by Travis Pond
“So by killing the King, the sword can be taken by King Hamish?” asked Tureis.
“Yes,” said Dealla. “According to the Queen, for a brief moment after King Seathan dies the bond of the Matya is broken. If another person takes the sword at that time, it will bind to him and give him incredible power.”
“Is there anything else you can tell us?” asked Seth.
Dealla thought for a moment, “No. I think that’s all I know. I should get going.”
Seth looked her in the eyes and said with sincerity, “Thank you for all your information. Now go before you’re missed.”
Dealla turned and ran from the stables back into the fortress. Seth turned to Tureis and said, “It’s time to go home.”
They left the stables and made their way back to the private servants courtyard to await the others. When they arrived, Ailish was sitting on a bench in the corner. She was still dressed in her servants clothes and was rubbing a coin. Seeing them enter, Ailish stood and walked over to meet them. She held out the coin to Tureis. “This is how they’ve known where we were.”
Tureis took the coin from Ailish and felt the strange power it contained. As he rubbed the coin between his fingers, he sensed the dark energy it contained. He turned it over and over in his fingers, examining the writing on the surface.
“Is this the coin?” asked Tureis, sharing a knowing look with Ailish.
“It is,” said Ailish with a nod.
“When were you able to get it?” asked Tureis.
“I got it in Purrump,” said Ailish. “I was unsure what it was at first, but learned today it’s some kind of communication device.”
“But who did you get it from?” asked Eammon.
“Braon,” answered Ailish.
Hearing this, they all fell silent, staring at the coin. “What does that mean?” asked Seth, not really sure he wanted to hear the answer.
Ailish looked at Tureis and said, “After what I’ve learned, it means Braon does actually plan to capture Seth and give him to King Hamish.”
Seth’s face fell and his shoulders slumped. He blew out a large breath as he took in the information. “But he was our friend,” he said quietly.
“After this, I’m not sure who he is anymore,” said Ailish.
“What else did you learn?” asked Tureis.
Ailish recounted the information she gathered while following Braon. After she finished she said, “I lost him before the Guard went into the banquet hall. Truthfully, I was so affected by the things I learned my mind sort of shut down and I forgot to follow him. Last I saw he was walking toward the front gate.”
They all looked around, Eammon walked over to the hallway and looked up its length. “He’s not coming yet,” he said.
Ailish said, “What do we do?”
“Currently, we have the upper hand as we know Braon plans to capture Seth. What we need is a counter plan,” said Tureis. After a brief pause he looked at Seth. “Seth, any ideas?”
Seth sat up and shook off his haze. He paced back and forth for a minute. Eammon moved over to the hallway and guarded the entrance watching for Braon to return.
After a couple minutes Seth said, “I have an idea I think will work.”
Quickly, he explained his idea to the other three and said, “Now the most important part of this plan is that Braon has to think we don’t know anything about his plan. The second most important thing is that we must be prepared, because we don’t know when he plans to capture me. We must be ready.”
Eammon moved over near them and whispered, “He’s coming.”
Braon entered the small courtyard out of breath. “Where have you been?” asked Seth. “We’ve been waiting for a while now. We need to get out of here.”
Braon caught his breath and said, “You’re right. We do need to get out of here. The king is planning to invade Thaven. He wants to trade you for the kingdom, but if he can’t find you he’s just going to invade anyway.”
Tureis wanted to find out what Braon was willing to share and asked, “We heard the same thing. Do you know why he wants to invade?”
Braon thought for a moment, “No idea actually. Power is my guess. But we should get out of here, the Guard will be leaving soon and we don’t want to be seen.”
Together, they made their way out of the fortress and across the drawbridge. They walked through the shops and slipped into the forest. Fortunately, the horses were still where they’d left them. After changing clothes, they mounted their horses and rode deeper into the forest.
“We should take the most direct route to Thaven,” said Tureis after they’d ridden for an hour. “Let’s go around Zafiat to the west and then down to the border road just north of Kurith. Then straight across to Darish.”
Braon thought for a moment and said, “I like the sound of that, but we should avoid going into the towns. Let’s keep to the south of Zafiat and stay in the forest. It’s about a three day ride from here to Darish if we stay in the forest, maybe longer.”
“It’ll be dark soon,” said Eammon. “We should find a place to camp, eat a good meal and get some rest.”
That night after dinner Tureis stood and walked from camp. Upon his return, he noticed Braon was gone. He looked around camp and sat down. “Braon left a while ago as well,” said Ailish softly. “Were you able to send the message?”
Using the sphere, Tureis had communicated with King Seathen and Sepi, as instructed by Sepi. He explained the information they’d learned as well as the plan to foil Braon in his attempt to capture Seth. With both the King and Sepi in agreement of his plan, Tureis was breathing easier.
Tureis nodded, “Yes. I also told them of Seth’s plan and they agreed it’s a good idea.”
Seth smiled, “That’s good to hear. Will they help?”
“They said they will if they can, but since we don’t know when or where it will happen, that basically it’s up to us,” said Tureis.
“What about Braon? What’s he up to?” asked Ailish.
