They wasted no time coming for him, and Laelliandir turned to fight them off. Lonewolf would not leave the fate of Divox in the balance with a battle of swords though. Out from his belt, he lifted the same black reed he had used many times before and took it in his mouth. Before Laelliandir had a chance to defend himself, he blew into the reed. A poisonous dart struck Laelliandir in the back of his neck. As his father before him, Laelliandir's head was fuzzy. The surrounding soldiers stopped and waited for the poison to take effect while Laelliandir reached up and plucked the dart from his neck. His knees grew weak, and his sword felt heavy as he stumbled back looking at Lonewolf once more.
"You!" he said, realizing now just who had killed his father. Lonewolf looked at him without shame as he watched Laelliandir fall face-first against the cold floor.
"Take him to the jails. He's not dead," Lonewolf ordered the soldiers. They obeyed and surrounded the fallen White Lion.
"Wolf!" Out from the floor vent, Bella surfaced, sword in hand. Tears streamed down her face as she glowered at him. Lonewolf's heart skipped several beats when he saw her standing there. The soldiers and guards moved from Laelliandir and turned to their new angry guest.
"Bella? What are you doing here?" Lonewolf asked. "Don't hurt her!"
"What are you doing? Who are you? You keep your filthy paws off him."
"It isn't what you think. Stop. Right there." Lonewolf told her as Bella advanced toward Laelliandir ignoring the soldiers.
"Or what? Are you going to kill me? What have you become? Have you always been like this?" Bella cried as she questioned him, tormented by confusion. Immobilized Lonewolf felt shame and powerlessness as he met Bella's gaze. Lonewolf believed he'd rid himself of guilt altogether, but Bella witnessing his actions riddled him with remorse along with despair and fear. He had no excuse to offer her. Nothing she would understand. Nothing she would accept, but he did not want to lose her this way. Then he realized exactly what he had to do to erase this moment forever.
"Bella." She stared at him with a broken heart and waited for him to explain. "I'm truly sorry," he admitted as he brought the black reed to his mouth once more and blew yet another dart. In a flash, it struck Bella in the chest, leaving her speechless. Lonewolf turned from her in shame and shut his eyes. Bella stirred as the poison began to take effect, and her body became heavy and weak. She could no longer hold a single thought in her mind. "Take her to the prison cells. Keep her as far away as possible from Laelliandir." Lonewolf ordered as he stood there a moment longer to clear his thoughts. There was one sure way to undo what had happened and win Bella's trust back.
As the hired hands carried the two bodies past him, Lonewolf stopped the men carrying Laelliandir's body. He reached his hands around the limber neck of the White Lion and removed Icaz's medallion from around his neck. "Carry on, and once they are locked away, find me on the top floor in the chambers of the Overlords for your last instructions and final pay." They did exactly as they were told while Lonewolf remained behind and alone for a little longer. He held the medallion that had been wrapped in an old white rag. Even under the cloth, he could see its powerful red glow.
His lies and actions since joining Icaz in Frenmere Pass used to keep him up at night. The murders and betrayals of everyone near him were countless, but some time ago, he had shut off his conscience. Seeing himself through Bella's eyes, Lonewolf realized he'd become a monster, but knowing that changed nothing. He couldn't undo any of it now. The man he had become was not who he once was. This day's Lonewolf would have killed Icaz, stolen his wealth, and not given a second thought to caring for Zynoa, Bella or Luminear. Even though he had never been a truthful man, he had followed his own code of honor. In those days he had been a man who could be unselfish, even heroic. That man was dead now.
Chapter Twenty Nine
Service Pay
L onewolf left the lower corridors to check on Neighraellium's progress. On his way up, he stopped at the eighth floor where the smell of smoke was dense in the air. He took a few moments to poke around and followed the fumes to their source. As planned, Neighraellium set ablaze each exit of the library where the rest of the Maelor family hid. Lonewolf wasted little time there as the clouds of smoke were too much to bear, but he was sure their scheme had succeeded. There was no chance of the flames spreading through a castle made of stone, but it surely ravaged the library. Even without further investigation, Lonewolf was certain the ones hiding inside were dead. He heard not a peep from within, except for the sounds of crackling wood.
