Ancient Magic

by Blink, Bob

  “This woman was able to kill two of your men in the process of escaping your trap. I thought she was wounded?”

  “There is no doubt of her skill and deadliness. She reacted almost unbelievably quickly when the trap was sprung. It appeared that the arrow did strike her, although only a glancing blow,” Roit added to answer the Duke’s question.

  “The arrow was treated as usual?” the Duke asked.

  “As you commanded,” Roit replied.

  “Even a glancing blow if it broke the skin should be fatal before too long,” Duke Cordale mused aloud. “Within a day the poison should have made her ability to even travel difficult.”

  “We had expected as much,” Roit agreed. “But we have yet to find any sign of her. We expected a body or reports of a very sick individual would appear. Thus far there has been nothing.”

  “Where do you think she might have gone? Does she have confederates nearby do you think? That would not be good?”

  “Too little is known about the assassin. We were never able to follow her successfully during the days she was planning the Count’s murder. You recall you wished us to take no chances our scrutiny be discovered, favoring knowing where she would be after the attack. Her whereabouts and base of operations were not considered as important since we never thought she’d have a chance to return there.”

  “Yes, yes,” the Duke said waving his hand dismissively. He didn’t want any of the failure to be directed back at instructions he’d given.

  “Where do you think she might have gone?” the Duke repeated his earlier question.

  “We found the horse west of the village, as if she intended to head back toward Sulen. There is nothing that says she had to continue that direction. I have had the men out searching for signs in all directions. They have found nothing. It is unfortunate that we have half of our special guardsmen off chasing those two escapees from the dungeon. We could have used the manpower. This wasn’t a task we could reveal to the garrison at large.”

  “That’s another thing we must talk about,” the Duke replied. “It is likely we are worried about someone who is already dead. The body will more than likely turn up eventually. From what you have told me in the past, no one knows of a cure for the poison. Anyone infected with it will certainly die. That is true, is it not?”

  “That is what the old woman who provides the poison has promised. I cannot vouch personally that it is always effective, but every instance where we have used it before, the victim has succumbed in fewer days than it’s been since the assassin was struck. Odds are very good that she is already dead even if she had someone to help her. I doubt more will ever be heard of the KalaBhoot.”

  “Do not give up looking. I will not rest comfortably until the death of this hired murderer is assured. She, if the assassin is indeed a she, will know that it was I who ordered the doublecross. I will not be able to take any wench to my bed without wondering if she might be the one until the death is verified.”

  Roit nodded. The Duke was known for his sexual appetites, and had a habit of dragging off young women, willing or not, to satisfy his urges when the women struck his fancy.

  “Have you learned how those two young men were able to escape from the dungeon?” the Duke asked changing the direction of the discussion. “There has never been a case where someone has escaped from the lower levels in all the years my father or I have ruled here. Who helped them and how was it done?”

  Roit hated having to have any involvement with the two troublemakers. The dungeons were not his responsibility and the blame for whatever happened there should fall on other shoulders. By being placed in a position to investigate, Roit was forced to be the focus of the Duke’s anger unfairly. Well, he knew the Duke was seldom fair.

  “There is little that makes sense about the breakout. The guards swear they saw no one else in the dungeon. There had been no one in the lower level other than the guards for more than a day. The locks were checked at each change of guard as usual. Yet, both cells had been unlocked when we checked. One was sitting open and the other was locked and held the two guards that had been subdued.”

  “You are certain the guards are telling the truth?”

  “Quite certain. They were questioned intensively.” Roit knew that questioning involved a long painful session with the Duke’s chief interrogator and that neither of the two guards had survived the experience. “There is much about what happened that doesn’t make sense.”

  “You are certain the locks were not faulty? Once out, the one who was discovered with Eessa might have been able to overcome those dolts we have for guards down there. He fancied himself as quite a swordsman according to her.”

