Soldiers of the Crown

by Stephen L. Nowland

  “I can do that,” Ronan replied, licking his lips as the bodyguards eased away from their weapons. “Oh, hey there, Vaughn. Has he got you shining his boots now?” he asked of one of the bodyguards.

  “He shines his own boots, I’ll have you know,” Vaughn replied with a chuckle. It was hard to see any details on the man, for he was mostly obscured by his hood. “You best get to the point, ‘hawk, you know how impatient he gets.”

  “Yes, and also how much I hate it when people talk about me as if I’m not sitting right here,” Perry growled.

  “Just catching up with an old mate,” Ronan assured him, then inclined his head in Aiden’s direction. “This here is Aiden, and he wasn’t lying about working on an investigation before. I was hoping you could help us out with some information.”

  “Information is a commodity, friend,” Perry said to Aiden. “Ordinarily I’d be happy to take your money and send you on your way, but I think I know what you’re going to ask of me, and I can’t help you.”

  “How do you know if I haven’t asked you any questions yet?” Aiden protested.

  “I have eyes everywhere, mate, and some of those eyes saw Princess Criosa being attacked in an alleyway a couple of nights ago. She was carried to the castle by a noble-minded young man fitting your description. You’re here to learn the whereabouts of the assassins who have returned to the city, but I’m afraid you don’t have enough gold in your pouch to get that secret out of me.”

  “Sounds like you’re scared,” Ronan remarked.

  “We have a deal with them — we don’t bother them and they don’t bother us,” Perry snapped. “Can’t be crossing an organisation of hired killers and expecting to still draw breath, you see. It’s not good for business, or continuing to draw breath, for that matter.”

  “And no amount of coin will change your mind?” Aiden pressed. “What else are you interested in? We can make a deal here.”

  “It’s hard to spend money when you’re dead,” Perry shrugged. “Look around you, Aiden. Half of the people in this chamber are hiding from the law for petty crimes like stealing food, breaking into people’s houses, and only one or two have ever actually killed someone. The other half are just beggars and runaways, or abused women with nowhere else to go. I love the princess as much as the next man, but if I tell you where to find the people you’re looking for, the lives of everyone in this room are forfeit.”

  “I hear the words of a coward coming from your mouth,” Valennia stated, “You threaten us at every opportunity, yet behind all that bluster you are weak. Tell us where to find those we seek and I swear to you that they will not live to threaten anyone ever again.”

  “You mean... you’re going to personally kill them all?” Perry exclaimed, and then began to roar with laughter. His guards joined in with him, as did many of the people in the chamber. Aiden waited patiently for this little show to end.

  “Take your time, I’m not going anywhere,” he remarked loudly enough to be heard. Perry finally lifted his hands and the laughter began to die away.

  “Well, we did fight a dragon at the Battle of Culdeny,” Ronan pointed out casually, glancing at Aiden.

  “And a shipful of pirates on the way here,” Aiden added. “Oh, and there were quite a lot of undead monster rising in the cathedral catacombs, they were pretty challenging too I’d say. I’m sorry, were you busy laughing at us?”

  “The problem here,” Perry explained warily, “is that if you miss even one of them, people are going to die. People like me, for example.”

  “My violent friend here wasn’t lying about our plan to eliminate the assassins,” Aiden continued. “The Crown is furious about the attempt on Criosa’s life, and they’re pulling out all the stops to ensure her safety.”

  “Which is why they hired a bunch of out-of-towners to do their work for them?” Perry remarked sarcastically. “I know for a fact that the City Watch has been compromised, so they’re not likely to get involved. Our mutual friend Mister Kinsey doesn’t have the resources to do anything at the moment, so really, it’s just going to be you bunch of gits against an organisation of killers.”

  “Perhaps a demonstration is in order,” Aiden offered mildly. “Sy? Could you give him a taste of what they’re in for?”

  “What, in amongst all these people?” Sayana queried.

  “Well, I do see a very high ceiling here,” Aiden mused. “Is this place located under a major street?”

  “No,” Perry replied warily.