Lonewolf climbed the remaining staircases and soon entered the top floor of the castle to find Neighraellium had unlocked all the doors to allow him passage. Neighraellium left a little trail of blood wherever he moved, apparently scooping some of it off his clothes and wiping it along the walls as he went. He knew the Maelor Overlords were dead long before he arrived at the scene, and he was prepared for the gory mess after following a stream of blood, puddles, and smears.
"Overkill?" asked Lonewolf as he came into the view of the dead Maelor's upon the stone terrace. Neighraellium was sitting on Ishanna's cushioned chair, staring at himself in a round mirror upon a white dresser. The dresser was within a few feet of the clear glass doors leading to the balcony and the bodies. His face and clothes were splattered with blood, but Neighraellium looked at him through the mirror with an angry expression and tossed out his hand as if expecting something. Atop his dark hair now sat Ishanna's jeweled crown.
"Medallion?" he demanded. Lonewolf reached in his pocket and handed it over before going back to look at the dead.
"Shouldn't you be wearing the High King's crown?" Lonewolf asked, not really caring what he wore. Then he noticed the giant green Tragmont flag Neighraellium had tied to the balcony railing. He recognized the flag as he had seen it hanging alongside several other flags in the hall of artifacts. Lonewolf had suggested hanging it for all to view as it would make it easier to accuse Laelliandir of being allied with Tragmont and to convince the people Tragmont masterminded all of their recent struggles. To ramp up public fury, they even intended to claim King Casen had also been in league with Tragmont when he crusaded across Divox.
"Oh, I've missed this. Come here you," Neighraellium said as he peeked under the cloth to view the magical red glow of his prized possession.
"You weren't seen on the balcony, were you?" Neighraellium had gone back to Pathorus after he killed his wife, and he had set the old man upright against the railing, using his lifeless body to hold up the flag. He pierced through the High King's shoulder and rammed the pole through to maintain a secure hold. Lonewolf tried not to look at either of the victims, but he craned his neck far enough out onto the balcony to get a glimpse of the battle below.
"Did you notice how busy they are down there? They saw nothing. We're so far up they wouldn't recognize what they were looking at anyway." Neighraellium looked back at the mirror and smiled. He had used the blood spatter on his face to paint two upward lines on the sides of his lips to make his smile grotesque and extra-large. He was having a glorious day.
"Probably so, but they aren't that busy anymore. It will be show time before long." Lonewolf, after studying the scene below determined there was still a little defense left within Laelliandir's riders, but they would not last much longer. Novanian troops and guards outnumbered them four to one, and in the distance, some white riders were seen retreating up the hill beyond the city gates.
"The sooner, the better." Neighraellium grinned at his partner and into the mirror. Lonewolf sighed and turned his head back to face the skies outside. "The library and the rest of their cursed family and relations will not be a problem."
"Saw that. It's gone as smoothly as planned so far."
"You succeeded as well? The ill-bred maggot is still alive? Or did you kill him?" Before Lonewolf answered, there was a knock on the door, changing the focus of their attention. One soldier who had taken Bella and Laelliandir to prison waited outside with the rest of the group b
ehind him. Once inside the soldiers noticed the gruesome display on the balcony, and Neighraellium primping himself in the mirror with blood.
"Oh yeah, these fellows just escorted Laelliandir to jail. More on that after, but these gentlemen need their pay," Lonewolf reminded his partner. Neighraellium spun around in his chair, then craned his neck and stared at the men.
"Pay?"
"Yes. Service pay. You can handle that right, old friend?" Neighraellium nodded.
"Of course!" He brought up his medallion as he stood. "See here fellows. Right here. Right at the light. Just for a moment. Take a good look." Within seconds, the soldiers were sucked into a trance where the sound of Neighraellium's voice took control over them. Whatever he ordered, they would be forced to do. He had missed having so much power. "Keep looking. Lord Wolf will take care of you."
