Fall of the Arch Lich (D'Vaire, Book 6)

by Jessamyn Kingley

  “What the actual fuck?” Baxter whispered. Chander didn’t know what to think, but he felt a pit forming in his stomach.

  “Your Majesty, this is preposterous,” Prism Wizard Vadimas Porfyra declared. “This Council has never been involved in removing leaders—especially ones chosen by Fate.”

  “With all due respect, Prism Wizard, we do not believe Arch Lich Daray has been chosen by Fate,” Sigimund responded. “It has recently come to light that our current leader is only half necromancer. The other half is a type of unidentified demon. With no other known people amongst our Council with a similar lineage, we cannot know for certain the skull on his chest we believed was a sign from Fate designating him as Arch Lich isn’t something that’s inherent to his people.”

  “You believe all members of his demonic race bear the skull on their chest?” Vampyress Irina Volkov asked.

  “With no way to know, we can no longer assume it is the mark from Fate designating him as our leader,” Elder Sigimund insisted. “As there is no other Council leader who is a hybrid, we feel there is no way Fate would have given someone of mixed blood such a vital role.”

  “I find it distasteful that you’re suggesting the Arch Lich is unfit to be your leader because he’s a hybrid,” Alpha Artair Ursus Arctos stated.

  “Hybrids are the same as anyone else, this Council does not and will not discriminate against them,” Emperor Chrysander said.

  “Your Majesty, all we wish is for the Council to recognize the skull on Arch Lich Daray’s chest may not be a sign from Fate,” Elder Sigimund replied.

  “Arch Lich, would you care to respond?” Chrysander asked.

  “Your Majesty, I was born with this black skull on my chest. It was the elders who recognized it as a sign from Fate before I was even old enough to walk or talk. I didn’t find out I was a hybrid until over six centuries later,” Chander explained. He was compelled to be honest. Elder Sigimund was right; technically they didn’t know if it had something to do with his demon. His wings were the same shade as the skull. Without having any other demon like him, they had no comparison. Chander’s legs began to quake and his heart was thumping in his chest. He reminded himself that a skull was the ancient mark of a necromancer and that he’d always believed himself to be the Arch Lich. It was cold comfort this morning.

  “I’m not going to remove a Council leader because of a mark on his chest that may or may not be a sign from Fate. The elder council decided it made him their Arch Lich. You cannot simply decide all these centuries later you’re no longer confident of that conclusion,” Chrysander said. His voice was stern and irritated. A wave of relief swept over Chander. He’d been the Arch Lich his whole life and while his role was severely limited because of the elders, it wasn’t something he’d like to see taken from him. More than once in his life he’d been willing to give his title to any taker, but now it was all he had left. Without it, he had no idea who he even was anymore.

  “Your Majesty, if it were simply a matter of a skull upon his chest I would not be standing before you today taking up the valuable time of this Council. We have a great deal of proof Arch Lich Daray is unfit for his current role,” Elder Sigimund insisted.

  “Elder Sigimund, Arch Lich Daray once led this Council. We are sitting here today prosperous and flourishing because of his leadership. I fail to see how he could tackle such feats if he were an unfit leader,” Emperor Chrysander replied.

  “Your Majesty, I believe we need to have complete honesty about the previous actions undertaken by Arch Lich Daray,” Elder Sigimund countered. “He did lead the Council of Sorcery as it was known then. But two hundred years ago, he was perfectly willing to hand the title over to Arch Wizard Egidius. An uncouth and dreadful leader who created the vile Consilium Veneficus. If it were not for the intervention of the elder council, we would be living in a frightful state.”

  “Elder Sigimund, while he may have flirted with the idea of allowing an overly eager Arch Wizard Egidius to take over the Council, he did not. Instead, I was invited to take over and asked to incorporate as many shifter communities as I could persuade to join,” Chrysander said. Chander’s pulse hitched. He knew what was coming, and it wasn’t going to go over well. Chrysander knew the truth, but few others in the room did.