  “His prowess is known. I checked with some of those who have sparred with him. He apparently made a showing back in Kellmore at the annual games they have there. However, that doesn’t explain how he got out to acquire a sword. I personally checked the locks on the doors where they were restrained and there is nothing at all unusual about them. They work fine. A key had to have been used. I cannot figure how a copy of a key would have been made. The only key down there is held back at the entry on the upper floor, to be brought down only when someone is to be imprisoned or released for questioning.”

  Roit hesitated.

  “What?” asked the Duke sensing the man’s uncertainty.

  “The door to the dungeon area itself was damaged. That was how they got out in the end. The wood, stout oak that is solid as any I have ever seen. Yet, around the lock the wood had turned to powder, as if hundreds of termites had been gnawing at it for months. The lock had simply fallen out of the door. How could that have been done? The door was always in sight of the guardsmen stationed at the entrance.”

  “So, how was it accomplished?”

  Roit grimaced. “I have no answers my Lord. Nor does anyone else I have shown the damage to. The method is unknown.” Roit didn’t mention the lock that had been fused for which he also didn’t have an explanation. He would wait until he knew more.

  “These same two young men, armed with nothing beyond the guardsman’s sword they appropriated, managed to escape and elude your men for days. When they were discovered, they managed to kill four more men and escape once again.”

  “Strictly speaking, the men who were involved in the search were mostly the King’s forces. The Personal Guard did not become involved until later when the regimental forces failed to recapture the escapees. No one expected them to get very far.”

  “True enough,” the Duke granted. “But it was one of your men who was with the soldiers who encountered them near Thale.”

  “It was. And he died trying to capture them.”

  “We are sure that there were only the two of them?”

  “That’s what the archer who escaped to tell of the encounter claims. He has a strange tale to tell as well.”

  “You have had his tale verified?”

  Roit hesitated. “I have not turned him over to the inquisitor. I have personally questioned him at length and I believe he is being truthful.”

  “How is it that he escaped unharmed?”

  “He was some distance away when the encounter took place. The swordsmen who attempted to defeat the two escapees were quickly defeated, and the other archer with him inexplicably lost his balance and fell to his death. He still cannot explain how this could happen because they were well back from the edge. He claims it was almost as if the other man leaped to his death.”

  “And why didn’t he fire at the two men from his position of relative safety?”

  “His bow broke,” Roit said solemnly.

  The Duke rolled his eyes. “His bow broke! Have the man taken to the inquisitor for questioning.”

  Roit held up his hand. “I can do that, but he brought me the bow. It was a bow that he had been using for years. One of the better bows he had earned as he moved up the ranks and demonstrated his ability. His skill was one reason he was chosen for the assignment. The bow was indeed broken, but m
ore than that, the wood near where one would place the hand to support it had changed. It was no longer strong and flexible, but dry and powdery. I could crumble it with my fingertips. When I did so, it turned to powder.”

  “You are making a comparison to the door that was weakened by termites,” the Duke said.

  “Precisely,” Roit agreed. “Termites that seem to strike only when and where needed. The two events make me believe the events are being recounted to me honestly. The guardsmen in the dungeon never had a chance to discuss their story with the archer.”

  The Duke leaned back and stroked his beard. “The two men are gone by now I assume.”

  “They could be anywhere. It appears they crossed over into Lopal and haven’t been seen since. We have no way to know if they boarded passage down the river or have traveled deeper into Lopal.”

  “I guess there is nothing to be done. They are not worth any more effort, but it galls me that they were able to get away. It’s an embarrassment to announce the hangings for the festival and not have bodies to entertain with. Do we have anyone else we could use to fill in?”

  “I’m certain someone could be found.”

  “See to it,” the Duke commanded. “Also, I’d still like to have my inquisitor have a chat with that archer, even if you are convinced he is telling the truth. Maybe a little discomfort will help him remember more of the encounter. Perhaps he can fill in for our missing young men afterwards.”

