The Secrets of Brymar (The Elitherian Fragments Book 1)

by James Coy-Dibley

  “Just about,” she said and walked off.

  Brian waited there for a while, as did all of the people watching him, and pretended to drink the mead. The sun slowly passed further to the south until finally the deep orange rays of the evening sun poured through the small windows of the inn. He’d tried to keep the ring clearly on display at the edge of the table, even alternating between hands a couple of times and awkwardly holding his hands in front of him with his elbows on the table.

  But after all that time, still no one approached him.

  He finally stood up, glancing at the back of the inn, and shrugged. But before he could take a step, a brutishly large, hooded man stopped in front of him.

  “There’s no need to leave yet,” a deep, booming voice said from beneath the robes. “I see you wear my ring.”

  “Who are you?” Brian demanded, his hand ready to grab his blade.

  “Tell me, what would you gain from knowing my name?”

  Brian thought to himself but shook his head. “I don’t care for your name, only who you are.”

  The man nodded and motioned towards the chair. “You do not need that information to ask your questions.”

  His indirect answers annoyed Brian. “Will you remove your hood, then?”

  “Why?”

  “A sign of good faith,” Brian answered quickly though sternly. “I want to look into your eyes as we speak.”

  “Very well,” he said as he removed his thick, black hood to reveal a rustic, pale face with a large, black beard and matching black hair. His eyes stunned Brian the most. Within the centre of the dark irises burned a dark red glow unlike anything he’d ever seen. “Are you more comfortable now?”

  “Not particularly,” Brian muttered as he tried to take a fake sip of mead.

  “I see you don’t like mead,” the traveller said, “judging by the way your face flinches as you smell it.”

  Brian put the pint down and ignored the jibe. “Let’s talk about that text you could read.” After pulling out a small piece of parchment, Brian placed it on the table.

  The man briefly inspected the text and nodded. “I can read it,” he said. “It is an old one, long forgotten and lost to time. No one speaks it anymore.”

  “So you can translate it?” Brian calmly said, though his patience weaned.

  “I can, but I wish to know why you are so interested.”

  “Why?”

  “Because the message speaks of a great power under the mountain,” he answered.

  “Power?”

  “Yes.” The man reached for the parchment and held it closer. “Apologies, my vision isn’t what it used to be.” He inspected it closer, sat back, and nodded. After putting it back in front of Brian, he pointed to each symbol as he read the message aloud. “Unscathed rests the divine power beneath the mountain. Dormant shall it remain until the faltering of the world’s light.”

  Brian flinched and shook his head. “What does any of that mean?”

  “Well, the message is incomplete for one thing. That symbol there,” the man said as he pointed to the last one, “is torn in half.”

  “We have the rest in our possession, but it can’t be moved,” Brian said, and it couldn’t; something held it to the book with the key.

  Brian thought to himself, unsure of what to do next. This traveller could actually speak the language, the first time they’d ever found someone that could. This man was the only person that could decipher Brymar and answer all of their questions. Were Aroden to be sitting here right now, he’d probably be jumping in his seat from excitement. But Brian couldn’t invite this traveller to Brymar.

  “How long will you be in Orwell?”

  “Not much longer,” the traveller said.

  Brian grimaced and sighed. “Would you be willing to decipher the rest of the message at a later date?”

  The traveller took a breath and sat back in the creaking chair. “I’m sure our paths will cross again.”

  “It’s a vast realm, and I don’t like chance.”

  “Chance isn’t at play here,” the man said. After a glance towards the back of the inn, he leaned over the table, making Brian slightly uncomfortable. “Brian,” he started, witnessing Brian’s eyes widen before lowering his voice, “perhaps your king would prefer to hear these words for himself, hmm?”

  “I don’t know what you are talking about,” Brian immediately said to play it off.

  “I see your guise here. Granted, I can respect the hesitance, though I disapprove of the deception.”

  Brain remained silent.

  “I know more than you think, but you needn’t worry. I am no enemy.”

  Brian stood up. “How can I be sure?”

