Dream of Empty Crowns

by M. J. Sewall

  “You have power,” Darion said. “The power of numbers. And a great people when they are together, united in one cause, can make their own decisions. All you have to do is decide in one voice what your future holds. Use your voice as one and tell your leaders what you will…” The crowds cheered very loudly again.

  King Asa wasn't sure what was happening, so he leaned over to the firstcouncilor. Trunculin explained, “If they say in public, as one group, that they want Darion to be king, the queen will have no choice but to accept it, or turn against her own people and rule by force.”

  Asa looked at Darion, then back at the crowds. The queen's grandmother sat beside the queen and looked very angry. The queen's face didn't change. It still showed no emotion, but Asa thought that he saw her bow her head down just a little.

  Darion continued, getting louder now. “So I say to you, how will you, the people of Thure, honor your king? Would you choose to honor the law as he did? To choose from your own people? Or from the people that have lived next to you for centuries? Or would you choose lawlessness and foreign blood?”

  The crowd was cheering even louder. But then something strange happened. Half of the crowd quieted down. No one knew what was going on, until the giant airship burst out over a row of tall trees. Most people had never seen an airship before. The crowds were cheering very loud now, but it was for the airship, not Darion.

  Before Darion could say another word, the queen took Asa by the hand and led him next to Darion and stood one step above him with Asa by her side. The airship was directly over them. She raised her hands with Asa's, and the crowd cheered so loud it was deafening.

  The firstcouncilor stood as well, as did the queen's grandmother. They both looked directly at Darion. The queen and Asa stood with their hands together in partnership and alliance and looked out solemnly as the crowds cheered them on.

  Darion bowed his head and started clapping for the queen. He took a step away from her. It was clear he had lost. Darion returned to his seat, as did King Asa.

  The crowd got quiet again as the queen bowed her head. The airship had passed over them and was slowly floating away from the crowds, headed toward the sea.

  “Let this fire burn in all of our hearts. To Russel, king of Thure.” The queen gave the signal, and the fire bearers walked slowly to the king's pyre. The crowds were silent as the queen turned around to quietly gaze at the pyre.

  Asa turned around looking for Darion, but couldn't see him anywhere. The queen gave the signal and the fire bearers lit the king's pyre. A new era in in the old kingdom of Thure had begun, as they watched the flames reach for the sky.

  Chapter 30: Monster in the Trees

  Gordon woke to the midday sun. He had no idea how long he'd slept, but it felt like he had been asleep for a week. He awoke to gentle singing and new cooking smells. Everything smelled delicious. He felt a pang of guilt. He slept soundly while Aline was out there somewhere, or worse…

  He went out to see what the day would bring, while trying to figure out how to get to Artoth. He knew it would not be easy. He didn't know how to communicate with these people. They had been so kind to him, he almost felt guilty leaving them. But he had to find out what happened to Aline. He would not lose hope that she was alive.

  Lantovas still wanted to take him back to Thure without finding the actual murderers. And Gordon had no idea where the murderers were, exactly. All of his problems should have made him feel overwhelmed and hopeless, but somehow he thought there was a way forward. The happiness of these people seem to be infectious.

  “Have you found a way to communicate with them?” Gordon said as he approached Lantovas in a group of people. They were all laughing together.

  Lantovas was laughing too. “No, but they seem to like to laugh, especially about me trying to talk with them. I have been able to figure out that they're going on a hunt today. I think we have been invited.” He turned back to the men and pretended like he was using a club, and then pointed to himself and Gordon. They all started nodding and saying something in their language. It was clear that they were indeed invited along.

  Gordon did not know what kind of animals they were hunting. They were each given a club very much like the others had, and they set off on a path into the forest. They hadn't walked very far when they heard something rustling around in the brush ahead. The men got very quiet and started to separate out in a circle to try to surround whatever animal was there.

  A wild pig with giant tusks broke out of the brush and ran down the trail, away from them. One of the men tried to jump on the animal and catch it, but he only landed on the ground empty handed. They all raced after the wild pig.

  The pig cut back into some underbrush. Lantovas motioned that they should go farther around. Never having been on the hunt, Gordon listened to the guard. Just then, they heard a strange noise. Gordon was sure he had heard that sound before, but it sounded very far away. It was out of place in all this green, and Gordon tried to remember what it might be. It was not coming from the underbrush, and it was not made by any animal. Rotators.

  Lantovas apparently heard the sound too. Without a word, he started running back towards the beach. Gordon followed him. The other men followed too, confused by the sound.

  Lantovas was the first man on the beach and looked to the sky. An airship was floating in sight, but seemed to be flying away from them. It was very high up, Gordon thought, probably to avoid the shadow fin creatures.

  The guard started to wave his arms wildly and jump around. Gordon panicked and leapt onto the man's back.

  Lantovas said, “What… Gordon, what are you doing!?”

  “If they find me, they're going to kill me,” said Gordon, struggling to stay on the man's back.

  Lantovas threw Gordon off easily and said, “Stop it. They are from your kingdom. They are not going to kill you. You're just afraid to face my queen,” said Lantovas. “Damn it, boy, they didn't see us.”