Tureis smiled and removed the coin from his pocket. Since the coin was thought to be lost, no one had taken the time to disconnect the Matya from the old coin. The new coin and the old coin were still connected to the other coin that Caitlyn possessed. As a result, every time either of them communicated, whatever they said would show up on the coin Tureis had.
Tureis looked at the coin, reading the inscription on the face of it. “It looks like he just told Caitlyn where we were camping and the route we’re taking to Thaven. That’s all so far.”
Ailish smiled at the thought of being one step ahead of Braon. For the next hour they sat by the fire and watched as Braon and Caitlyn communicated back and forth. Through this they learned that Braon had set up some kind of secret army in Thaven. This secret army had been slowly embedded into normal Thaven society as not to stand out. Over the past several months, hundreds of men from Zummot had joined the secret army and were currently in Thaven, awaiting the signal to attack.
After the communication appeared to be finished for the night, Tureis used his sphere and communicated this last piece of information to King Seathan and the Oracle. When he finished, he placed the coin and the sphere into his pocket and stared into the fire. So much was happening in such a short time. What started out as a journey to see the Oracle, and a hope to learn about themselves and learn more about the Matya, had turned into a race to save the Kingdom of Thaven.
The thought of what was about to happen in the next few days overwhelmed Tureis. The Oracle had told him he needed to be a leader on this journey and to protect Seth. He shook his head at the thought, wondering how that would happen. One thing he’d learned on this journey was to trust his friends. They were also powerful with the Matya and loyal to him, just as he was loyal to them. Tureis knew he couldn’t do it alone, but tog
ether with his friends, he felt confident they could accomplish whatever came their way.
Braon still had not returned to camp. After staring into the fire for another hour each member of the group curled up into their bedrolls. Eammon stoked the fire one last time and yawned, “I’m exhausted! We all need to get some sleep. I have a feeling it’s going to be a long ride.”
Chapter 27
- Preparation -
They made their way around Zafiat to the south and had been on the border road for the past day. To avoid unwanted attention, they were currently riding in the forest parallel to the road, heading south toward Kurith. If they stayed on this course, they would be entering Darish late tomorrow night.
It was twilight and they’d been riding all day. The horses were tired and everyone was hungry. “I think we should stop somewhere around here and make camp,” said Eammon. “I’m starving and my back side is sore.”
A collective groan escaped as they were all sore from the long ride. “I agree,” said Seth. They moved deeper into the forest until they found a large clearing surrounded by trees and set up camp. After a full meal, they sat around the fire talking. “That meal was amazing,” said Seth.
“Yeah. After a long ride, that stew was really something,” said Tureis. During this trip, Eammon had taken upon himself to be the designated cook. His meals were delicious and everyone was glad to let him continue cooking.
Braon stood up and stretched, “I need to stretch my legs a bit after riding all day. I’m going to take a walk for a while.” He turned and walked into the forest.
Everyone watched him go and then turned and looked at Tureis. They waited several minutes before speaking. Tureis had his eyes closed as he held the sphere. He was still unable to sense Braon’s Matya, so Tureis would just wait for his sphere to tell him there was no one around the immediate area. Finally, Tureis nodded, “He’s far enough away, we should be fine.”
“If we ride all day tomorrow we could be in Darish tomorrow night. If he’s going to do something it’s got to be soon,” said Ailish.
“I agree,” said Seth. “And the tactical advantage would be to do it in the dark when no one suspects. Are we ready if it’s tonight?”
Eammon nodded, “I have everything ready. Just say the word.”
“Ailish, would you scout around and see what we have in the area that could help us, if anything?” asked Seth. “I have a feeling it’s happening tonight.” Ailish nodded, got up and walked from camp.
“Eammon, get things ready. Maybe even set things up,” said Seth. Eammon chuckled, opened his bag and began removing various items.
Seth continued, “Tureis, is there a way you can you keep tabs on him and let me know if he gets close?” Tureis nodded, put his hand into his pocket and closed his eyes.
After a while, Ailish returned and immediately she left again, taking Eammon with her. Seth was huddled over the fire, working intently on something small. Tureis closed his eyes, concentrating on Braon, trying to sense his Matya. He had to have Matya, everyone possessed it. Through some of his reading, Tureis was convinced that Braon was somehow shielding his Matya from everyone, allowing himself to seem invisible. Tureis thought if he was able to focus hard and long enough, that eventually Braon would lose focus and his Matya would slip out. Tureis hoped he would be there when it did. For now, he just focused on sensing the presence of others in the area. As best as Tureis could tell, Braon was not moving, but appeared to be in one place walking in circles, and was quite a distance from camp.
After an hour, Eammon and Ailish returned to camp. “We’re set up about a quarter mile from here. It’s in close proximity to the border road but in an area dense with trees,” said Eammon.
“That should work well,” said Seth, still focused on his project.
“And provide easy access to the road, which will make things easier,” added Eammon.
Seth finished his project and placed it into an inside pocket under his cloak. He sat back, trying to relax. “It’s getting dark fast. Should be completely dark within the hour. If he’s going to do it tonight it should be soon,” said Seth. He paused a moment, “I just wish he would do this and get it over with. The anticipation is killing me.”