  “Perfect,” Aiden answered, nodding to Sayana. The wild girl shrugged then lifted her arms, and a moment later a pillar of fire shot over ten feet to the ceiling and erupted in mid-air, bathing the entire ceiling in a swirling sea of fire for a long moment. Everyone present cried out in surprise and shock, but quickly settled down again as the fires faded away. Perry’s eyes were wide at this display of power, and Aiden managed to hide his smug grin as he awaited the guild master’s response.

  “Okay, you’ve got some talent, I’ll admit that,” he finally said, shifting about on his seat and glancing at Vaughn with uncertainty. “I need to think about this a bit. Head back to your inn and I’ll send word up to you soon — that’s the best offer I can make right now.” Aiden nodded slowly, displeased with his hesitance but understanding the reason for it.

  “If it’s alright, I’d like to stay here for a while,” Nellise said from nearby. “You have a lot of sick people down here, Perry, and I want to do what I can for them.”

  “I’ve no complaints about that, dear lady,” he replied. “I’m sure they’ll be thankful for your efforts, and we’ll make sure you get home safely afterwards. Now, the rest of you, get out of my sight. That includes you, ‘hawk.”

  “What, no cuddles?” Ronan complained.

  “Don’t push your luck,” Vaughn counselled before Perry could speak.

  “See, this is why I left the guild in the first place — there’s just no heart,” Ronan added as he quickly moved away from the enraged Perry.

  Chapter Twelve

  Their journey back through the sewers was brief, a fact Aiden was silently grateful for. Maggie, who had rejoined them as they left, suggested they take the first ladder up to the streets, but Ronan didn’t want to be seen so close to the guild’s temporary base in case it led the authorities back there. Despite his verbal sparring with the diminutive guild leader, he clearly still had close ties to the organisation and its people in his heart, if not his mind.

  They emerged into the brilliant glare of the afternoon sun shining down on the snow-covered cobblestones, in a part of the city Aiden did not recognise. Few people could be seen on the narrow street they now stood upon, so he figured Ronan had chosen this place for its obscurity.

  “We’re in the southern part of the city, not far from the main gate,” the sailor explained to their inquiring looks. “It’ll take us about half an hour to get back to the inn from here.”

  “I think we can figure it out if we need to,” Maggie grumbled, rubbing her hands together for warmth. “The first thing I’m going to do is have a bath… and buy new boots.”

  “Yeah I wasn’t going to say anything but you smell pretty bad,” Ronan remarked.

  “We all stink,” Sayana pointed out.

  “Bath house it is, then,” the sailor replied laconically, leading them around the corner and down the street. Shortly thereafter, Aiden eased himself into a tub of hot water and began to scrub away the grime, as well as the stench of stale alcohol that lingered from the previous night’s entertainment.

  On the other side of the large tiled chamber, partially obscured by steam, Ronan did the same, even taking off his ever-present bandana to let his long hair soak up the water. Aiden caught sight of several tattoos on Ronan’s shoulder and chest, appearing to be an alluring mermaid sitting on a rock. The place was designed for a dozen men to bathe at once, but only three of the other tubs were taken at the moment, occupied by elderly men taking a break from the bitter cold outside.
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  “This is a bit of alright,” Ronan remarked as he eased back in the tub.

  “I’m guessing you don’t get the chance to do this on board a ship very often,” Aiden said.

  “Now and then, but it’s cold seawater every time. Some of the lads have a genuine aversion to freezing baths but after a while, they start getting a bit pungent so we don’t give ‘em much of a say in the matter.”

  “You are both fair and wise,” Aiden remarked sagely, drawing a chuckle from the sailor. “So, you grew up on the streets of the city and went around with some of the people we met today?”

  “Yep,” Ronan answered in his usual laconic manner.

  “Rough life.”

  “Yep.”

  “The switch to the navy seems like a kind of side step, if you know what I mean,” Aiden continued as he stared up at the ceiling.

  “Kind of, but with a better view,” Ronan answered. “But enough about me and my exciting life of adventure. Where are you from?”

