Soldiers of the Crown

by Stephen L. Nowland

  “The duke’s seal is upon it, in case you doubt its veracity,” Aiden prompted, receiving a condescending glance from the wizened old man.

  “This appears to be legitimate,” he said in a more reasonable voice, handing back the letter. “What the duke is thinking handing out that sort of authority to a strange group of people such as yourselves is beyond me. Well then, have out with it man — I’ve ten hours of work to do in a span of five.”

  “We’re investigating the explosion that occurred out on Renown Street yesterday evening, right off Foundation Circle,” Aiden explained. “I’ve been informed that you’re the man to talk to about the sorts of things that might cause that to happen.”

  “Do you suspect my involvement?” Desmond shot back.

  “You tell us,” Pacian pressed in an ominous tone.

  “Outrageous! I will not stand here and listen to these baseless allegations.”

  “No one is being accused of anything at this time,” Maggie interjected. “But you seem to be an experienced practitioner of magic so you could explain ‘how’, if not ‘who’.”

  “Is that a remark about my age?” Desmond bristled. “For shame, madam.”

  “I— what?” Maggie stammered, caught off guard by the surly remark.

  “I shall ignore that, out of respect for the duke,” Desmond said dismissively. “And yes, I do work with volatile magics on a regular basis, but it is all contained within this reinforced chamber. Nothing I’ve been working with would be able to escape and wreak havoc within the city. Indeed, if something were to break through the protective wards on this room — which is impossible, of course — but were that to happen, the tower itself would be damaged and as you can see, there are no breaches in the wall through which such terrible energies could escape.”

  “And your students are incapable of this sort of power, I trust?” Maggie continued, showing an unexpected flair for deduction.

  “None of our students are capable of invoking the sorts of energies necessary to damage a paved road to that degree, certainly,” Desmond answered gruffly.

  “What of these artefacts you have lying around?” Aiden asked, noticing that Sayana had moved away from the group to inspect the oddities in the room more closely.

  “They are kept under lock and key, and any use is strictly monitored by the faculty,” Desmond replied distractedly, trying to keep an eye on Sayana as she moved around the room. “Do not touch anything there, miss, or I cannot be held responsible for the consequences.”

  “There are several devices here that could have been the source of such destruction,” she said absently, as if talking aloud to herself. Her hand hovered about the bench as she moved.

  “You have some knowledge of these things, miss?” Desmond asked, his interest piqued by the mysterious girl. “Uh yes, there are darts that detonate with considerable force, and a staff that is more than capable of channelling the power you seek, but as I informed you earlier, access is restricted.”

  “To whom?” Maggie asked, looking up at the wizard towering above her almost as if she was looking down upon him.

  “Myself, the Arch-Chancellor of course, Dean Webber down in Acquisitions, and some of my more accomplished students who assist me in my work,” Desmond explained. “Before you say it, those students are under strict supervision while handling any dangerous goods.”

  “Has anything gone missing over the past couple of days?” Pacian asked. “Say… one of the small, easy to conceal items that might be able to blow up a road?”

  “To suggest that one of my students is a thief is beyond contemptible,” Desmond growled.

  “He’s not suggesting anything,” Maggie explained casually, “but we would like to speak to them, all the same.” Desmond glanced around at them from under his furrowed brow for a long moment before finally relenting.

  “Very well, if it will put this talk of theft and duplicity to rest, I will permit you to question my assistants,” he said, finally calming down. “But if I learn of any more baseless accusations against our students, the duke will be hearing about it.”

  “You have nothing to worry about,” Maggie assured him, beaming a wide smile up at him. “Their names, if you please?”

  “Maxwell Brady, Alan Leonson, and Patricia Sothby,” Desmond supplied, somewhat mollified. “You can find them in the student’s tower, pursuing their own studies. All three of them are from noble families, so please exercise the utmost discretion when speaking with them.”