"Me? I'm out of lethal toxin. I made a weaker sort to keep you-know-who alive. You're the one obsessed with blood, why don't you do it?"
"You're the one obsessed with blood, why don't you do it?” Neighraellium mimicked Lonewolf, repeating everything he said in a whiny tone. "Come on. Just once! It'll be fun." Lonewolf groaned then walked over to the door and pushed the first soldier and took position behind him. He didn't care anymore. His concerns lie elsewhere now. Without hesitation, he took out his knife and brought it up to cut the poor man's throat, then he shoved him to the ground.
"We don't have time for this," he snapped as he walked behind another and did the same. Neighraellium laughed as he watched Lonewolf take one life after the next, shoving their lifeless bodies down afterward. "First, there are twenty-four elite bodyguards. They block our soldier's path of entry into the castle. We have to report the death of the Overlords by Laelliandir's hand. There is still way too much to do without arguing on chores!" Lonewolf barked as he continued the dirty job with no remorse. Neighraellium couldn't stop snickering watching him take them all out one by one while they stared stupidly into his magical relic. Within moments he was done, and a line of bodies lay about the floor.
"I only meant one, you selfish scamp!” Lonewolf stepped over the bodies and re-entered the room, taking care to shield his eyes from the medallion.
"I didn't want to argue. And do you mind? Put that sarding thing away." To Lonewolf's surprise, Neighraellium apologized before putting his beloved relic back into his robes.
"Grumpy? I'm surprised you even brought it. I half expected you to steal it and pretend the lion boy didn't have it."
"Trust me. That thing gives me the creeps. I don't want it."
"Good to know. Figured you might try to use it. Perhaps just once out of curiosity. Or you might use it twice to kill me and take. Take! Take!" Neighraellium rose and glanced at the fallen men piled up at the Overlord's doorstep.
"I wasn’t sure if anyone other than you could use it."
"Not sure? It was made for me. Probably can't. Maybe. White cat didn't know its secret." Lonewolf pondered the possibility of using it, but outside of Bella, he had no need for the medallion's power.
"I am usually good enough at controlling people, so I don't need it, and why would I kill you? You'd just pop right back up as someone else, right? Besides, I don't want the reins. Tragmont is my destination. Once Tragmont's walls are down, I'll get what I want. Nothing here for me and I'm not staying in this hole much longer. Getting out of here. Let's just say I will be thrilled to leave this place behind. You can stick around all you want and let your little realm of puppets war away for all I care." Lonewolf raised his hands, fingers pointed upwards. All patience spent, he screamed, "Now to the sarding point!" Neighraellium stared at Lonewolf's sudden shrill display of temper.
"Yeah, yeah let's go," Neighraellium snapped back, finally understanding his partner's edginess and his desire to finish this shared task of theirs. He waltzed across the floor and stepped irreverently on top of the dead to exit the room. "You are way too serious today. This is a holiday!" Lonewolf rolled his eyes and followed him, trying to avoid stepping on any of the people he had killed. As Lonewolf caught up with Neighraellium, he plucked Ishanna's crown off of his head and chucked it back into the room, where it rolled next to the High Queen.
"You can't wear that." Lonewolf insisted as he pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and handed it to his comrade. "Wipe the blood off your lips. Do you wish to be taken for the new Royal King or Royal Jester? What you do a month or two down the road, I don't care about, but today you need to be taken seriously." Neighraellium did not want the fun to end, but knew his associate was right. They exited the regal chambers still talking while Neighraellium cleaned himself up.
"We have another problem," Lonewolf said.
"What now?"
"Bella is also in prison. Different cell, but she's here.” Neighraellium hopped in the air smiling yet again before walking straight.
"That is excellent news. One down. One to go."
"It isn't good news for me. She saw what I did to Laelliandir. She knows my involvement."
"So?"
"So I don’t want her to know my involvement. You know why! I don't care if they hate you. We agreed you'd use the medallion on Bella and Luminear and try to draw what is hidden out of their minds while they are unaware of what's happening. You said afterward you would erase their memories for me." Neighraellium nodded in acknowledgment.