  The guard started to run down the beach, waving his arms wildly and yelling again. Then there was another sound, this time coming from the trees. Apparently, the wild boar was running for the beach. The guard heard the noise and turned back to the trees. Before he could do anything, a giant gray beast came out of the jungle. It was on all four of its thick, muscular legs. The creature was looking at the sky, apparently investigating the strange sound as well.

  Then the beast looked down and saw Lantovas.

  The creature's feet looked more like giant hands. The creature was nearly twice as tall as Lantovas and grabbed with his two front legs, the ones like hands. The guard looked scared for only a moment, but bravely tried to deflect the animal's attack with his club. The creature was too large and too fast. He grabbed Lantovas around the arm holding the club. Before any of the other men could do anything, the creature had taken the guard back through the trees.

  Gordon could barely believe what he had just seen. The men looked at each other, shaking their heads.

  “We have to go after him!” pointing in the direction that the creature had gone. The men only shook their heads. “We. Go. Now.” Gordon repeated.

  The inked men looked at each other with concern. They spoke to each other rapidly in their language. The man with the eight on his neck seemed to be pointing in the direction that Lantovas had been taken.

  The other men were shaking their heads. They were getting louder, but it was clear that Number Eight was losing the argument. Gordon tried to motion once more and even took a few steps, showing that he wanted to go after the creature, but it was no use. The men started walking back to their homes.

  The airship was completely out of sight. Gordon could no longer hear any hint of the rotators. Gordon was torn. All he had was a shortknife and a club. The creature was huge. He had no chance of saving Lantovas on his own.

  Gordon reluctantly followed the men back, not knowing what else to do. He felt completely helpless. It reminded him again how everything was out of his control.

  The
men quietly argued all the way back. Number Eight repeatedly pointing to the thick jungle forest. They arrived back in the village and went straight into the round building. They went to the man that Gordon thought of as their leader. The other men were clearly seeking his advice.

  Gordon thought about the story from the night before. He thought it was about a man who had been their king, but had abused them so much that they rose up against him. Now, he wondered if it was supposed to be about the beast that they had just seen. Maybe it was both, somehow.

  The men were talking very fast to their leader, who was listening very carefully and growing more concerned as they spoke. Number Eight started to make his case, and the leader listened to every word and nodded gravely.

  The leader stood there for a moment, saying nothing as he put on his glasses. He noticed Gordon for the first time. He looked at his men, and then motioned for Gordon to come over to him.

  Gordon went over, not knowing what to expect. He said something to Gordon in his language, realizing Gordon wouldn't understand what he was saying. So he gently took the club from Number Eight and raised it up in his hands and then made a sound. Then he put his hand over the top of the club and gently lowered the stick down and made another sound. Gordon thought he understood. Gordon carefully took his shortknife from its sheath and raised it up in the air.

  The man nodded and smiled a sad smile. The leader started speaking very quickly to his men. Forming a plan or giving orders, Gordon wasn't sure, but it had the sense of action. Over the next half hour, the men came and went, and Gordon stayed with the leader and collected weapons.

  The leader laid nets for fishing and some clubs together on a long table. He then went to different rooms of the building and came back with more weapons. He laid out spears and even more exotic weapons. He then led Gordon to a room he had not been in before. Along one wall, different things were hanging from a net on the wall.

  The leader went to the back of the room and reached behind a broken wooden shield. He brought out a curved longknife. Gordon had never seen one with a curved blade. It had its own sheath, and when the leader slid it out, he could see that someone had taken very good care of it. It looked like it had been made yesterday.

  The leader solemnly offered it to Gordon. Gordon looked confused. Was he really giving Gordon a longknife? Gordon took out his shortknife and showed it to the man. The man put his hand over the shortknife and shook his head, offering the longknife to Gordon again. This time, Gordon put away his shortknife and accepted it. It was much lighter than he expected as he hung it around his waist.

  The leader nodded and they both left the room. Soon, they were on their way to find the beast.

  Chapter 31: Roll of the Dice

  King Asa didn't like being alone. With Brenddel gone for the day with the airship, Asa had no one to talk to. He always imagined a king would be talking to people all day long: council members, his people, somebody. But it seemed like there was just a lot of sitting around and waiting.

  He hoped being a king wasn't always going to be boring.

  Asa tried to stay with Trunculin, since it was at least a person he knew. Besides the guards that they brought with them, the firstcouncilor was the only one that talked to him at all.

  He had not seen the queen since the funeral. When he asked what they were going to do that night, Trunculin said, “Oh, I am sorry, my king, one of my agents has just arrived and we have much to discuss.”

  “When are we meeting with him?” asked the king excitedly. He was getting more eager to learn.

  “My king, these things would just bore you. It is one of my jobs as firstcouncilor to save you from the boring details. I will meet with my agent and then I will report to you as to what was…”

  “But wouldn't it be easier if I just came with you?” interrupted Asa.

  “…. My king!” Trunculin said, sounding annoyed, “…if I might finish what I was saying. The truth is that these issues are sensitive, and you have just begun your training. I'll be happy to tell you what was said and explain what it all means, later.”