  “Thank you, you’ve been most co-operative,” Maggie told him. She and the others turned to leave, but Aiden had one last inquiry to make.

  “Just before we leave, Dean Foster, I have a quick question for you,” he stated. “Does the name ‘Salinder’ mean anything to you?”

  “Should it?” he replied without missing a beat. Aiden’s confidence faltered with this casual response, for he was certain this was the man the dragon had mentioned.

  “I was informed the name would have some meaning for you,” Aiden pressed, hoping to glean something from his expression, his tone of voice, anything.

  “Is that one of those new bevelling planes I’ve heard about?” he mused. “Ridiculous, really. How many ways do you need to cut a piece of wood?”

  “I… never mind,” Aiden said, giving up. There had been no sign of recognition from the wizard and he was beginning to doubt himself. “Thank you for your time. We’ll leave you to get back to your work.”

  “About time, I should say,” the Dean grumbled, turning his back on them and heading over to his work area once more. Aiden followed the others back out into the stairwell and watched as the heavy door silently closed behind them, wondering just how good a liar the old wizard might be.

  “What was that about?” Maggie asked suspiciously. “Do you know something about this incident that you’re not telling us?”

  “It was an unrelated issue,” Aiden explained, slowly moving down the stairs. “Oh, nicely done back there, Maggie. I wasn’t sure what to expect from you in an urban setting but you’ve got a real knack for getting things done.”

  “Well, I wasn’t always a druid,” Maggie replied with a wink.

  * * *

  Despite pressing for more information on that leading statement, Maggie refused to elaborate further, leaving Aiden to wonder just what her former profession might have been. He didn’t have a lot of time to ponder however, for within minutes and a brief exposure to the elements they were inside the student’s tower.

  Aiden guessed this smaller tower had been built first, for the interior was far more aged and decrepit than the one they had just left. It had the appearance of a dungeon more than a place of study. An old suit of armour, complete with sword, was propped against the wall opposite the fireplace.

  The occupants had attempted to spruce the place up a bit with a few tapestries and banners, as well as some comfortable furniture, but these contrivances couldn’t conceal the true nature of the dank structure. Half a dozen aspiring wizards of roughly Aiden’s age were gathered in the room at present.

  Aiden felt a pang of regret that he could have been one of them, had circumstances been different. Most of them probably came from noble families, those with the wealth to support the University’s fees. From what he’d read however, nearly half the students admitted to the school would fail to pass, regardless of their wealth.

  “Pardon me, is one of you named Maxwell, Patricia or Alan?” he asked the small group.

  “I’m Maxwell,” replied a man dressed in the simple grey robe of a student. “Is there something I can help you with?”

  “Why did you destroy the pavement out on Renown Street?” Pacian asked accusingly, stepping forward to gain the student’s full attention. Aiden’s surprised expression matched that of the students at this sudden and unexpected question.

  “I— I had nothing to do with it!” Maxwell stammered, instantly on the defensive.

  “He was here all afternoon, the same as I was!” a home
ly young lady added, coming to Maxwell’s aid.

  “Are you Patricia?” Maggie asked in a more conciliatory tone, to which the young lady nodded. “Both of you apparently have access to the laboratory on the fourth floor. We’re not accusing you of anything just yet,” she added, casting a sidelong glance up at Pacian.

  “We all had yesterday afternoon off,” another student pointed out. “Both Max and Pat were here with us.”

  “So, you were all in on it?” Pacian pressed. “That’s what I’m hearing…”

  “You are forgetting someone,” Valennia reminded them, watching the proceedings with disinterest.

  “Wait, which one of you is Alan Leonson?” Aiden asked, realising he was unaccounted for.

  “Alan’s upstairs in his room, studying,” Patricia replied.

  “Was he here yesterday?” Aiden continued, and received only silence as his reply. The students looked at each other, not one of them able to account for Alan’s time.

  “I think we should speak with him before we talk further,” Maggie stated. “Just remain here until we get back, if you please. Valennia, could you guard the door?”