  Roit bowed. “As you wish, your Lordship.”

  “You are dismissed. See to replacing the men you have lost. With the way events are shaping up, it would not be wise for the ranks of my personal guard to be reduced. With what the King told me when we were in Sulen and what your spies are reporting, the chances of war are increasing. This is not a time to be shorthanded.”

  Chapter 19

  Duke Cordale watched as Roit hurriedly left the chamber. He unconsciously twisted the large emerald ring on the middle finger of his left hand and he thought about their meeting. The man had served him well for many years and the Duke had expected to grant him a position as his highest military adviser once he became king. Now he wondered. Was the man losing his touch or was something more at work here? He hoped nothing was wrong. Far too much depended on Roit and his contacts. Replacing him would be costly in gold and schedule. He’d have to watch developments more closely than usual, just to be certain no action was required.

  The Duke wasn’t used to having his plans thwarted. Too much was in motion now for problems to develop, and Roit was aware of far too much if a problem was developing with him. The Duke knew he was exposed and unless he could progress smoothly to the end game, he could lose it all. That was why he’d needed to have the Count removed. The old fool had found a discrepancy in the accounts of the annual coin delivered to the Crown. He wouldn’t let it go, and was getting too close to the truth. Cordale knew the Crown expected a certain amount of coin would be improperly siphoned off, but it had no idea of the true amount being pilfered. Less than half of the coin being collected within the Duke’s domain was being forwarded to the Crown. The Duke’s coffers were fuller than those of the King, who had annual expenses greater than what he could take in. The Duke had even helped lead the kingdom into debt, loaning coin to the King through several tame bankers he controlled. The gold was just one facet of the plan in place to see the King removed and himself put into place as the new ruler. Once again he wondered about the assassin he’d hired and whether the poison had done its job. Now he wished that Roit hadn’t been so adamant that they couldn’t get at the Count forcing him to seek the legendary skills of KalaBhoot. He was concerned that the woman, if it was a woman as Roit believed, would die and they would never know for sure. That would leave a small anxiety in the back of his mind that he simply didn’t need.

  The matter of the two escapees was also bothersome. How could that have happened? They must have had help, although nothing pointed that way. He’d been looking forward to the hanging for reasons beyond those he’d revealed to Roit. The hanging was to have been a test for Eessa. She was beyond a doubt his daughter. She had the same extreme appetites as himself. He was very much aware of her many affairs. So long as she kept her activities discrete and private, he couldn’t deny her the same freedoms as he took himself. In fact it was reassuring that she was so much like him. Still, it was important that she appear to be the virtuous daughter because at some point her hand in marriage would be an effective means of solidifying his power and reach across the whole of Branid. That wouldn’t be possible if the full range of her sexual exploits became known.

  The Duke had become concerned about her infatuation with this young foreigner. Usually she played with her conquest, then moved on. In this case she had allowed the contact to drag on, with repeated evenings spent with the young man. It had to be stopped, so the Duke arranged for them to be discovered. Eessa didn’t realize how carefully she was being watched by the Duke and how much he knew of her many lovers. She seemed to react as he hoped. She feigned embarrassment to her father, and then seemed to forget the young fighter. The Duke figured if she allowed her former lover to be hanged without protest, then his concerns had been misplaced, but if she attempted to intervene in any way, he might have to reconsider where she stood.

  Now he had to wonder. Could Eessa have had a hand in the escape? She was one of the few individuals within the Duke’s domain who had the knowledge and possibly the ability to cause the guards to take actions against his orders. It was a worry. Why couldn’t the hanging have come off as he planned? That would have put the matter to rest once and for all. Now he would have to think of some other way to test his daughter. He’d also have to have her watched even more closely. If she had helped the young fighter escape, might he return to her?