  “Coldstream, pretty much in the centre of the Kingdom,” Aiden responded, shifting about in the tub to get comfortable.

  “What, so, farms and such?” Ronan inquired.

  “Mostly, though my family worked with wagons. I actually spent a lot of my teen years reading and researching from every old book about magic I could get my hands on, so I was more of a town boy than a young frontiersman. My father ran the business, and my brothers helped him when they were old enough.”

  “Must be nice to have family.”

  “It was,” Aiden answered softly. “Mum and Dad are still going strong but Brogan and Kieran died defending a caravan from bandits a few years ago.”

  “Sorry to hear it mate,” Ronan offered in sympathy. “I never had a family, but I had good mates I grew up with who aren’t with me anymore. Sort of like family I guess, but they got in over their heads with the wrong people and that was the end of them. It helps if you just remember the good times you had, sort of keeps the best part of them alive.”

  “That’s good advice,” Aiden replied, trying to think about the times he’d spent with them.

  Long moments passed and still nothing sprang to mind. He could recall the cave he had fallen into, and the day he had been running through the fields before falling into it, but nothing prior to that event. Just… blackness. He became more unsettled by the moment as he struggled to remember anything from his childhood, yet was unable to recall even the simplest thing.

  “I think I’m done here,” he blurted, rising out of the tub and quickly towelling himself off.

  “Suit yourself,” Ronan answered, oblivious to Aiden’s sudden discomfort. “I’m planning on staying in ‘til I’m all wrinkly. See you tomorrow mate.”

  Aiden quickly dressed and headed outside, finding the cold air a stark contrast to the heat of the bathhouse. Although cleaner than he started, Aiden was certainly unsettled from the discovery that his childhood memories were gone. He arrived back at the Fair Maiden in a bleak mood and found Pacian lounging at one of the tables, clearly nursing a terrible hangover but otherwise conscious. He spied Aiden making his way across the common room and greeted him with a bleary gaze.

  “Pace, do you remember what it was like when we were kids?” Aiden asked, getting straight to the point.

  “I don’t even remember what day it is.”

  “I’m serious,” Aiden continued, leaning forward on the table. “Tell me about some of the things we did together.” Pacian scratched his head and seemed to think about it for a moment before speaking.

  “Oh, there was that time when your Dad was servicing a wagon out the front of the shop, and you climbed up in it and managed to pull the brake lever,” he chuckled. “It went rolling down the hill and you were stuck on the driver’s seat, screaming for help. That was hilarious to watch.”

  “Was I injured?” Aiden asked, feeling as if this were a story being told about another person’s life.

  “Nah, the wagon went off the road and gradually came to a stop,” Pacian grinned. “Missus Granger was running after you in her nightie trying to get you down, which was a whole other kind of funny. Your Dad wasn’t even mad at the end of it, either.”

  “I don’t remember it,” Aiden remarked sadly.

  “What about the time you covered for me after I got caught breaking into the mill?”

  “Not a thing.”

  “That’s a shame, you did a really good job of convincing the miller that I was with you the whole time,” Pacian sighed. “Ah, what a team we were. I’d steal things, and you’d watch me steal things.”

  “Not a single thing that happened before the fall in the cave is known to me,” Aiden stated grimly.

  “Hey, I’m the one with a hangover,” Pacian complained, “I should be the one missing large chunks of my memory.” Aiden levelled a gaze at him that spoke volumes, causing Pacian’s grin to fade. “Well, maybe you hit your head once time too many of late. I mean, you did get hit in the head with an axe, and that can’t be good for you. I don’t know if you died or not, but maybe that’s got something to do with it.”

  Although Pacian had meant it as an offhand remark, Aiden caught onto the idea — not so much the axe injury itself, but rather what happened to him afterward. It was entirely plausible that his “death” had some unexpected consequences. Sayana’s words not long after the event rang through his mind — dragons always exact something in return for their services.

  “You look worried,” Pacian consoled him in his own unique way. “Here, maybe this will take your mind off… your mind,” he added, taking out a small gold ring, the one he found in student’s tower.

  “What about it?” Aiden asked, taking the ring in one hand.