  “Your Majesty, the Arch Lich did not issue that invitation to you. It was the elder council. We were forced to forge his signature as he would not listen to reason.” Elder Sigimund wore a gloating smile. That was a secret he’d been holding on to for two centuries, and he was clearly relishing the gasps in the room.

  “Elder Sigimund, I am aware of your deceit,” Chrysander stated. “This Council should be aware the reason Arch Lich Daray was in negotiations with Arch Wizard Egidius was because he had the body of Reverent Knight Conley Gylde-Kempe. Arch Lich Daray was desperate to reunite a mated pair.”

  “Your Majesty, while that may be true, it is unlawful to separate mates. It was the Arch Lich who created the situation in the first place. He resurrected both men but put Reverent Knight Conley in stasis for over six centuries. That is yet another example of Arch Lich Daray’s unacceptable behavior as a leader,” Elder Sigimund maintained.

  “Elder Sigimund, Arch Lich Daray was not alone in his decision to separate me from my mate. I will not have him take the blame for it. There were three other Council leaders involved, and the Arch Lich was seventeen at the time of the incident,” Reverent Knight Drystan Gylde-Kempe said.

  “Reverent Knight, two of those leaders are dead and Killian the Dwyer stepped down. We have no way of verifying that it was not the Arch Lich alone who made that decision. It is unlawful to separate mates and no reason is a just one,” Elder Sigimund retorted. More noise filled the gallery as the other leaders reacted to Sigimund’s words. Chander’s cheeks were flushed with heat. It was humiliating to have his past pulled out and examined. He was the first to admit he’d made mistakes, but he didn’t appreciate the elders using them as political fodder.

  “I do not believe my brother is capable of such a crime,” Aloisa the Dwyer argued. “It is completely intolerable to suggest he would have given a green light to two mates being separated for a day—let alone centuries.”

  “Killian the Dwyer was a just and respectable leader. I must agree with Aloisa the Dwyer. He would not have been complicit in such an act,” the chieftain of the Tristis elves added.

  “It is obvious Arch Lich Daray has no respect for matebonds,” Elder Sigimund responded. “He is currently in the process of dissolving his own union.”

  “Elder Sigimund, I will not tolerate my personal life being spoken of in this forum or any other. The state of my matebond is the business of myself and the Arch Lich. No one else,” Alaric shot out.

  “Lich Sentinel, you cannot argue he holds any sanctity for your union. He has spent the past three months trying to get your signature on the separation papers,” Elder Sigimund insisted.

  “My personal life is private,” Chander bit out.

  “Arch Lich, do you deny you are in the process of having your matebond dissolved?” Aloisa the Dwyer asked.

  “The Arch Lich’s matebond is not up for discussion,” Chrysander declared. “I will not allow any further questions on the matter.”

  “Your Majesty, I wish to know why the Arch Lich has not been subject to investigation over his involvement in separating the Reverent Knights,” the leader of the jaguar shifters inquired. “He should not be treated as if he is above the law.”

  “I must agree with Alpha Panthera. There should be a criminal investigation into the decision made by the Arch Lich. No matter his age at the time of the crime, he was aware of the laws of the Council of Sorcery. He had no right to do what he did,” Chieftain Tristis said.

  “The Arch Lich’s actions were the result of his belief that should we regain our memories so soon after we were murdered that we might well go on a rampage to avenge ourselves. I can tell you unequivocally my mate would not have rested until our murderers faced
justice. It pains me to have missed even a day of Drystan’s life, but I can understand why the Arch Lich made the decision to put me in stasis. It’s not his fault Arch Wizard Egidius did not hold up his end of the bargain and return my body to him after a century had passed as was their agreement,” Reverent Knight Conley explained.

  “Your Majesty, I believe it is the unusually close relationship the Arch Lich shares with the Order of the Fallen Knights that has saved him from prosecution. He will not allow any other necromancer to assist with resurrections of fallen knights. The Arch Lich should put the Order of Necromancia first, but he is abnormally attached to not only the fallen knights but the sentinels as well. Certainly, that is proof he is no Fate-chosen leader. As with his hybrid blood, there is no other Council leader who is mated to another Council leader of a separate race,” Elder Sigimund argued.