  The Duke’s other children were both less valuable to him and much less of a concern. The two boys were years apart in age. The eldest was a major disappointment to him. How he wished he could be more like his daughter, although that would raise certain concerns about whether he might try and replace his father at some point. As it was, however, the Duke’s elder son had no interest in ruling or in power in general. Upon reaching the age of adulthood, he refused to continue his combat training, and sent away the tutors who were employed to teach him what a ruler must know. Instead he spent his time in his tower painting. The Duke was certain his son was odd in other ways. His spies had assured him the young man never had women brought to him. He didn’t want to think what that suggested.

  His youngest son was only ten. He had come late and had cost the Duke his wife who had died in childbirth. He appeared to have the proper instincts, but was far too young to be an asset in the overthrow that the Duke was planning. Hopefully he would grow into his rights as the future king once the Duke had taken over Branid. Until then, Eessa was the only blood that he could count on, if indeed she was what he hoped.

  The plan had begun with the Duke’s father. In the latter years the former Duke had become disillusioned with the King and his promises. After decades of supporting the other, he had never been given the power or wealth he felt was rightfully his. The King was too busy seeing to the rebuilding of the land and the well being of the peasants that were supposed to be working for him, not the other way around. He had begun to prepare the foundations for the eventual overthrow of the King. The plan had taken far longer than anticipated. The Duke’s father had fallen ill, and within a year he had died and he’d taken his father’s place. Two years later the King died and was replaced by his own son. On the surface it looked like the status quo had been retained, but from the first day the Duke had accepted power, he had worked to see his father’s dream come true. Now the time was close.

  Through Roit, who in turn worked through a series of intermediaries, the Duke acquired teams of mercenaries. None knew who exactly they worked for, but the kind of men they employed cared little where the coin originated so long as it kept coming. Attacks were simulated along the border between
Branid and Lopal. To make matters look believable, Cordale had even had several attacks simulated in Kellmore. Mostly he concentrated in the northern territories of Branid. That area was far enough from the capital and so sparsely populated that it was difficult for the King to obtain a valid picture of what might be happening there. Over time the desired rumors had begun. Lopal was planning war. Undercurrents of concern and fear were beginning to spread across the country.

  The King would have to investigate. When the Duke was in Sulen some weeks before the King had discussed the problem with him and encouraged him to strengthen his patrols along the border. The King had indicated he would be sending a force to check the northern territories. He had also indicated that his son Rhory, one of the twin sons of the King and the nominal heir to the Throne, would be in charge of the expedition just as the Duke had expected. That would provide the Duke and his mercenaries all the opportunity needed to deal with the man. He could be killed in what appeared to be a clash with a raiding team from Lopal. How unfortunate!

  That left Rhog, the second twin. Duke Cordale knew the young man had his own wishes and would be very pleased should something happen to his brother in combat far away. That would absolve him of any blame in the death, something which the Duke knew the brother had investigated means of implementing in the past. The death of his brother would put Rhog in direct line for succession to the Throne. That was fine with the Duke. He knew the young man was somewhat inept and Cordale had already put into place certain evidence that he could have “discovered” that would show that Rhog had been behind the attacks and the killing of his brother. That would sweep away any plans he might have of becoming King. The people liked Rhory and would crucify Rhog if the rumors were released.

  With Rhory killed and the other plans in place, it would come down to having the King Rupermore removed. He didn’t want an assassin for that task. Too many would look carefully at whomever came to power afterwards with suspicion. He had a better plan. The same old wise woman who provided the poison for the arrows had shown his father a means of simulating the coughing sickness. The simulated disease was not contagious because this soon after the last plague everyone had inherited immunity. The induced disease displayed the identical symptoms as the widespread plague had, and was invariably fatal. This was because the disease was real. The only reason that the victim would succumb was because of the massive exposure to the stimulus that triggered the disease. If one wanted the disease to appear to spread, others could be unknowingly given a dose of the pollen from the plant that carried the germ as well. The Duke had tested it and was certain it was dependable.