  “Sit down again. You’re making the rest of the Arraci around us uncomfortable,” the man quietly ordered, clearly unamused. He even glanced directly at Aroden and Max at the back. “And Max looks like he’s ready to charge at me.”

  “You know so much about us, yet I know nothing about you.”

  “You will understand when the time comes, Brian, but I must first speak with your king.” The man’s focus was interrupted by a brief pause. He looked to the inn’s entrance and then stood up, clearly disturbed by something. “I must go.”

  “Surely, you can’t expect me to trust you if you will tell me nothing.”

  “I do not expect you to trust me yet, no, but you will in time.” The man returned the hood, masking his face once more. “Times are changing, Brian. We live in a time riddled with turmoil. Our paths will cross again, of that I am sure.”

  “Your ring,” Brian said as he took it off and extended it to the man.

  “Keep it,” he said. “Give it to Max. He will find it useful one day.”

  The traveller left the table, giving a slight nod to Aroden and Max in the back, before walking through the doorway. Brian sat still in his seat, going over the cryptic conversation in his head. It wasn’t at all what he’d expected. As the man left the inn, Aroden and Max hurriedly approached from the back and sat at the table with him. Aroden could see the confusion in Brian’s eyes, hesitating for a moment before finally breaking the silence.

  “Well…what did the man say?”

  “He said so much…but explained so little.”

  “Could he read it?”

  “Yes.”

  “Well, what did it say?”

  “The message was incomplete. But this section here,” Brian pointed, “mentions divine power that’s dormant under the mountain.”

  “Divine power,” Aroden repeated excitedly.

  “That’s what the traveller said to me. There’s definitely more to Brymar than we know.”

  “We needed him to come to Brymar and decipher everything else.”

  “He left so quickly,” Max added, “and why did it seem like he kept glancing at the two of us?”

  “He knew.”

  Max leaned in closer. “He knew what?”

  “Everything,” Brian shrugged in disbelief, “who we are.”

  Max’s concern matched his father’s curiosity. “We shouldn’t have let him go so quickly, then,” Max said. “He knows too much.”

  “What do we know about him?” Aroden asked.

  “Absolutely nothing,” Brian nodded in honest admiration. “He managed to disclose nothing about himself no matter what questions I posed.”

  “We should follow…”

  “No, Max. I don’t think he’s an enemy.”

  “How can you be certain?”

  “His intent appeared genuine to our cause. Since he knows so much, he could’ve done irreparable damage to us and our home if he wanted, but he didn’t.”

  “I’m not convinced.”

  “I just…feel like he’s on our side.” Brian shook his head. “It was odd; I can’t explain it.”

  Max sighed but relaxed his shoulders. He pointed to Brian’s hand. “You kept the ring,” he pointed out.

  “He told me to keep it and said it would be useful one d
ay.” Brian took it off and extended it to Max. “He suggested I give it to you.”

  “To me,” Max repeated as he took the ring. He inspected it and hesitantly put it on. “Why did he want me to wear it?”

  Brian shrugged.

  “Best go back to the house,” Max said, trying not to think about it. None of it made sense to him. “William and Richard will be waiting for us and will want to know how this went.”

  “You won’t finish your pint of mead?” Aroden asked Brian. He peaked over the edge of the metal mug at the frothy goodness. “Looks like you haven’t had much of it.”

  “I hate mead,” Brian said. “You know that.”

  Aroden picked it up and took a sip. “It would be such a shame to waste such a fine drink, don’t you think, Max?”

  Max nodded with a grin.

  “Orwell has the finest mead I’ve ever tasted, and I’ve tasted a lot of meads before,” Aroden said as he took another sip. “It’s a good thing Zed is able to send the barrels to Brymar from here.”

  “I can agree with that,” Max grinned again as he reached for the pint and took a sip. He put it on the table and Aroden hesitated before taking another sip. “Best not have anymore, right?” Max said.

  Aroden nodded. “We should be alert in Orwell.”