  “I really want to come with you. I don't know anyone else here,” Asa said, trying to sound confident and firm.

  Trunculin walked very close to Asa and leaned over, his face right in front of the king's. He put his hand on one of Asa's shoulders and said, “I really think my way,” he dug his thumb into Asa's shoulder blade, “would be best.”

  Asa winced in pain.

  Before Asa knew what to do, Trunculin had released him and walked out of the room. Asa rubbed his shoulder. That really hurt, Asa thought. He started thinking about his family and how far away they were. Everyone I've ever known is across the waters, he thought.

  Asa sat there for a while in his chamber, thinking fondly of the fights he had with his brothers. He took his shoes off, straightened himself and thought, I am king. I am not going to sit in this room all night and do nothing. So Asa did the only thing he had the power to do, he looked around.

  He had only seen a few parts of the Thurian palace. Since there were a few of his guards, and the queen's guards everywhere in the palace, he felt safe enough to walk around by himself. If a guard stopped him, saying that he should wait for the firstcouncilor, he would simply say 'let me pass, I am king.' Should be easy enough, he thought.

  The fact he was king had not set in completely. I have some power now, Asa thought, I can do what I want. There was no parent telling him to wash his face or put his shoes on, and no brother hitting him for no reason. He wondered briefly if a guard should walk with him, but strangely enough, the guards didn't pay any attention to him at all. It was almost as if they couldn't see him.

  Asa walked around his own level of the palace. He then went down a long, ornate staircase that wound down into the next level. There were people everywhere, but no one seemed to pay him any attention.

  In a way, he felt like he was just any other boy that no one noticed. He wasn't sure if he liked that or not. As he wandered, he heard people having fun chatting about things he didn't understand. Then from up ahead, he heard some men shouting and laughing. It sounded like they were having fun, so Asa walked into the narrow corridor and saw a group of men kneeling on the ground.

  “Three kings!” one man said, and most of the men cheered, all but a few.

  “Three kings and four queens, a full palace. And some very happy kings, I'll wager…” And all the men cheered and laughed as he got closer. He looked closer at what they were doing. Apparently, they were throwing king dice on the floor. He could see piles of coin and realized the men were gambling.

  Some of the men finally noticed him and turned around. One man stood up and held his hand out. “No strangers here, boy.”

  All the men had stopped and were looking at Asa. A voice from behind the man said, “Better be careful now, you don't want to start a war between our kingdoms.”

  The man looked at Asa uncertainly. The voice continued, “Don't you know who this is? You are talking to a king. Good King Asa, do you want me to cut his throat right here for his insolence? Or should we just send them all to the prisons?” asked Darion, the king's brother. The other men all looked a little nervous.

  “No, we can just boil one of his legs in oil,” said Asa, playing along.

  “Are you sure? You know, back in the old days, they would take four horses and tie one leg and one arm to each horse and have them run in different directions. You think this offense rises to that punishment, my king?” said Darion in a serious tone.

  “Or… we could just throw dice,” said Asa.

  All the men started to laugh. All, except for the man that had almost gotten thrown into prison. He slowly realized it was all a jest.

  As they sat down and rolled the dice, Darion gave Asa some coin, since Asa didn't have any with him. He really had no idea who paid for everything. He almost thought about asking the firstcouncilor, but decided he did not want to think about Trunculin right now, or anything else but being around o
ther people.

  “So what's a king doing walking around our palace? And barefooted, I see,” asked Darion between throws.

  “I don't know. Not much. I'm finding you don't have many friends when you're king. I hadn't thought of that before.”

  Darion agreed. “That is true enough. You have allies, enemies, and subjects. Sometimes they are all three at the same time. But kings have few friends.”

  “Where did you go after the funeral?”

  “Honestly? To get drunk,” he said, lifting the cup sitting next to him on the floor. He took a long swallow. “To forget my troubles for a while. No place for the little brother of a dead king, apparently.”

  Other men were throwing dice and cheering, and others sulked and yelled when they lost.

  “I'm sorry. I didn't know any of that was going to happen,” said the young king.

  “Forget it,” said Darion. “None of that had anything to do with you. The story of the families of Thure is long and bitter.”

  “What will you do now?”

  “Travel. I'm off to see the world. You see, I figure if I go off and become famous for some high adventure, I can come back the conquering hero and maybe the people will love me more. Or at least notice me. I'm sure it's hard to be a young king, but it's just as hard to be a king's younger brother,” said Darion.

  Asa thought about that and realized in many ways they were both powerless, “I only have older brothers. You should have seen the look on their faces in the crowd when my name was called. I'm pretty sure my oldest brother caught a fly. His jaw was wide open!”

  Darion had just been taking a sip and nearly spit it out. As he laughed, he managed, “Would have paid to see that.”

  Asa said, “I think I'd rather go anywhere, than go back to my kingdom and be king. This is one of the first times I've laughed since I was chosen.”

  “People would certainly talk about you. A young king throws down his crown and runs towards adventure. They might write songs about you.”