Gilleran crashed to the grass, limp. Nightfall closed his eyes as he continued to fall, his previous velocity unstoppable. The branch bent only slightly, bearing his meager weight. The jolting stop tore his right shoulder from the socket, and he felt something snap in his left hand. The branch held, but his grip did not. He fell again, his speed seeming impossibly slow in comparison, most of his momentum broken. He landed on Gilleran, then rolled to the ground, his last realization that the impact had not killed him. "Good-bye, Dyfrin," he managed to think before oblivion overtook him.
Epilogue
Nightfall awakened enfolded in blankets as smooth as water. Consciousness brought the throb and sting of myriad wounds, softened by the comfortable fuzziness induced, he guessed, by some sort of pain-hazing elixir. The hurt did not escape him completely, but his mind would not allow him to care, turning agony to discomfort. His arms ached worst of all. He could feel the stiff touch of a splint holding the left fingers in place. The twinge that accompanied every breath told him Gilleran’s kicks had shattered some ribs, and a dull throb along his hip and side reminded him of the cutting magic that nearly killed Edward. His shoulder felt sore, but someone had restored its proper alignment.
Nightfall opened his eyes to slits, routinely cautious. Head bandaged, Edward knelt before a plush chair in which Kelryn perched squarely, her dancer’s legs tucked beneath her. Nightfall found himself unable to focus on the other furnishings, although he did reassure himself that no other person occupied the room. The oddity of a crown prince on the floor struck him, but he did not bother to gather the energy necessary for speech.
Kelryn broke what had obviously been a long and uncomfortable silence for both. “Ned, I’m flattered. Under other circumstances, I could think of nothing more wonderful than becoming the queen of Alyndar."
Nightfall’s eyes flicked open unconsciously.
Kelryn continued, oblivious. "But I can’t marry you."
"You can’t?" Edward’s voice sounded pinched, with a hint of confusion.
"I’m in love with another man."
Kelryn and Edward turned their heads to Nightfall simultaneously.
Caught awake and listening, Nightfall smiled. "Is that man me?"
Kelryn’s delicate cheeks flushed pink. "Yes, you obnoxious, eavesdropping bastard.”
Nightfall brushed back the blankets from his head, weighing the pain and effort of sitting and deciding to remain in position instead. "Is that a proposal?"
Kelryn’s face darkened to crimson. "It might be."
"Then I accept." Nightfall glanced at Edward to assure his comfort. Despite the humor, it was a delicate situation that pain, drugs, and ignorance did not allow him to handle gracefully. “That is, if my friend, the King of Alyndar, will attend the wedding.”
Edward rose and sat on the bed, grinning, genuinely happy. Only a slight wistfulness about his bowing lips gave any indication of his own thwarted dream. “Attend, hell. I’ll throw it. If a king can’t put together a feast in his adviser’s honor, of what good is the crown or the title?"
"Adviser?" The position caught Nightfall wholly by surprise. “Me? Do you think that’s wise?"
Edward rubbed at the bandage on his head. "If I hope to help the masses, I’ll need someone with real knowledge of their plight. You can refuse the title, you know. I can’t force you to become gentry."
Gentry. The suggestion seemed ludicrous to Nightfall, and he knew he could never truly fit in with the highborn. Nevertheless, it might stir some good controversy to sit as counsel to Alyndar’s king. "It’s not that. It’s just . . . well . . . am I still under arrest?"
Edward laughed. "First, my father’s papers acquitted you of all crimes in Alyndar prior to our association. A term of the magic, apparently.”
Nightfall nodded, guilty Edward’s trust for him still hinged on a lie, that the Magebane’s stone could have broken the oath-bond. He justified it with the realization that the loyalty existed, regardless of the means used to convince Edward. When the oath-bond ended, he could have escaped with his life. Instead, he had fought the final battle, not only for vengeance but from concern for the future of Alyndar and its king.
"The means of my father’s death made it obvious who killed him. The orders of a traitor hold no weight in Alyndar."
Edward’s words reminded Nightfall of another matter that needed addressing. He glanced at Kelryn who flashed him a broad smile. "You saved me from a lot of abuse on the stairs. You didn’t freeze against the sorcerer this time, and I thank you for that.”