Just then Tureis sat up, “I think it’s time,” he said with some urgency. “I can sense three more people with Braon and they are moving this way.”
“Three more people!” exclaimed Eammon.
“Don’t worry, the plan will still work,” said Seth calmly.
“But there’s four of them. I didn’t plan for four people when I designed it,” said Eammon, sounding concerned.
Seth thought for a minute and said, “We will have to see if we can thin down those numbers somehow. When they enter, my bet is they will be ready for a fight. We need to be ready as well. It will be close quarters so I think swords will be best.”
Each of them retrieved their swords from their bags and attached them to their belts. As Tureis removed his sword, Eammon’s eyes widened. “Where did you get that sword?” he asked.
Everyone turned and looked at the sword. Tureis was holding a medium length sword made of fire hardened steel. The blade was wide and exquisitely sharp on both sides. The steel had been polished to a mirror finish and seemed to glow in the firelight. As Tureis moved the blade back and forth, light reflected off it casting rays into the darkness around them. The hilt was made of steel and the cross guard made of gold with two large rubies set on each side.
“That is one of the most beautiful swords I’ve ever seen. The craftsmanship is truly amazing,” said Eammon.
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen that sword before. Where did you get it?” asked Ailish,
“Sepi gave it to me,” said Tureis. “It’s not an object of power, but it’s made of very high quality metals which she said could be used to channel the Matya. She said the sword had been passed down to her from a previous Oracle. She told me she’d never thought of giving it away, but it seemed right for me to have it.” Tureis swung it a few times, getting a feel for the weight and placed it in the leather scabbard on his belt.
Seth felt the normal sword at his side and thought about his other sword, Faithkeeper, in his bag. He decided that for his plan to work, he should use a normal sword. He also didn’t want to lose Faithkeeper if Braon disarmed him during the fight.
Sitting by the fire, they just waited, trying to make it seem that they were oblivious to Braon’s plan and not wanting to lose their advantage. The anticipation was hard to handle. As luck would have it, they didn’t have to wait long before they heard footsteps in the distance, moving towards them. Everyone tensed up and looked at each other, waiting for the inevitable. Seth held up a finger and whispered, “They’re splitting up. Braon is coming straight towards us. The other three are circling around and will be coming in from behind.”
Seth turned to Ailish and Eammon and said in a whisper, “You two focus on Braon. Tureis and I will handle the other three.” They all nodded in agreement and waited, listening to the footsteps coming closer to them.
Suddenly, Braon ran straight out of the forest on a course directly toward Seth. Ailish jumped up and hit Braon with her shoulder as he passed, knocking him to the ground. Braon got to his feet quickly with his sword out. Ailish and Eammon had their swords out and moved to put themselves between Braon and Seth. Seth and Tureis backed up away from Braon.
Braon swung his sword at Ailish and Eammon lunged in front of her to block the strike. Ailish, steadied herself and struck at Braon, but he easily knocked her sword aside and out of her hands. Eammon stepped in and with two hands gripping the sword, swung and attacked Braon, driving him backwards into the forest.
Just then the three other men laying in wait in the forest bounded into the clearing. Without any hesitation they ran straight for Seth. They stopped suddenly w
hen they saw Tureis standing there, his sword pointed at them. Tureis stood with both hands gripping the sword. His face was drawn into deep concentration and focus, his Matya fully activated and traveling down his arms flowing into the sword. The sword began to make a low humming noise and was glowing with a faint blue light.
Again the men raised their swords. One man came directly at Seth, but he was ready and easily defended the attack, blocking the sword and knocking it from the man’s hand. Tureis ran at the other two before they could swarm Seth. His blade was swift responding to his Matya, anticipating their moves. Tureis let the Matya guide him as he fought and he easily disarmed the men. When they turned their backs to him in retreat, Tureis turned the sword and hit each of them with the flat part of the blade on the back of the leg. A bright flash occurred along with a scream, then they both fell to the ground motionless.
Tureis turned to see Seth on his knees and the third man holding a knife to his throat. Tureis surrendered and placed his sword back into his scabbard and then he quickly placed the sword back into his bag. He then turned and shouted at Ailish and Eammon, who were still fighting Braon on the other side of camp.
The fighting stopped and Braon let out a victory yell. Eammon and Ailish dropped their swords as Braon forced them over near Seth. As Braon approached, the man removed the knife from Seth’s throat and forced him to his feet, the knife still pushed into his back. Seth stared directly at Braon and said, “I can’t believe you would sell out your kingdom for a sack of gold coins. Where is your honor?”
Braon laughed out loud, “I have none! I simply want to leave here and start a new life. The gold will help me do that.”
“What about loyalty? All that time in the King’s Guard,” asked Ailish.
Again Braon laughed. “I am loyal to no one but myself. Now move over there and sit by the fire. Try anything and Seth gets stabbed in the back.” Braon pushed Eammon towards the fire, Ailish and Tureis followed quietly. Seth was brought over and forced to sit.