Knights End

by Brad Clark

  Hargon continued to look around the large cavern as if Marila would merely appear out of the blue and he wouldn’t have to deal with this large oaf. Finally, Hargon said, “A woman.”

  “That’s a start. There are many women here. Old. Young.”

  “She’s a young lady. Goes by the name Marila.”

  “Ah! Marila,” Rufus replied. “I know of such a lady. The queen has taken a liking to her lately, at least that’s the gossip that’s being spread around.”

  “Then you will take me to her?”

  Rufus shrugged. “I said I know of her, but not where she is.”

  Hargon let out a grunt of frustration. “Then you are useless to me. Go back to the hole you came from.”

  Rufus held his anger in check. Because he had orders to follow, he was forced to swallow his pride and take whatever words Hargon through at him. He didn’t like it, nor would he ever get used to it. Fear was a big motivator and drove him to do many things he didn’t really want to do. Since he valued his life above all else, he knew he would have to continue to take verbal abuse from arrogant egomaniacs like Hargon for just a little while longer.

  Taking a deep breath to calm his frustrations, Rufus said, “I hope you find Marila. I think that something’s not quite right about her.”

  This caught Hargon’s attention, and he turned back to face Rufus. “Why would you say that? What do you know?”

  “A feeling, I guess. Because she’s a friend of the Queen’s, she’s a bit of a celebrity. Everyone knows her, and I’ve seen her a few times myself, and there is just something off about her.”

  Hargon crossed his arms and tilted his head to look at Rufus down his nose. “If you can take me to her now, I’ll make it worth your while.”

  Rufus forced himself to hold in a smile. “I told you I don’t know where she is.”

  Hargon inched closer. “I think you know this place, and I think you know where she could be. So, why don’t you take her to me.”

  There was something more than just a forceful tone emanating from the former Taran Emperor, which caused Rufus to think twice about what he was about to say. A twinge of electricity touched the back of his neck, which reminded him that Hargon cast spells that could cause instant death. Self-preservation took over as the threat he faced now was much more imminent than any of his other fears.

  Rufus cleared his throat and straightened, trying to not show any distress. “Maybe I could try to find out where she lays her head.”

  “You do that.”

  Rufus turned and began walking deeper into the chamber.

  They zig-zagged through the chamber, moving around families that had made the best of their situation. Hargon began to doubt that they would even find Marila, but before long, he saw her leaning up against a small outcropping of rocks. She was sitting with her knees pulled up to her chest, eyes open and staring straight ahead.

  As they approached, Hargon put a hand on Rufus’ shoulder and brought him to a stop. “You may leave, now.”

  For a moment, Rufus was going to protest, for he was supposed to stay with them both. Hargon’s tone was clear and firm and left no doubt that Rufus should listen. Rufus turned and walked away. Hargon stepped towards Marila, not giving Rufus another thought.

  “You are Marila?” Hargon asked.

  Marila looked up and was about to answer when she realized who was standing over her. Her heart began pounding, and fear gripped her soul. Hargon’s eyes were blazing with anger, and she knew that she had been found out. She was paralyzed with fear as Hargon squatted down in front of her. His handsome features had been replaced with something more powerful than anger. It was rage, and she knew it was directed at her.

  “Marila,” he said in a low voice. “We both know that you are more than you seem, and you will tell me all that you know.” Hargon lifted a hand, and a small flame suddenly appeared and morphed into a rotating ball. “Days ago, you came into my chamber to seduce me. I remember your face and what you did. You tried to touch my necklace, and the moment you did so, we were both knocked unconscious. When I awoke, I had a nasty headache, but I still had the necklace. Fortunately, for you. You want to tell me why you tried to steal my necklace?”