  “It is Fate who chose the Arch Lich and Lich Sentinel to be mates. We will not remark upon that choice,” Emperor Chrysander said. Chander shifted in his seat and wondered if the morning would ever end. He could tell by the smug look on Sigimund’s face he still had plenty to say. The question was, did Chander have the stomach to listen to it?

  Chapter 6

  “Your Majesty, I only bring up the remarkable connections of the Arch Lich because it has perversely affected the Order of Necromancia,” Sigimund insisted. “We have been forced to file petition after petition to deal with the sentinel problem without the support of the Arch Lich.”

  “The Sentinel Brotherhood is a part of this Council and will remain so,” Emperor Chrysander replied.

  “Your Majesty, what I wished to illustrate is that since Arch Lich Daray came to power, he has been unwilling to lead the Order of Necromancia in a competent manner. It was why we were forced to curtail his authority centuries ago,” Elder Sigimund responded. “I’m afraid he has never forgiven us for doing what was best for our people. He treats the elder council which serves him as advisers with thinly veiled contempt.”

  “A leader should be able to listen to all voices inside their race,” Magus Superus Egann argued. “It’s a mark against the Arch Lich that he’s been unable to cooperate with his own elder council. We have long known about the difficulties there, and he has expressed interest in having this Council intervene on his behalf. As the Arch Lich, he should be able to handle the personality conflicts that have arisen since he was old enough to rule. He’s had over six centuries to build bridges with his elders, so they might entrust him with the return of his duties.”

  “The Magus Superus speaks the truth. The Arch Lich should be able to be a competent manager of people, especially his own,” Aloisa the Dwyer added.

  “Your Majesty, I would not have us gloss over the fact that the Arch Lich has not been investigated for his crime of separating the Reverent Knights. If the Order of the Fallen Knights cannot offer an independent review of his actions, then we must assign a special task force to handle this,” Alpha Panthera said.

  Chander’s throat was dry and his hands were trembling. The tension was growing in the room, and there were many heated voices agreeing with Alpha Panthera. When he’d arrived for work, all he thought he would be doing was going to a Council session; he had no idea he’d be practically declared a criminal.

  “A petition will need to be filed so we can vote upon the request of Alpha Panthera. We cannot adopt a special task force without it.” Emperor Chrysander sounded both furious and resigned.

  “Your Majesty, I will have the petition delivered to your office this afternoon,” Alpha Panthera promised. There were a chorus of additional people who would add letters supporting the petition. Chander’s blood turned to ice. His decision so many centuries before could result in his life ending. The ultimate punishment for separating mates was death.

  “Your Majesty, we cannot have a Council leader in power who is under an investigation which could very well mean a harsh sentence should he be convicted of the crime,” Chieftain Tristis said. “It is unfair to the Order of Necromancia.”

  “The Order of Necromancia hereby asks this Council to remove the Arch Lich,” Elder Sigimund demanded. His tone was rich with satisfaction, and Chander knew he was trying very hard not to smile. This was exactly what he’d wanted.

  “It is premature to ask for the dismissal of the Arch Lich. Should this Council support Alpha Panthera’s petition, we will discuss temporarily suspending the Arch Lich,” Chrysander stated. “This Council is not going to begin removing Fate-born and Fate-chosen leaders. That goes against all we stand for. We believe and trust in Fate. We have no right to question her judgment.”

  “Your Majesty, I could not agree more, but I must remind you again we have no proof Fate has chosen Arch Lich Daray in the first place. The necromancers have never had a Fate-chosen leader before. The Arch Liches were always elected. The Order of Necromancia cannot continue to function in this tug of war between our leader and the elder council.” Sigimund lifted a stack of papers and waved it around. “I have in my hand signatures from over three thousand necromancers supporting the removal of Arch Lich Daray. That is over a quarter of our small population. Given enough time, I know we could have added even more but when I realized the extent of the unhappiness of our people, I was compelled to get this process underway. Our people are suffering, and it is directly because of Arch Lich Daray.”

