“Minister? Is all well?” the guard called from the other room.
Guards! By the goddess!
As she raced from the room, she passed Sarah’s unconscious body, crumpled in a heap beneath the cabinet. Akub paused and reached down and placed her palm above Sarah’s lips.
She’s breathing.
Akub hadn’t killed anyone.
Somehow that provided little comfort.
“What’s happened here? Stop!” the guard shouted. “Stop!”
Akub didn’t wait for him to slash her. Instead she fled, slamming into the incoming guard, knocking him clear off his feet as she made her escape.
4
Betrayal Redux
It took Akub several minutes to realize the thundering in her ears belonged to the hammering of her heart. Eons ago, an act such as this—a theft, a betrayal—had been easier. Often she performed those duties like a loyal pet. Manola had tugged on the strings and she had obeyed—without question. It didn’t require thought or will, only loyalty and rabid obedience. The same as any well-trained animal.
“Halt!” The two guards had followed her outside to the hallway.
Akub stopped as ordered. She had to get rid of them or they’d raise enough alarm to call others. With her arms raised high, she turned to face them.
The younger of the two men spoke first. “We heard noises from within. The minister’s been attacked, as had our lady. Our queen’s soul snatched.”
The older guard inched closer to her, his eyes narrowed in suspicion. “You the only one walkin’ out, unharmed. Turn out your pockets.”
“Or else I’m chasing their attacker,” Akub forced her magick into the words, devouring the other men’s resistance, their will to think otherwise. “Yes?”
Glassy-eyed and a bit droopy, the older guard nodded, while the younger actually managed a “but…”
“Yes, young lad, I am chasing the attacker.” Akub’s hands burned as she pushed harder, forcing the younger man’s resistance to mellow into her words, weaving the memory.
After several tense moments, he said, “Yes.”
With relief washing over her, she forced herself to walk down the stone staircase instead of fleeing full out. Every part of her wanted to run and not look back. Marion’s enraged face haunted her, and the roaring grief in his voice tore at her courage.
I will kill you!
Once she reached the bottom of the staircase, she headed away from the Great Hall toward the stables. When she’d arrived on the ice planet, she had been escorted, along with others from Saturn Four, to the castle’s stables. During that trek, she’d committed the route to memory.
As she rounded the corner, she heard someone remark, “I apologize, Minister Zykeiah. I did not know it was you.”
Zykeiah.
Akub swallowed the lump of horror in her throat. She dipped back behind the wall and peered slowly around its edge. She couldn’t stay here, but the last person she wanted to encounter stood a short distance away. If the minister caught her, she’d be a terror to defeat. Sure, she could use her magick, but already winded, she doubted she could conjure enough to be effective. Akub recalled how efficiently Zykeiah had sliced open her enemies in battles. Some said that Zykeiah's daggers were extensions of her hands.
The last thing she wanted was a confrontation with the lethal knight. Yet, she couldn’t stay in this spot. In fact, she needed to get off-world as soon as possible.
Just outside the central baths, Zykeiah spoke in soft tones to a woman clad in a robe and her bare feet.
Now! Seeing that she’d been distracted, Akub hurried around the corner.
Akub blew out her anxiousness and started again toward the stables. With her magick, she dimmed her presence, but her weakened power didn’t last long. She’d only managed to get a few steps beyond the knight when it waned.
“Akub, where are you headed in such a hurry?” Zykeiah shouted to her.
Akub stopped at the top of the stairs that led down to the stables with a groan in her throat. She released a breath.
“Leaving, as ordered.”
Zykeiah signaled the bath maid to leave. The woman cast Akub a scowl before hurrying off. Akub expected Zykeiah to celebrate, but she said nothing as she walked over to her. When Zykeiah didn’t speak, Akub folded her arms into her cloak’s sleeve and fought down the urge to take off running. Her bravery faded just like her powers.
“Wait till the morn.” Zykeiah broke the tense quiet.