  She bit her lip to hold in the scream that wanted to come out. She had lived under the rule of the Deceiver, and with all his evil, she had never realized true fear until now. Maybe because she now knew what evil was, she could discern it from good. Knowing what goodness was had opened her eyes to a new way of thinking. She began to shake with the realization that she had been evil, and that she no longer wanted to be that person. Feeling herself lose control of her illusion, Marila knew that if she were exposed for who she was, Hargon would have no mercy on her. If she could maintain her illusion, then maybe she would find a way to survive the day. And if she survived the day, maybe she could permanently hide in her illusion and live the rest of her days as a Human.

  Her mind turned and spun as she desperately tried to find words that could save her life. Telling the truth was not an option, for that meant instant death. Despite her life of servitude to the Deceiver and his generals, lying did not come easy. Lies were punished by a fate worse than death, but only when caught.

  “I saw you,” she croaked out. “In the halls. I saw the necklace and thought it was pretty.”

  He smiled, and his handsomeness came back. However, he shook his head and said, “No, I know that’s not it. My necklace stays under my robes like it is now. Can you see it? No, you can’t. It is hidden from spying eyes just so it couldn’t be coveted. You will need to find a better lie if you don’t want this little ball of fire to ruin your day.”

  “I’m not…” Her reply ended in a croak.

  Suddenly she couldn’t breathe. The air around her was just gone, and she tried to take a breath, but there was nothing to breathe in. Her eyes got wide, and her mouth flopped open and closed as she tried desperately to get that next breath.

  Hargon winked, and then the air was back.

  She leaned over, coughing and gasping to take in as much air as she could. Her heart pounded even harder than before, and her whole body seemed like it was on fire from a flash of fear and adrenaline that had exploded through her. She felt her illusion begin to slip away. If he had not returned the air when he did, she would have lost it all and exposed herself as who she truly was.

  He felt his hot breath in her ear, and she turned her head slightly to look into his eyes.

  “I saw you flicker,” he whispered.

  She believed her heart stopped beating for several seconds as she thought it fell out of her body. Tears fell from her eyes, real and illusionary. Her lower lip fluttered as she was about to let out a cry of despair. She despised the emotions that she had learned from the Humans. She was glad that her life would soon be over so that she wouldn’t have to suffer through them for much longer.

  His hot breath stung her ears as he continued, “I don’t know what you are, or what I saw. You are not Human, that is for sure. I don’t know how you hold your illusion, as I cannot feel how you touch the Web of Magic. That probably makes you one of the Deceiver’s vile creatures. One that is not worthy of existence in this world. So now, I give you the opportunity to make a choice to live or die. Right now. Live, or die. Your choice.”

  Marila knew that she had no choice but to give up on her idea of leaving the realm of the Deceiver and living out her days hiding among the Humans. The tears now flowed in a stream as she knew that she had deceived herself. She was evil and vile, just as Hargon had said. She was a creature of the Deceiver and deserved to die. With the tears cutting a dirty path down her cheeks, she slowly shook her head back and forth.

  The word came out barely audible. “Die.”

  Hargon leaned in and touched his lips to her cheek, tasting the illusion of her salty tears. “No, I don’t think so,” he whispered. “I cannot use you if you are dead.”

  ***

  Rufus watched from a distance. At one point, it lo
oked like Marila was suffocating, as she was clearly gasping for breath. Then once she started breathing again, Hargon leaned in and began whispering to her. He strained to hear what was being said, but they were too far away, and there was too much other noise around them. He would have little to tell Lord Martin, other than that Hargon had made contact with Marila. Most likely, he would be berated for not knowing what was being said between them, but there was nothing that he could have done to get closer.

  Hargon took Marila firmly by the shoulder and pulled her to her feet. An instant before Hargon started looking around to see if anyone was paying attention to him, he ducked out of sight behind a make-shift wall. When he risked peeking out from behind it, Hargon and Marila were gone. Cautiously, Rufus left his hiding spot and walked briskly towards Lord Martin’s living place wondering if he should tell the fat lord that he saw her shimmer again. This time, though, he was sure what he saw behind the shimmer, and it sent a chill up his spine.