  They all stood up. “It’ll certainly be nice to sleep tonight,” Max said as he stretched. “It’s been too long since we could relax.”

  Before starting to walk, Brian noticed his sister dash in through the inn’s entrance, her hair a tangled mess and covered in sweat and dirt. She tried to remain calm so as not to draw attention, but Brian could sense it right away, as could most of the other concerned patrons of the inn. By the time Max and Aroden noticed her, she was already standing beside the table, her hands clamped tightly into fists. They could see the fear in her eyes as she caught her breath.

  “Adriana, what’s wrong?” Aroden demanded as he stood up.

  “Richard is missing.”

  Chapter VIII

  “Missing?” Max shot back as he stood up too. “What do you mean he’s missing?”

  The blood drained from Aroden’s face as he steadied himself by gripping the table. “What happened, Adriana?” he sternly demanded as he stared into her eyes. “And where’s William?”

  “William is safely at the house, but he was convinced to allow Richard to travel to Forelorne without a full escort.”

  “Richard left to Forelorne?” Aroden furiously said. He practically pushed everyone towards the door to leave. “We must return to the house immediately.”

  “William had two Arraci follow Richard out of the city,” Adriana continued to speak as they left the inn, “Orthol and Gringal.” She paused. “Richard convinced William that the road to Forelorne would be quick and safe.”

  “Not that close to the ancient forest,” Aroden countered as they passed into the courtyard of the Laurdor District. “There isn’t a road that travels closer.”

  “We must search the road immediately,” Max declared.

  “I already did,” Adriana spoke up as she recoiled at the memory. “I travelled with a group of eight Arraci, and we found bodies alongside the road…”

  “Bodies?” Aroden practically shouted out as he gasped for air. “Were…”

  “None of them were Richard or the Arraci,” Adriana interjected, “but the arrows that killed them bore Arracian orange feathers.”

  “They must’ve been attacked then,” Max said.

  “Yes, we fear they were.”

  They charged out of the district, passing through the courtyard with the tiered fountain, and into the Caisen District. Aroden could hardly believe Adriana’s words. His emotions swayed between boiling anger and sickening worry for Richard, meshing together into some horrible combination of the two. And the anomalies around the city, the disappearance of the guards, only added to his fear.

  They practically ran down the street to Aroden’s house.

  After finally reaching it, Aroden banged loudly on the door, forgetting to use the royal rhythm at first before correcting it.

  The door clicked open, and they managed to see William’s face for a brief second; but the door was quickly closed and opened again, with Rachel peering through the crack and telling William off behind her for breaking the rules. After seeing Aroden and the others, she opened the door wide enough for everyone to pass through before closing it behind them. Though Rachel tried to say something to Aroden, he rushed right past her and up to William.

  “William,” Aroden boomed.

  “Yes, father?” he asked, stunned by Aroden’s tone and alarmed to see Adriana beside him with Max and Brian.

  “How could you be so foolish? You knew it wasn’t safe for Richard to leave alone, you knew!”

  “I…he left with Orthol and Gringal. I’m sorry, father, he just wouldn’t listen to me. I tried to stop him from going, but he insisted.” Glancing at the state of Adriana, his blood turned to ice as he feared the worst.

  “Adriana found bodies at the side of the road to Forelorne. William, your brother was attacked!”

  William stood there silently; he couldn’t summon any words. He finally found his voice to faintly ask “is my brother alive?”

  “Missing,” Adriana quickly answered, hearing the despair in his voice.

  “What do we do?” Brian asked to refocus everyone.

  Aroden shook his head.

  “We found drag marks leading into the forest,” Adriana reported. “We checked the forest and saw that they led further inside.”

  “That’s impossible,” Aroden proclaimed. “Nothing could live in that forest.”

  “But it does,” she argued. “We were attacked by wolves as we left.”

  “Attacked by wolves,” Brian repeated, “from the forest?”

  “Yes.”

  “Then we must search the forest for my son,” Aroden asserted. “We must find Richard at all costs.”