  “I can,” she replied. “Shall I permit no one to pass, on pain of death?”

  “Yes, something like that, but don’t actually hurt anyone,” Maggie suggested. Aiden noticed she was quite good at taking charge of a situation. At the other end of the room, a spiral staircase, similar to the one in the main tower could be seen, leading up. “Which room is Alan’s?”

  “Second floor, room three,” Maxwell supplied. “You don’t think he had something to do with this, do you?”

  “I’ll let you know after we talk with him,” the druid replied, leading them through the common room towards the stairs.

  “Just one more thing,” Patricia called to them. “Alan has a bit of a gambling habit, and it’s frowned upon by the faculty. Please don’t tell them!”

  “I won’t make any promises, but thanks for the information,” Maggie replied, pondering this little piece of news with interest.

  “What was that?” Aiden asked Pacian in hushed tones, while looking back at the students staring timidly at Valennia’s imposing presence.

  “I put him on the spot to see how he’d react,” Pacian explained. “His response seemed pretty authentic to me.”

  “Since when are you an expert on subtlety?”

  “I know fear when I see it,” Pacian assured him as they climbed the stairs. “That was genuine fear, but not of being caught.”

  “He’s right, though it pains me to say so,” Maggie sighed, walking twice as fast to keep up with them. “Just don’t do that again, because if Alan is the culprit, he’s likely to do something rash when confronted with the prospect of discovery.”

  When they reached the first floor, they almost stumbled into another student, a young man who seemed to be in a hurry. Instantly suspicious, Aiden stepped in front of him to block his passage.

  “Are you Alan Leonson?” he asked.

  “Yes?” Alan replied hesitantly. He was a heavy-set youth dressed in the same grey robe as the other students.

  “We need to ask you a few questions about the explosion that blew out part of the pavement yesterday afternoon,” Maggie stated.

  “Oh, that,” Alan replied, somewhat relieved. “I heard one of our teachers, Dean Foster, had something to do with it. You should probably go talk with him.”

  “We already have, and he’s pointed the finger at you,” Pacian responded calmly. Aiden could see that the student’s brow was covered in a fine film of sweat beneath his hat.

  “Why are you sweating so much, Alan?” Aiden asked suspiciously. “It isn’t exactly hot in here.”

  “I just finished a rather spicy meal. You ask anyone, I love my cumin but I break out into a sweat every time.”

  “Bollocks!” Pacian scoffed. “You know something, and we’re not leaving ‘til we get some answers.”

  “Alan, if you’re in trouble, talk to us — we can help,” Maggie said, acting the role of the reasonable part of the group, which Aiden thought played nicely off Pacian’s brash attitude.

  “Let me think about that for a moment,” Alan replied, his lips moving silently for a few seconds as he seemed to be weighing the options. His hands fidgeted, but in a very rhythmic way, almost as if…

  “Stop him, he’s—” Sayana cried, a moment too late. Alan gave them a little smile of triumph and then ran across the room toward another stairwell leading up. Pacian bolted after him.

  “That was an incantation,” Sayana blurted as she rushed forward, with Aiden and Maggie in pursuit. They dashed up the stairs, leaving poor Maggie far behind as they caught up to Pacian, who was standing on the second floor staring at a tarnished suit of armour which had come to life. It stepped forward and awkwardly moved towards them, its long sword raised high.

  “Step aside!” Sayana ordered, to which Pacian responded to instantly. As soon as he’d moved, a column of fire burst forth from the sorceress’ outstretched hand, bathing the armour in flames. Unfortunately, this had no effect upon the animated suit, which stepped in and swung its huge sword with both ‘hands’.

  It missed Sayana but caught Pacian across the chest when he found his back to the wall. Fortunately, the metal plates of his chest armour kept the sword from piercing his skin.

