent stare. “I’ll remember your words when you are the one mortally wounded.”
“What?” Conrad defensively retorted. “All I’m doing is pointing out the possibilities.”
“It’s not as simple as you think,” Lady Gwen interrupted. “There is only one man living in the city who survived the spider’s bite. It took all my power to heal him. However, he has never been the same and is subject to fits of spasms and drooling.”
Inhaling a deep breath, Karl looked at each of them in turn. “It sounds like our decision is made for us. For me, I will agree to her terms.”
“As do I,” Raquel and Annabeth said at the same time, followed by the rest, the last being a begrudging Conrad.
Karl turned back to Gwen. “We agree to your terms.”
“Good.” She then turned her attention to Kendra and Tina, she said, “You are both healers?”
“Yes, m’ Lady,” they replied.
“It is because of you that she still lives.”
“We do not possess the skills to save her,” Tina explained.
Lady Gwen noted their healer levels. “It is because you have not been trained. If matters work out, I will teach you.”
“Yes, m’Lady. Thank you,” Tina said with breathless gratitude, imagining the level she would be by the time they left.
Turning to Jethdar, Lady Gwen said, “Take them to the Administrator. Leave the two healers here with me… and Karl the Viking. I wish him to remain here.” Glancing up at Dieter she added, “And him too. He stays.”
“Yes, m’Lady.” Turning to the others, he motioned with his hand, “If you will follow me please.”
Raquel and Annabeth gave each other a look that said they suspected the fair Lady had more in mind with Karl than simple conversation. Annabeth wanted to say something but by the time the door closed behind them, it was too late.
“Can you believe that,” Annabeth sourly whispered to Raquel. “He belongs to us.”
“Don’t worry,” Raquel whispered back. “Remember, we’re crossing a bridge. I doubt she’ll be coming along.” She glanced over a fretting Elena. “Don’t worry. He only has eyes for you.”
“I hope so,” she worried. “She’s so beautiful and rich and powerful.”
“Like I told Annabeth, our mission is to cross a bridge. She won’t be there. You will.”
That seemed to placate her and she relaxed, just a bit.
Back in Lady Gwen’s room, Karl had surreptitiously pulled up Lady Gwen’s stats.
Lady Gwen, Level 20, ruler of Westhaven and the northern country of the kingdom of Montgrec. Sister to Queen Briet and of the royal house of Bale.
Strength: 20 points
Speech: 25 points
Magic: 50 points
Healing: 75 points
Health: 50 points
Mana: 50 points
Combat: 12 points
Leadership: 40 points
Reputation: 35 points
Ignoring all the listed stats, he blinked in surprise that the woman was a Level 20. Suddenly he felt inadequate, like some nerdy freshman asking the prom queen for a date.
With a no-nonsense look, Lady Gwen addressed them. “I will pull out as much of the death poison as I can, but it means that my own strength and life force will diminish. Depending on how much poison is in her determines how long it will be before I am restored to health. During that time, the two healers will attend to the elf’s health while you two warriors will protect us all.”
“From what, m’Lady?” Karl asked confused. “Surely you are safe here.”
“I wish that were true,” she said with a sad sigh. “No one is safe, even behind these walls. Even now Cyril’s agents actively seek my death. We have killed four of them so far, one who got so far as to be inside the castle. They will not rest until the kingdom is without rulers and in chaos. Once that occurs, I dread what will happen when the Trolls of Stonefell descend upon this land. Will you defend me now while I heal your companion?”
“Of course, m’Lady,” Karl ardently responded. “We all pledge our lives for your safety.”
With a grateful smile, she stepped over to Karl and placed a gentle hand on his cheek then kissed the other cheek. “Then I can rest easy… for now.”
Turning to Kendra and Tina, she said, “You could not heal her because your healing powers are too little. I do not say this as condemnation, but as fact. Further, physical healing is not enough as you already know, having exhausted your healing potions and spells.”
She again hiked up her dress and dropped to her knees. Placing one hand over Carole’s heart, she placed the other on Carole’s forehead then bent her head, closing her eyes.
Karl watched in wonder as Lady Gwen began a soft melodious humming as her body gently bobbed. His fascination quickly changed to concern as Lady Gwen’s smooth porcelain white skin began to change to an ash gray. At the same time, the red of Carole’s health bar began to flutter and turned to a dull orange.
Karl suddenly remembered his responsibility and turned to Dieter. “Go ahead and block the door while I check the rest of the room.”
“OK, Boss.”
While Dieter positioned himself by the door, Karl circulated around the room, noting a door by the fireplace. Pulling it open, he found it led to her bedroom, which seemed almost as large as the anteroom. Pulling the door closed, he repositioned a tall high-back wing chair before the door. His preparations were interrupted he when heard Kendra call out.
“Karl.”
Looking over his shoulder, he saw her worried frown as she stared down at Lady Gwen and walked over. He was startled as he approached for long thin black cracks now appeared on Lady Gwen’s skin, some of them connected in what looked like spider webbing.
Carole’s health was now a solid orange, but Lady Gwen’s health and mana had fallen to blinking orange. As he reached down to grab her hands to break the spell, she let out an anguished groan and collapsed to the floor.
Karl immediately scooped her up, amazed at how light she was then strode across the floor, kicked the chair out of the way and entered the bedroom, gently placing her on the bed.
“You have any more potions?” he called through the open door.
“Yes,” Tina replied, collected the last vials from Kendra and scooting across the room and into the bedroom.
“Give them to her,” he ordered.