  “You cannot pass through the forest,” Adriana refuted. “We tried to enter but quickly had to leave. There is a sickly orange sap that releases a toxic mist. When inhaled, I couldn’t breathe.”

  “Then what chance would Richard have if he was taken into the forest,” Aroden thought aloud, his voice cracking.

  Adriana continued. “The wolves seemed to interact with the sap, as if it gave them strength or controlled them. When one of them died, it looked like the sap receded from its body and back into the forest.” She shook her head. “Their veins appeared the same colour as the sap, but when they died, their veins no longer glowed orange. The same is true of their eyes, which blazed a brilliant, lightening blue. When one of them died, we saw its eyes return to a normal wolf’s.”

  “Blue?” Brian said.

  “Yes,” Adriana nodded. She recalled the fluctuation in her vision. “When I breathed in the toxic fumes, my vision was bombarded with strange blues all around me. It continued to waver for a few moments before wearing off.”

  No one said anything.

  “And I saw something else,” Adriana continued, seeing that everyone intently watched her. “A pair of fiery red eyes amongst the tree tops that watched us; something else lurks among those trees.”

  “Watched?” Max repeated. Her words unsettled him, jolting him into action. He turned to Aroden “we must go to Forelorne.”

  “Yes, but you must stay here, too, Max,” Aroden declared as Max held back his protests, recognising Aroden’s final word on the matter. “Most of the Arraci will be leaving, and I don’t want for you to be in danger’s way.” He directed his attention to William, who guiltily stared back. “And you must stay put in this house. You both will in case he returns.”

  “I will,” William assured as he fearfully glanced at Adriana.

  Aroden turned to the twins. “I will lead the search. I want to see those bodies and what we’re dealing with here. Could you tell where they were from? Perhaps the Navarine Kingdom, or were they the bodies of outlaws?”

&nbs
p; “No, not at all,” Adriana shook her head. “They were green.”

  Aroden stared back in disbelief.

  “Yes, a dark green,” she repeated. “I’ve never seen anything like them before, no one here has.”

  “Then what were they?”

  “I don’t know. They wore armour and carried weapons. And they bore a crest that I’ve never seen before.”

  “Describe it.”

  “An intersection of three triangles with the head of a beast at the centre.”

  “Wait,” William timidly interjected, still crushed at having risked his brother’s life. “The banner along the tiered fountain, I saw that exact same symbol when I walked to the house. It was on top of the Brutean crest.”

  Rachel, the Arracian Watcher of Orwell, broke her silence. “We’ve seen that crest around the city recently.” She turned to William. “But you say it was added to the Brutean crest on this banner that you saw?”

  The young prince nodded. “It replaced the crown that should’ve been atop the lion’s head.”

  Aroden clenched his fist and looked to the twins. “Brian, gather all of the Arraci. Summon them now and lead them through the caverns.”

  Brian left the room.

  “Rachel,” Aroden turned to her. “You’ll stay here with a single Arracian scout. No one enters or exits this door unless it’s me in the front.”

  “Understood,” she said with a nod.

  “We’ll need some time to leave through the caverns,” Adriana pointed out, “and it’ll be hard to do so with Zed’s shop being open to the public.”

  “We need all twenty of the Arraci from Orwell, along with the rest that wait outside of the caverns. Tell Zed to close the shop. He can say a new shipment has arrived and he needs to take inventory. He’s done that before, and he told us that he was expecting a shipment later today.”

  “We will make that work.”

  “Let’s go, then,” Aroden said, moving towards the door. “We will meet Brian outside the city.”

  As Aroden left the house, a mass exodus of Arraci left only William, Max, Rachel and one other Arracian scout in the large front room. Rachel closed the front door, plunging the room into darkness once more, and Max walked up to his brother to put a comforting hand on his shoulder. Both of them shared the same worry for their brother, but he knew William also carried the burden of regret. After a pat on the shoulder, Max led them into the back room of the house, where a few candles lit up the room. They took a seat around the wooden table in the centre and sat in silent contemplation.