Is that concern in her voice? Akub searched Zykeiah’s stony expression but found no indication of emotion. The suggestion flew in the face of her previous tirade. Why?
“No, you’re right. I’m leaving,” Akub’s love for Zykeiah warred against her need to do what the oracle had sent her to do. Zykeiah’s kindness had shamed her, and deep inside, she felt horrible that she’d stolen the queen’s soul.
Yet, it had to be done. For the greater good.
Zykeiah studied her with careful eyes before giving her a small bow. “Kwaheri, Akub.”
One should not question the goddess, but Akub wasted little time pondering it further. She took the stairs two at a time down to the stables. The castle’s stables consumed a gigantic section directly behind the East Wing Hall. They stank of danker beasts and cold. How could Patches, the chief stable hand, stand it all day, let alone be so pleasant? If she had to endure the stench of the hairy thick-limbed beasts of burden native to Veloris, she’d be grouchy about it. Mean.
Not to mention the icy pinch of the planet’s constant cold weather. The outdoor stables held some protection with the overhead wooden roof, stone stables, and hay, but some sections of the stables remained exposed, if for nothing else than to lessen the stench.
From what she could gather, Patches’ good nature derived from his devotion both to the knights and to the throne. So, what would he say if he found out she’d stolen the very epitome of the crown—the queen?
Why did it bother her so? She knew him not.
Yet, it did.
Urgency propelled her to hasten her pace. She had no time for regrets. They had all seemed like such decent folk, ready to protect their queen, even to the death.
“Leaving?” Patches put oats into troughs.
His face red from the cold and whips of white hair sticking out from beneath his woolen hat rendered him childlike, innocent. His face, chapped and peeling, was layered with wrinkles. His earnest grin exposed several vacant spots where teeth should have been.
“Yes.” Akub shoved her hands into her cloak and huddled back inside it for warmth.
“Looks like a storm’s rolling in.” Patches cast a weary glance upward. “Good. Many are leaving after what happened. You know the way to the Circle?”
“I do.” All too well.
Akub inched closer to the danker beast.
Patches secured the saddle’s belts and situated it on the beast in question. “Many are afraid. Such cowardice! To attack the queen! Surprised the ministers don’t keep e’ryone here.”
Akub managed to mumble, “Shame.”
Patches’ gaze shifted out to the blanket of snow that separated the castle from the Stocklah Mountains.
“Look like we goin’ get a bunch of snow. So much for the start of the Warming Season. Any of ‘em leaving could’ve done it.”
“I must get on my way, Patches.” Akub climbed upon her danker beast.
The danker beasts were prepared and well-adapted to the harshness of Veloris. Their thick hairy hide covered all but their eyes and short pink nostrils. They snorted and passed gas on such a continual basis that it permeated the air with the putrid odor of rotting food, yet they were dependable and quick, despite their four trunk-like legs. The animal could be given to an ill-prepared merchant and be taken back to the castle.
Patches patted the animal with a loving ruffling of his hair. “Storm rolling in from the west, lady. You may want to stay in the village if it comes in too soon and hard. Sometimes the clouds give so m
uch snow, you can’t get down the path.”
Akub groaned. Great. A storm. “A village?”
Patches gave her another open mouth laugh. “’Eh, you can’t miss it. Most of the travelers will be going that way. Follow the herd.”
“Thank you.” Akub wrapped her hands around the reins.
“Safe journey.” Patches patted the beast.
Even from this distance, the Allerton Circle’s glow lit up the region of the Northern Forest. The distance didn’t silence its humming. It vibrated through the air and skated along Akub’s skin. She hated the way it made her flesh crawl. Coming through the Circle had been cozy, and to be expelled into Veloris’s harsh winter climate jarred her.
Patches’ words held cold, harsh truth. Kidnapping a queen meant death. Zykeiah wouldn’t forgive her again.
Not that she wanted to be reunited with Zykeiah in this way. All she had wanted the knight to do was help her avoid the coming danger the oracle envisioned. To be true to herself had cost her dearly.