“This is the last of what we have,” Tina reminded him.
“I know. Give them to her.”
As Tina uncorked the first vial, Karl raised Lady Gwen’s head. It wasn’t until the third vial that the orange of her health and mana bars stopped blinking. Tina was about to uncork their last vial when Lady Gwen raised a weak hand.
“No more,” she breathed, her voice frail. “Thank you. Let me sleep.”
Karl pulled back the top cover and placed it over her, noting how fragile the woman looked. Her porcelain skin still retained the ash color, but the cracks were slowly disappearing. Yet even in this state of brokenness, the woman still retained the auras of grace and beauty. He found himself enchanted for she seemed a fairytale princess.
“Carole’s opened her eyes,” Tina announced, standing in the doorway. “She even asked where we were. She needs food.”
“Tell Dieter to ask the guards.” Karl remained standing beside Lady Gwen, searching the room for possible entrances. The door was obvious, but he guessed there had to be a secret entrance or two in the room.
In the ante room, Dieter reached for the door and was surprised by a knock. Opening the door, he saw a servant holding a tray of food.
Apprehension flashed across the man’s face but he quickly regained his composure. “The Administrator thought you might be hungry.”
“Come in,” Dieter replied, stepping aside. There was something about the man that looked off, not quite right, but he couldn’t place it until he saw the man’s shoes. They were worn and dirty.
Before the man had a chance to cross the room, Dieter grabbed him by the neck and lifted him off the ground, causing the tray to crash to the floor, splattering the contents onto the carpet covering the veined marble, while simultaneously butting the door closed.
His instincts were on the mark for as the man struggled in the vice grip, he jerked his foot up and withdrew a stiletto from inside his boot. Yet to no avail as Dieter grabbed his hand and twisted his arm behind his back with such force that the man’s shoulder popped and he dropped the knife. He then slammed the man onto the floor on his other shoulder, soliciting a pained grunt and effectively dislocating the man’s elbow before placing a heavy foot on the man’s back and holding in in place.
Hearing the commotion, Karl burst in then relaxed slightly when he saw Dieter had everything under control. Looking back over his shoulder, ensuring the Lady was safe, he strode over to study the man.
“How’d you know?” Kendra said with wonder.
“The shoes,” Dieter answered. “They’re dirty from travel. A servant here would have clean shoes.”
“Good job,” Karl grimly mused, looking around the room for something suitable to tie the man up. Walking over to a window, he grabbed a cord for a curtain and gave it a hard yank, which ended up pulling down the entire curtain. Dismissing the mess, he cut a long length of cord and walked back to tie the man’s hands behind him.
Once finished, Karl searched the man’s clothing finding a small vial that he held up. “My guess it’s poison, either for him if captured or for her if successful.” Placing the vial in his pocket, he finished frisking the man and found little else except for a few coins.
Dieter yanked the assassin up and thrust him into a chair then helped Karl wrap the rest of the cord around the man and the chair. With the assassin secured, Dieter returned to the door and opened it, surprised to see the two guards still there.
“Did you not hear all the noise inside?” he demanded.
“We did,” the one guard answered.
“Then why the hell didn’t you come in?”
“Our orders are to enter only with the permission of Lady Gwen,” he said with a tone of condescension.
“Are you two that stupid?” Dieter sneered. “How’d you know it wasn’t an assassin trying to kill the Lady?”
“We figured the clumsy servant just dropped the food tray,” the other guard answered.
Dieter looked at them and shook his head in disbelief. “So I was right. You two really are that stupid. That servant you just happened to let in was an assassin, and you let him breeze right past you. Had we not been here, your Lady Gwen would be dead. One of you go get the Administrator. Now,” he barked, jolting the othe
r guard to race down the hallway.
Closing the door, he walked back to stand beside Karl who was studying the assassin. He was an average height lithe man, nondescript, with short brown hair. He looked to be the sort of man one would take no notice of, one who would blend into a crowd of common folk. If one were to ask for a description, the single answer would be ‘average.’ The assassin did his best not to grimace, but the pain of the separated shoulder and dislocated elbow caused him to scowl.
“I’m not going to ask you why you are here,” Karl smiled. “But what I am hoping is that they’ll let me interrogate and torture you.”
The bedroom door burst open and the Administrator stalked in, guards and the rest of Karl’s company trailing him. The Administrator was a slender man, almost as tall as Raquel. He wore crimson robes with puffed shoulders over a silk embroidered shirt and calf-skin leggings tucked into knee-high boots. The heavy chain and medallion of office hung around his neck. He rubbed his bald head as he took in the scene with his penetrating brown eyes, looking into the bedroom where Lady Gwen lay sleeping. Karl guessed he looked to be in his early fifties.
The Administrator brusquely brushed past them and went into the bedroom to stand by the bed, reassuring himself that Lady Gwen was unharmed then spun around and strode back to confront Dieter and Karl, breathing a sigh of relief. “Thank the gods you were here. Is this the villain?” He pointed an accusing finger at the assassin.
“Yes,” Karl replied, surprised at the man’s voice for it was high-pitched like a boy who had not yet reached puberty.
“Tell me what happened.”
“I was in with the Lady,” Karl explained. “There was a knock on the door and this man brought in some food. Dieter here immediately saw that something was not right and waylaid him, rather roughly I might add,” he grinned.
Karl reached into his pocket and withdrew the vial. “He had this with him.”
Accepting the vial, the Administrator nodded. “Poison no doubt.” He handed it to one of the guards. “Take this to the alchemist. I want to know what it is.”