  “What the actual fuck?” Baxter whispered again. Chander was beside himself. He’d tried to do the best he could for his people and yet, they were unhappy with him as ruler. That was something he could not ignore. He could not put his personal desire to be Arch Lich over the necromancers.

  “Your Majesty, I feel we must aid the Order of Necromancia and vote upon this petition to remove Arch Lich Daray,” Aloisa the Dwyer demanded.

  “This Council cannot allow a race to suffer under bad leadership,” Chieftain Tristis agreed.

  “Our mission is to help all magickind and shifters. We would be derelict in our duty if we did not intervene on behalf of the necromancers and the elder council,” Alpha Panthera added.

  “I would ask the Arch Lich to defend himself against these allegations,” Vampyress Volkov insisted.

  Chander rose to his feet. His knees were shaking, and he was filled with contempt. He could not have hated himself more than at this moment. Carefully he slid his thick silver ring that represented his title off his finger. His fist curled around it as he pulled off his smoky crown. Gathering his dark magic, he turned both objects to dust. “Your Majesty and members of this Council, I will not argue that I have made mistakes. They have been plenty and for that, you all have my sincere apology. It may be difficult to believe, but I have always done what I felt was best for the Order of Necromancia and this Council. As much as it pains me to admit it, I have failed to do my job well. I will cooperate with your investigation into my role in separating the Reverent Knights. However, you do not need to vote today upon the petition brought forth by the elder council. I hereby resign my duties as leader of the Order of Necromancia. It has been an honor to serve the necromancers and to be a part of this Council. I thank all of you for the opportunities which allowed me to function as the Arch Lich and Council leader. I wish you all the best of luck in the future.”

  Chander’s ears were ringing by the time his speech was over. His gums were stinging as his demon was more than ready to take on everyone in the room. Baxter and Benton were saying something, but he couldn’t make out their words. He didn’t wait for anything; he marched over to the door and slid it open. Chander had to get the fuck out and away from the assembly hall.

  “We better go to the office,” Chander managed before he teleported out. He shimmered in right next to Evergreen’s desk. The necromancer/druid hybrid jumped when he saw him. “I didn’t mean to scare you. You need to pack up your things and get out of here.”

  Baxter and Benton materialized in the room and Evergreen’s green-gray eyes went wide. Chander was sure it had nothing to do with his sentinels and everything t
o do with his words. “Are you firing me?” Evergreen asked, shock evident in his voice.

  “I’m no longer the Arch Lich,” Chander said. “You need to get out of here before the elder council returns. Contact Alaric. He was in session this morning. He knows what happened. Tell him you need a job. If he can’t help, call Drystan.”

  Evergreen nodded, and he and his sentinel began gathering their stuff without a word. Chander’s wobbly legs got him to his own space. He gathered everything that belonged to him in a dark bubble and sent it to his condo. He sure as hell wasn’t going to stick around and listen to the elders gloat about finally being rid of him. But he couldn’t go until he was sure Evergreen was safe from them. They’d only tolerated the hybrid because they had no other choice. With Chander out of the way, they would not hesitate to fire his personal assistant. Chander’s cell phone rang but he ignored it.

  The only reason he didn’t use his magic to destroy the damn thing was because he had a few friends who would get pissed off if they couldn’t contact him. After all these centuries of fighting the elder council, Chander supposed he should be feeling relieved he no longer had to deal with them, but losing his title was like severing a limb. Being the Arch Lich was an integral part of who he was, and it was the only part of himself he liked. It was a direct link between him and his people.

  It had also been the fuel that had allowed him to act as Council leader. He had thought he’d done good things during his reign, but it appeared there were plenty of leaders who were more than ready to toss him out on his ear. He’d never been more mortified in his life and that included being dishonored by Alaric who just happened to be there in the assembly room witnessing the carnage of his whole identity.

  “I’ve got all my things,” Evergreen said.

  “Alaric was in Council session this morning,” Chander repeated. “Go on home and leave a message on his cell phone. I’m sure he’ll check it before he heads back to the compound. Don’t worry about money. I can pay your salary if the Lich Sentinel can’t.”