Kelryn’s grin broadened. "I wish I could have done more. I wish I could have been there for the fight."
"You did enough." Nightfall suspected that consisted of more than he knew. That Gilleran had not killed Edward in the time it took Nightfall to dodge the guards suggested something had delayed him. That something, Nightfall felt certain, was Kelryn.
Edward raised his brows, his question still unanswered. "So, will be you be my adviser?"
Nightfall replied from habit, "Yes, Master, I will."
Edward corrected. "My friends call me Ned. You know that, Sudian." His features creased. "Or should I call you Marak? Or Nightfall? Or something else?"
Nightfall considered only briefly. Aside from King Edward and Kelryn, all those who knew his alter ego were dead. Except, possibly, one. The chief prison guard, Volkmier, might have heard enough during his conversation with the king to suspect. His surviving a fatal fall, just as Nightfall had done from the parapets months earlier, had probably added the final certainty. Nevertheless, he believed he could make peace with one of the king’s most faithful guardsmen. Perhaps, he already had. Finally, he addressed King Edward’s question. "Ned, from this day forth, I believe Sudian is the only name I’ll ever need."
And he meant it.
"The Legend of Nightfall"
A demon wakens with the night,
Reviling sun and all things bright.
Evil’s friend and virtues foe-
Darkness comes where Nightfall goes.
Eyes darker than the midnight shade,
Teeth sharper than the headsman’s blade.
When he smiles a cold wind blows-
Darkness comes where Nightfall goes.
When shadows fall and sunlight breaks,
What Nightfall touches, Nightfall takes.
Lives and silver maids in bows-
Darkness comes where Nightfall goes.
A demon cruel; a monster stark,
Grim moonlight, coldness, deepest dark.
Nightmares come to those who doze-
In darkness where old Nightfall goes.
Nightfall laughs, and deaths ax falls.
Hell opens wide and swallows all.
He rules the depths where no light shows-
Darkness comes where Nightfall goes.
Lock up your children after dark,
Lest Nightfall find an easy mark.
For safety ends at twilight’s close-
And darkness comes where Nightfall goes.
Razor claws and fiery eyes,
Leathern wings to cleave the skies.
His soul within stark midnight froze--
Darkness comes where Nightfall goes.
Those who brave the night will find.
Horror, dread, and demon kind.
He slays them all and rends their souls-
Darkness comes where Nightfall goes.
Birthed within the black abyss,
His silent gift, a deadly kiss.
Gone before the rooster crows-
Darkness comes where Nightfall goes.
Counting years like grains of sand.
Countless fall beneath his hand.
Time, his minion; night, his clothes-
Darkness comes where Nightfall goes.
Where Nightfall walks, all virtue dies.
He weaves a trail of pain and lies.
On mankind heaps his vilest woes-
Darkness comes where Nightfall g
oes.
Wolves and bats and beasts of night,
Spirits black that flee the light,
Cringed in fear when he arose-
Darkness comes where Nightfall goes.
He feeds on elders and children,
On soldiers, kings, and beggarmen.
He never stops and never slows-
Darkness comes where Nightfall goes.
The Evil One, the demon blight
Who hides in day and stalks the night.
He steals the stars and drags them low-
Darkness comes where Nightfall goes.
Alternative verses:
Three kings and their armies rode
To hunt the demon in the cold;
But where they’ve gone, no mortal knows-
Darkness comes where Nightfall goes.
A dragon laughed at Nightfall’s fame,
Rained curses on the demons name;
The dragon’s bones now lie in rows-
Darkness comes where Nightfall goes.
A wizard hoped to slay the beast.
He conjured up a poisoned feast.
The demon fed him to the crows-
Darkness comes where Nightfall goes.
A gambler bet the tales were lies
And scorned the wisdom of the wise.
The odds were not the ones he chose-
Darkness comes where Nightfall goes.
Six princes fought him in the night,
Their fortress of unequaled might.
’Twas gone before the sun arose—
Darkness comes where Nightfall goes.
The Evil One, the demon blight
Who hides in day and stalks the night.
He steals the stars and drags them low-
Darkness comes where Nightfall goes.
Table of Contents
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Map
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Epilogue
"The Legend of Nightfall"
The Legend of Nightfall Page 53