"Aye, for your guilt of bleh bleh, I said I'd do it. As far as I care, they can think they are on the beach. I need them when we get to Tragmont."
"Well, I'll need you to erase Bella's memory of what she witnessed and thinks she knows. I need her wiped clean like the event never happened." Lonewolf's impatience and irritation had everything to do with what Bella had seen. He was desperate to hang on to his good relationship with her and with Luminear. "When you wipe her memory, is it permanent?"
"I don't see why bloody not? And I don't understand why you care either. Why act like you are someone you're not? Makes no sense. You want them to think you're good. You are terrible. Pretending will make it better?" Neighraellium shook his head, finding it perverse if entertaining. "And you call me sick."
"It doesn't matter if you understand or not. I need your word you'll handle this as delicately as I want. They are still in my protection." Neighraellium shrugged.
"You worry too much. I will not hurt them. I will help you continue to betray them. I only want to see her!" Lonewolf figured he would get no better answer from the man no matter how hard he tried.
"All right. First, we open the gates, and you meet your new bodyguards. Then we let the soldiers into the castle and summon the captains, generals, and the highest ranked officials to show and tell them what happened. If there are objections, you use your little toy and persuade them otherwise. By nightfall, this saga should be mostly wrapped up. The rest will follow in the weeks to come. We must wait for the army to return. Then we send them out to end the Javalla house in Gargurthian and elsewhere to cover future potential threats. Maelors I believe are entirely wiped out." Lonewolf reviewed their plans as they walked along, but Neighraellium tuned him out. He had a good understanding of the plan and figured Lonewolf was speaking aloud for himself to hear.
They were about halfway down the main stairs when Lonewolf finished speaking, and Neighraellium remembered what he meant to say, "I'm not claiming those bodyguards. Same deal with them. Service pay. I want them dead. I will not trust those spiked armored haggis smelling louses."
"You can trust them. They are slaves and have no thoughts or opinions, and if they do, they will kill themselves before sharing them. They are bred for one reason, and that is to serve whoever is the leader. Had you killed the Overlords in front of their cages, they'd still bow to you if you were then declared-"
"I don't care!" Neighraellium interrupted at the top of his lungs. "Anyone that dull I don't want pestering me. Kill them. We can take turns. Or I'll bedazzle them, and do it, but they are dead. Dead! Dead dead dead dead. No more. Gone. Not here when the clock strikes whatever time the c
lock strikes." Lonewolf threw his hands in the air as they walked.
"Fine. I don't care. It's not important enough to bother with. We'll make it fast and come up with another excuse for them being down here while they were supposed to be up there. Sounds like more work, but what do I know? You get to killing, and I'll get to planning. There are a lot of them. Can the medallion hold so many in a trance?" He thought a moment before asking. "What if you bring up the relic and order them closer to the gate? Once they're entranced, you stab them through the bars." Lonewolf perpetually thought ahead. Neighraellium grinned as he pictured it and patted him on the back.
"Aye, we do that for safety." Lonewolf busied himself, thinking over the new plan and mentally searching for flaws in it. By the time the pair made it to the main floor and opened two barred gates to carry out this plan, Lonewolf still had not figured a good reason for the bodyguards to be lying dead on the main floor while the people they were charged with protecting were dead some ten floors above. Neighraellium followed Lonewolf's plan and took the guardians out one by one. About halfway through the unrewarding service payments, they heard banging and rattling on the grand doors of the castle. This could mean only one thing. The battle had ended within the city, and the surviving soldiers wanted to report to their leaders.
Neighraellium picked up the pace, and Lonewolf joined him on taking out the advanced warriors. One by one, they all fell, and Lonewolf realized these bodies could spell trouble from them if he didn't come up with a plausible plan to explain what had happened. Then he had an idea he thought might be perfect. The two scrambled to open the rest of the gates, except for the final barred one and the grand high doors of the keep which they kept sealed.
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