Along the well-worn path that cut through the Northern Forest, danker beasts, donkeys, and gbongs carried merchants to and from the Minister Knights of Souls’ castle and on to the Allerton Circle. Overhead, the cloudy gray sky threatened to dump more snow onto the already frigid land. Patches may be correct again. The simple stable hand was remarkably astute.
Almost as if commanded, the wintry weather fell. Behind her, the castle loomed, menacing and dark against full gray clouds. Akub hunched back into her cloak. Her hands ached as they clenched the reins. The sounds of animals, unseen but heard, scurried through the stark wilderness. A few paces ahead, two danker beasts lumbered on at a slower pace than the others dark dots farther along the path. From the looks of it, the beasts carried newly-traded goods loaded on either side.
Despite the bitter cold, Akub pushed on as others took a path that led off to the village Patches mentioned earlier. The snow continued without fail. The anxiousness crawling around in her belly thrusted her onward. She wanted to get back home, to Saturn Four, to return to her life where she used her magick to help, not hurt, others. The queen’s soul trapped in the orb would keep until extracted. Safe within her home, in her protection.
When Akub arrived on the ice planet, she had a dual purpose: averting the tragedy the oracle prophesied and saving Zykeiah. The biggest hurdle—not the climate or the threats of thieves on the merchants’ path to the castle—had been facing her former, betrayed lover.
Akub’s guilt had threatened to steal her courage. But she held it at bay by knowing she would save a planet. Regardless of the gnawing fear, she had done it. The orb infused her with bravery. Knowing she’d done the goddess’s will emboldened her. Akub touched the orb for warmth as well as to remind her of her purpose.
As she did so, a quick burst of light blinded her. Akub pulled at the reins and reached wildly to steady herself as images shot through her psyche like rapid stabs of ice.
The Antiqk Oracle would be heard.
Like sharp arrow points, each visual plowed into her.
Marion in a castle, chained to the floor, restrained at all four points. It was neither Queen Zoë’s castle nor any castle she had seen before. Cries sailed into the sky. She didn’t know Zykeiah’s whereabouts, but the feeling of foreboding pressed into her stomach.
After mere seconds of this, Akub slumped forward on the danker beast, her stomach churning and her hands on fire. When she opened her eyes, the lids felt heavy and it took multiple attempts to see clearly. She focused on the white landscape around her and took in several slow breaths before pushing herself up. The falling snow created a curtain that shielded her from seeing too far ahead on the path.
“By the goddess,” Akub groaned and adjusted her hood. The danker beast’s speed slowed to that of a turtle, lumbering along as if afraid.
Something is amiss.
The vision from the oracle didn’t have any connection to the one that sent her here. She tried to shake off the fog of the new images. In the vision, Veloris and the queen’s castle were desolate and deserted. The feeling of foreboding was the same. The original call showed servants scattered around the village, weeping in earnest about the death of the queen and the demise of the knights. Decay. Death. Destruction.
A cold revelation rippled through her, and it had nothing to do with the weather. All she had attempted to help Zykeiah and Veloris had been rendered void. By stealing the queen’s soul, she hadn’t effected any change.
“Argh!” Akub slammed her hand on the side of the saddle. As she struggled to separate the smear of images and sounds from the oracle’s vision, the tiny drop of doubt continued to drip into her heart.
Blurred by time, faded like the worn path that led from the Allerton Circle through the Northern Forest, the oracle’s words slipped through her mental grasp. Their meaning remained hidden by emotions and shock, deep within her.
What had she done?
“No!” she shouted against the breeze. She’d done what the oracle demanded; she’d been obedient. It was just too early to understand the goddess’s message, but in time, the true message would be revealed.
“Minister! Minister!” A voice, faint at first, grew in volume and intensity from behind her, shaking her out of her musings.