  “You’re pretty good with that arcane stuff,” Pacian hinted. “Does it do anything interesting?” Aiden looked closer at the ring and allowed his vision to shift, a trick he had learned from Sayana a few weeks ago, revealing a subtle aura of blue energy suffusing it.

  “It’s definitely special,” he surmised, fascinated as always at the prospect of new arcana. “There’s a good chance that student Alan stole this from one of the Deans, along with his other acquisitions.” He peered closely at the ring, noting tiny runes inscribed around the periphery. There was also some writing on the inside of the loop, and bringing it in closer he was able to make out some sort of activation sigil written there, one that suggested a rather kinetic result.

  “So?” Pacian prompted.

  “Invoking the ring creates a sort of invisible force,” Aiden explained, fitting it over his index finger. He spoke the command word and felt a tingle of power from the ring as its aura flared in his magical sight. He clenched his fist and looked at an empty glass on the table and with a thought, the glass rose a few inches into the air.

  “Nifty,” Pacian remarked, seeming disappointed at the result as Aiden carefully set the glass back down again.

  “I’m being gentle,” Aiden murmured, his concentration on the glass. “It can move a lot more than that, but I don’t want to make a mess. Plus, rings are too small to retain power for long so it needs to be used sparingly. The University will probably miss this thing so we should probably get it back to them.”

  “Just think of how useful it could be,” Pacian protested. “We need every advantage we can get. If you did return it, I’ll probably just ask if we can make use of that to do that thing we’re supposed to be doing. Protecting the princess or some such.”

  “We could certainly use the help,” Aiden muttered as he contemplated the ring. “Alright, I’ll hang on to it for now.”

  “Consider it a loan,” Pacian added with a comforting nod.

  “Ahem,” Kinsey suddenly coughed, startling both of them with his appearance next to the table. “A fine pair of spy-hunters you are, allowing an injured man to sneak up on you unnoticed.”

  “You underestimate yourself,” Aiden muttered as his pulse settled down. “What can we do for you?”

  “Mister Savidge
can remain here, but you need to come with me right now,” the spymaster instructed in the manner of one who was accustomed to being obeyed. Aiden glanced at Pacian, who had nothing to offer except a shrug, so Aiden hesitated a moment in thought before nodding his assent. Kinsey said nothing and simply limped away, leaning on his cane with each step as he headed for the door.

  “Watch your back,” Pacian called as Aiden followed, checking to make sure his sword was still sheathed on the belt beneath his longcoat. They left the warmth of the inn and crossed the street on a grey and cloudy day, to an unremarkable building which appeared to be a shop that had gone out of business. The windows were boarded up but the door was not.

  Kinsey opened it and disappeared inside, with Aiden cautiously following. The interior was lit only by the light through the doorway, revealing empty shelves against the wall and a counter top covered in dust. Kinsey passed through this room and continued on to another door, beneath which a sliver of light could be seen.

  When he opened it, a large storage room was visible, lit by four lanterns and one large foggy window. The room was cold and empty except for a fit young woman dressed in a plain woollen dress, with long dark hair and fair skin dotted with freckles. Her brown eyes watched Aiden warily as he entered, and he noticed a pair of swords sheathed on her belt, both of which appeared to be made of wood, partially wrapped in cloth.

  “I would have thought a secret base would have been better equipped,” Aiden remarked at the spartan surroundings.

  “This isn’t a permanent arrangement,” Kinsey explained, “but it will suffice for the day. I like to keep moving, it keeps my enemies on their toes. This is Kara, one of my trusted agents,” Kinsey explained by way of introduction. “She’s very busy these days, but where possible she’ll be checking in on your progress and watching your back.”

  “Hello,” Aiden said, offering his hand to shake. Instead of grabbing it with her own, Kara pulled out one of the wooden swords and handed it handle-first to him.

  “Nice to meet you,” she answered smoothly. “You’re going to need this.” Aiden grasped the wooden sword and looked at it in confusion until Kara tossed the other fake sword to Mister Kinsey, who held it expertly in one hand and swished it back and forth to test its balance.