  ***

  Conner walked up the stone steps that led to the top of the wall that had protected Neffenmark Castle for generations. He counted thirty steps to reach the top. It then took four long strides to reach the edge. The wall was massive, yet he knew it was likely not massive enough. The Elves and Karmon Knights talked about siege engines that could send rocks through the air from the distant forest or battering rams that could pound at the wall to crush it to dust. Those did not concern him. It was the Stone Ogres that the Deceiver had under his control that made him wonder how safe they were. Their skin was as tough as the stone he stood on, turning away any blade that could be made. Their only weakness was their eyes, which he was able to exploit on one occasion with a little skill and a lot of luck. An army of them would be unstoppable. Unless Hargon had some special spell tucked away in the pages of his spellbook that could help them, their end might just be inevitable.

  Those were thoughts that he tried not to think about. He couldn’t let himself dwell on the possibilities for failure. The Deceiver’s army was powerful, but they had their own secret weapons, too. The Spear of Salvation. The Ark of Life. The Dragons.

  He looked up to see if he could see the two ancient creatures circling overhead. When he and Glaerion had first arrived at the castle, they were seen daily. Now, though, it had been days since he had last seen them. Although they had proved themselves as an invaluable ally, there was still doubt at the back of everyone’s mind. They had caused great devastation of Karmon, and that was hard to forget. Elissa believed in them, and that was what mattered most.

  “Looking up to see if the One God has arrived to save us?”

  Conner flinched at the words, not realizing that Marik had quietly approached while he was caught in his thoughts. He took a step back from the edge of the wall and said, “No, I was actually looking to see if Myllia and Immerallis had returned.”

  Marik looked up to see for himself. “They around?”

  “Not that I can see. Do you still hate them?”

  “In truth, I’m not sure,” Marik replied. “When Ilasha saved my life by dunking me in the water where the Ark of Life was hidden, we were able to find the one weapon that could help defeat the Deceiver. So, in one way, if not for the Dragon, we might not have had a chance against his army.”

  “They killed a lot of our people.”

  “Yes, and they helped to destroy South Karmon.” His gaze dropped from the sky, and he looked across the open field towards the edge of the forest that stood across the shallow valley nearly a mile away. “But, hearing their story and how Humans killed off their kind, I can understand how their anger could drive them to do what they did. In truth, though, as long as they fight against the Deceiver, we don’t have the luxury of hating them. Maybe when this war is over, and our world is safe from complete destruction, we can start to think about those sorts of things. Until then, we fight alongside those who chose our side. We have no other choice, do we?”

  “No, we don’t,” Conner said. “You look weary.”

  “I think we all do.”

  “When was the last time you rested?”

  Marik shook his head. “Rest is another luxury that we do not have time for. When the battle is over, then we can rest.” The edges of his lips curled up slightly, and he added, “Or we’ll be dead, and it won’t matter.”

  “That won’t be the case. We’ll survive this and build an even better world.”

  The words hung in the air for a moment. Each hoped that they were words of truth, but they both knew what they were up against.

  “How was the war council meeting?” Conner asked after a long minute.

  Marik shrugged. “There was some arguing and bickering at first, but once we got that out our system, it was productive. We all have the same goal in mind, but there are too many opinions on how that should be accomplished. Sometimes we just have to get out of our own way.”

  “So, we have a plan, then?”

  “I think so, but I realized something else during that meeting. We have too many voices. We need one man to tell us all what to do, and we follow him.”

  “Man?”

  Marik realized his choice of words and quickly tried to back-track. “I didn’t mean any disrespect for Queen Elissa. She is a fine ruler, but in times of war, we need an experienced leader.”

  “I know what you meant. She is not knowledgeable in the ways of military tactics. She was raised as a princess to be married off at some point to a man who would be king.”