She spied two danker beasts plowing through the snow at a fast pace. Behind those were several more. Despite the distance and the increasing snowfall, Akub knew her pursuers at once—Zykeiah and the palace guards. She could read the warrior’s body language and the displeasure wafting off her.
Akub spurred her own animal to move faster. If she got to the Allerton Circle before Zykeiah, she could be back to Saturn Four and home before the knight caught her. There, she’d keep the queen’s soul safe until the threat had ceased.
“Akub!” Zykeiah’s voice reached her through the chilly air. She maneuvered her danker beast off the path, rushing by other, slower riders, who like her, had decided to plow ahead despite the weather. With a gloved-hand, she gestured for Akub to do the same. Beside her, another person rode hard and fast.
Marion. Palace Guards.
Akub turned back to the pathway, leaned forward, and pressed on faster. Her danker beast bellowed at her rough encouragement. Faster! Its thick, fur-clad hide protected it from the cold and snowy weather, but it couldn’t buffer all the sting of Akub’s riding crop.
Ahead, the glowing edge of the Allerton Circle came into view over the treetops. She relaxed, feeling the wet snow melt into her eyelashes but freeze on her cheeks.
Thank the goddess!
Freedom. So close she could feel it.
A burst of pain erupted in her shoulder, and Akub winced in agony. Her danker beast stopped at once, pitching her forward. She landed in the snow with a hard thud. Her breath escaped in ragged gasps, and the icy temperatures made it hard to capture her breath.
I need a protection circle. I should’ve gone to the village.
Akub pushed herself onto her knees. When she looked back at her pursuers, she saw Marion leap off his beast before it had come to a complete stop. He ran the short distance toward her.
How the hell did they catch up so quickly? Akub rushed to draw the symbols into the snow, her body stiff with cold. With her magick weakened, she couldn’t call on it to weave protection.
Faster!
Just as she could scramble to her feet, she saw the flicker of a shadow as Marion appeared before her. Startled, she almost screamed, but before the sound could escape her lips, he held up a dark sphere.
With short, ragged breath, he spoke. “Sleep.”
Darkness claimed her.
5
Sudden Snow
Where am I? The orb!
An upside-down hearth and fur-trimmed leather boots made the nausea in Akub’s stomach lurch forward, but being carried upside down always made her ill. She tried to right herself, but she discovered her hands and feet bound. Gagged, she groaned as it all came rushing back. The soul snatching. Her escape. Her capture. The
minister knights had ambushed her. Apparently, Marion had a few secretive skills and tricks of his own. With her left shoulder in agonizing pain—no doubt from one of Zykeiah’s daggers—she tried to break her bindings. Magic weaving required her to speak to invoke. All she managed now were gurgles and grunts. Full panic set in.
“She wakes. Now let’s put her to permanent sleep.” An upside down Zykeiah came into view with dagger in hand.
“In time.” Marion spoke with calm resolution.
Death.
Marion carried her over his shoulder, giving her a view of his buttocks and boots. He’d taken the orb. Like all of them, he reeked of danker beast, a horrid smell of wet fur and sweat. Sharp sensations of pain shot up her back. When she lifted her neck and blinked to quell the burning in her eyes, she fell back again to the same position. Across from her, wisps of smoke spiraled upward from one of the hallway fireplaces that had been recently extinguished, confirming that she was back in the castle.
Akub could hear servants making their way between the East Hall and Great Hall kitchens. Trading, sharing, and exchanging, they often relied upon each other, and it was only when both kitchens and the storage room had been depleted of a certain item that the servants ventured out to their quarters for goods. That had been the way it worked in most castles across the Pixlis Galaxy.
The hearth outside the Great Hall poured warmth into the wide space, but one had to still stand fairly close to feel it. Snow and ice melted in Akub’s hair, her eyelashes, and her cloak, but the melt rolled down her face. She shook off as much of the weather as she could, wiggling against her restraints and her restrainer.
Devourer: A Minister Knight Novel (The Minister Knights Series Book 2) Page 4