  Aiden summoned his force shield and drew his sword, hoping the animated suit wasn’t a particularly good fighter. There was no flesh and blood person inside the suit to hurt — if they were to defeat this contraption, it was very likely they would have to find a way to cut it into pieces. By then, Alan would probably be long gone.

  The armoured suit continued to attack, focusing mainly on Aiden. Despite its lack of finesse, the suit was incredibly strong, and was able to bash through most of his attempts to block.

  “Keep it busy, I have an idea!” Maggie called from the top of the stairs behind Aiden. Able to do nothing else but keep it busy, Pacian and Sayana used their weapons against the suit for a few more moments until Aiden noticed a heavy dampness in the air.

  Moisture formed on the suit of armour before him. The raelani druid poked her head around Aiden’s right leg, and made stabbing gesture with her right hand.

  Whatever she did had no immediate effect, but with each swing, a grinding, metallic sound grew in volume. The metal, tarnished with age, rapidly began to show signs of rust forming across its entire body until it crumbled to the floor.

  They seized the opportunity to dash past the crippled monster to another set of stairs leading up and shortly thereafter emerged on the next floor. Across the other side of the room stood Alan, holding a dart in one hand. He threw it towards them but before it came close, Sayana deflected its path with one sweep of her arm. The dart altered course and instead struck the wall, detonating with concussive force.

  The entire tower shook from the blast, tossing them to the floor as they were showered with debris. Smoke blanketed the chamber, obscuring their sight and filling their lungs. As Aiden coughed and struggled to get back on his feet, Maggie held a green gemstone above her head and channelled a gust of air from outside.

  The smoke rapidly cleared, allowing them to breathe again but Alan had vanished. This small fact didn’t stop Sayana from charging straight for where he’d been standing before the blast, with Aiden back on his feet and following as fast as he could. A terrified student peered around the edge of a dormitory room, having watched the entire scene unfold. Aiden waved her back inside and returned his focus to the chase.

  As the column of air pushed aside more of the smoke, he saw Sayana head through a previously obscured door. When Aiden dashed through, Sayana was rushing to tackle Alan, who stood next to an open window. Before she could reach him, the renegade student gestured with both hands. To Aiden’s horror, Sayana was lifted from her feet and thrown through the air.

  She squealed in terror as she plummeted through the window.

  “Sy!” Aiden cried out in shock. The st
udent grabbed a pack laden with belongings and climbed onto a desk with the clear intent of leaping out the same window. Aiden made a rush for him as Alan began incanting another spell that would probably allow him to survive the fall and escape.

  He saw Alan’s smirk of triumph as his spell was just about to finish, when a pair of daggers lodged into his back. The studen staggered forward, choking on the final words of the incantation right before he fell out of the window.

  Picking himself up, Aiden looked behind him to see Pacian approaching with a look of grim satisfaction on his face. Aiden rushed to the window and looked out, expecting to see the grisly remains of two people on the pavement below. Indeed, the broken remains of Alan could be seen within a pool of blood spreading over the snow-covered cobblestones.

  To his surprise and relief, he saw Sayana gently floating to the ground with a small gathering of people watching her descent.

  “Nice throwing there, Pace,” Aiden said at his friend as he paused to catch his breath. “Did you have to kill him?”

  “I didn’t see any other option,” Pacian shrugged.

  “It would have been better to take him alive, I think,” Maggie remarked, jumping onto a desk so that she could peer out through the window. “Now we may never know what motivated him.”

  “Maybe there’s something in his desk that might help,” Aiden suggested, hurrying back downstairs and going through whatever belongings were left in Alan’s room. He’d clearly been in a hurry, for a great deal of material was remaining.

  Buried under a pile of socks he found three rolled up parchments, all of which glowed in Aiden’s enhanced sight, indicating the presence of arcane power. He carefully retrieved all of them and kept looking, but the most prominent item they found was sitting right on top of the desk under Maggie’s boots. When she moved, Aiden quickly read its contents.