  “Well, in truth, her father wasn’t a great military mind, either. He was a man of peace, not of war. The only major battle King Thorndale led was against the Thellians, and he led us straight into an ambush. Don’t get me wrong. He was a great leader, just not when it came to the battlefield.”

  “Queen Elissa should not have to be taught those things.”

  “You don’t need to defend her to me, Conner. She has turned into a great queen and leader of our people. Maybe once this war is over, we can become a kingdom that never has to think about wars or fighting one another. Maybe having a common enemy to fight will bring peace to the entire world.”

  Conner let out a long sigh. “Humanity has been fighting every other race on this planet for thousands of years. Do you really think that is going to stop?”

  “We can hope, can we not?”

  “That we can. Hope is something we haven’t run out of, yet.”

  Marik looked at Conner for several moments.

  When Conner realized that Marik was staring at him, he gave a nervous chuckle and asked, “What?”

  “You could be that leader, you know. You know how to fight. You know how to lead. There is not a man, Elf, or Dwarf in this castle that wouldn’t fight at your side. We are all here because of you.”

  Conner let his chuckle turn into a laugh and shook his head. “I am no leader. I’ll leave that to you noble types. You are much more qualified than me. You were raised since a young boy to be a knight!”

  “I could never be a leader like Queen Elissa or King Illichian. For one, I do not have the patience to sit and listen to everyone’s complaints. If something needs to get done, just do it! Why sit and talk about it for hours on end? Karmon Knights have a hierarchy of leaders, but there still needs to be soldiers to fight the battles. That is me. No talk and all action!”

  “So, is that what’s happening in the war council? Too many hands trying to steer the same cart?”

  Marik smiled. “Pretty much. Leaders still can be fighters, but they lead first. Knights like me, we just do what we’re told and fight when we need to fight.”

  “And yet, it is you who represents the Karmon Knights on the war council?”

  “The curse of knighthood. Responsibility. We can’t all be soldiers, some of us need to be leaders. It seems that I’m not going to be allowed to just be a soldier, but that doesn’t make me someone who can lead this army.”

  “I could never be that leader, for I am like you. I am a soldier who just wants to fight.” He had tu
rned to face inward, towards the courtyard, and two figures walking quickly from the caverns to the castle caught his attention.

  Marik noticed Conner’s eyes focus on something. His instincts kicked in and he turned to see what Conner was looking at. “Is that Hargon and Marila together?”

  “It seems so. I did not know they knew one another.”

  “They met at yesterday’s meal, but I didn’t think that they were getting that friendly.”

  Conner looked closer at how they were walking. “I don’t think they are still that friendly. Look how he has her by the arm and is practically dragging her across the courtyard. Should we check it out?”

  “We probably should,” Marik replied.

  Before they had a chance to make a move, a shout from beyond the wall caught their attention. They turned to see a party of armed riders come charging toward the gates. Marik touched his hand to his sword, even though he was high above them and a sword would have done nothing if the riders were a threat. Conner noticed Marik’s motion and laughed.

  “It is Sir Olynn and five Elves,” Conner said, clearly seeing who it was.

  Marik squinted, trying to focus in on the riders. He shook his head at his poor vision and released his grip on his sword. “They are still some distance away,” Marik explained. He then gave Conner a sideways glance. “My eyes are not what they used to be. Tell no one. A Knight Ranger with poor eyesight will soon no longer be a Knight Ranger.”

  “Your secret is safe with me.”

  A couple minutes later, the riders reached the gate and came to a halt below Conner and Marik.

  “What say you, Sir Olynn?” Marik called out.

  Sir Olynn shook his head. “We rode straight west along the mountain range for two days, and there is still no sign of the enemy. Maybe they’re not coming.”

  “Do not worry. They will come, and we will be ready when they do. Your horses look as weary as you. We must be careful not to ride them too hard, for we may need them when the time comes for battle.”

  “Yes, Sir Marik!” With a yank of his reigns, Sir Olynn directed his horse towards the main gate, which was being pushed open for them.