The last person walked out of the shop, and Rachel put the closed sign up. William walked up to the counter straight away. “We need your help, Zed.”
“I’m so sorry to hear about your brother,” Zed immediately said. “The Arraci told me he went missing on the way to Forelorne. I’m sure he will turn up just fine.”
William felt a pain in his stomach as he thought of Richard. “I hope so,” he muttered but focused again on the parchment in his hand. “Do you recognise this crest?”
“Not at first glance, no,” Zed said as he inspected the intersecting triangles closer, “but I’ve certainly seen it around lately.”
“We need to find out more about it,” William asserted. “It was found at the place Richard was last seen, and we think it has something to do with his disappearance.”
“And the triangular crest has been added to the Brutean one,” Max added, “replacing the golden crown above the lions.”
“The Brutean crest?” Zed responded with surprise.
“Can you think of any books you possess that might show this crest?” William pressed.
“I can think of a couple,” Zed said as he walked out from behind the counter and towards the door to his quarters. “Let’s see if we can find anything.”
He led them towards the side door leading into his living quarters, unlocking it and waiting for the others to pass through. He walked straight to the bookshelves and started searching through them, running his hand over each decorative spine.
Zed’s hand stopped on the highly embellished, blue spine of an old book. “Here is one,” he said and pulled it out. “Let’s see if this helps.”
The title read On a Kingdom’s Representation. The brilliant gold text ingrained on the dark, navy blue leather cover signified the enormous value of the book. The pages were slightly yellow and frayed with age, and Zed carefully opened the front cover, which displayed a plethora of crests and symbols that ranged from the familiar Brutean Kingdom to the long forgotten more ancient civilizations. He flipped through the pages briefly before looking up.
“I’m not seeing the crest in this book at first glance,” he said. He thought while looking at the drawing on the parchment. “A crest as specific as this would belong to a specific people,” he said.
Max reached for the book in Zed’s hand. “I can continue to search through the pages of this book while you pull out any other books you think might help.”
After handing over the book, Zed continued to search the bookshelves. “I’ve definitely seen that crest around the city,” he called out while he looked. “I’ve seen a few people wearing it on their garments.”
“Did you recognise the people?”
He shook his head. “No, I didn’t.” Zed grunted as he pulled down a very large book, which Rachel helped him set on the table between all of the chairs. He paused and looked to the brothers. “This book might have something in it. It’s very old and actually one of the books I brought from Sumnersen.”
“You’ll have to read that one, then,” Max stated as he saw the foreign title.
Zed nodded. “It isn’t all in my language but much of it is. I’ll look through the pages and see if I can find anything useful.”
“What’s the title?” William asked.
Zed grimaced. “That’s one part of the book that isn’t in my language. I doubt any current kingdoms outdate this book, so some of the text is likely in lost languages.”
He carefully turned each page of the book while Max looked through the other. William decided to look at the one Zed inspected; he couldn’t understand the words but would be able to recognise the crest if it came up. But all of the crests in the oldest book were foreign; none of them belonged to kingdoms that still existed.
Rachel hovered over Max’s shoulder instead. Max’s book had all of the current kingdoms in it. They saw the crests of the Brutean Kingdom, Navarine Kingdom to the East, Raldari Province and Lorken Kingdoms in the South, and even the Sumnersen and Vorshkir Kingdoms to the far south and southeast, respectively – but not the crest William drew.
After carefully studying the books, Zed and William finally stopped on one of the pages. “That’s it!” William called out as he quickly pointed. He looked closer at the foreign language around it. “What does this text say?”
“Not much,” Zed sighed as he passed over each symbol. He could feel William and the others looking over his shoulder. “This text is in the ancient language of Sumnersen. I can read most of it, but it will be slightly broken.” He inspected it more closely, leaving the others waiting in silent anticipation. “The passage briefly talks about the sightings of the crest but fails to specifically discuss its origin.”
“What exactly does it say, then?” William pressed.
“That the crest was spotted over the ages but never assigned to a particular people. It showed up during turbulent periods of history and baffled scholars each time.” He stopped on one section. “It says that ‘the crest is often found during times of inexplicable disaster and suffering; it has come to be known as a sign of bad omen,’” he finished.
Their silence echoed the sentiment.
“It goes on to talk about a few instances when it was found, but nothing related to this age.” He continued to read. “One links the crest to that of the…Eternals, a group of divine-like beings that pre-exist even time itself. It continues to go into details about an ancient war between the Eternals and the faction bearing this crest, but I’m afraid the text is too faded to continue.”
“What’s an Eternal?” William asked.
“On the opposite page here,” Zed said as he pointed to it, “it speaks of them.”
“The Eternal’s crest appears eerily similar to the one with the beast,” Max commented as their focus shifted. The crest on the opposite page displayed the three intersecting triangles but without the beast in the centre. “What does it say about the Eternals?”
“This text is not in my language,” he admitted as he examined it. After scrutinising it further, he pointed to another faded symbol at the bottom of the page, one with a circle and something in the centre. “I recognise this symbol, though,” he said, leaning in to see it closer. “If my memory is correct, it’s been used to represent Elitheria, who has been referred to as a deity in other books.”
“What’s in the centre of the circle?” William asked.
Zed shrugged. “I don’t think anyone knows exactly what it is. It appears to be a mountain or a rock of some kind. I’ve read that some scholars surmise it to be connected to creation, some sort of infinite power, but that’s simply speculation.”
William sighed. “I have never heard of the Eternals or Elitheria before,” he muttered.
“Nor I,” Max said, “but this may explain some of the strange events and creatures we have seen today.”
“I’m not sure how this helps us find Richard, though.”
Zed thought aloud. “I haven’t read about Elitheria in quite a while.”
“Do you have those books here?” William pried.
“No. I read those texts a long time ago.” Zed sighed, looking at the book in his lap again. “This is the oldest book that I own,” he said. “This crest showed up well before any of my other books were written, so I doubt any of them would have anything useful in them.”
“We should still try, though.”
“William,” Max said. “Zed needs to open his shop, and we must return to the house. If that book has told us anything, the appearance of this crest is a bad thing.”
“You are right,” Rachel agreed and Zed nodded.
“Fine,” William conceded. “Thank you for helping, Zed. Sorry for closing your store.”
“I wish I could’ve been more help,” he said as he marked the page with a white feather from the small table beside him. “I’ll continue to read into this book when the shop closes and let you know if I find anything else.”
“Thank you,” Max said as they turned to leave. “And Zed,
” he paused. “Don’t let anyone know we were here. Aroden specifically told us to stay at the house and we…well, obviously we didn’t.”
“Very well,” he nodded.
He accompanied them to the front door. “I hope Richard is found soon,” he said while opening it up. “The boy might be oblivious at times, but he’s no fool.”
“Thanks again, Zed,” Max said as they passed through the door.
As the three of them descended the few stone steps, they heard Zed’s voice enthusiastically welcoming his clients and apologising for the delay from within the shop. William led them through the crowds and made eye contact with the Arracian scout again. It often startled him to see the piercing eyes of the Arraci from beneath their hoods, but it quickly brought reassurance afterwards. This was the peak of the dark, working day, when the markets were protected from the setting sun under the city wall’s shadow and all of the wares came out. William walked briskly; he wanted to be back at the house and held onto the parchment carefully to avoid smudging it, though by now he could redraw the crest from memory.
“I wonder why the crest looks so similar to that of the Eternals,” William thought aloud, “and why Elitheria came up.”
“And that they may all be connected,” Max added. “But remember, brother, Zed couldn’t read all of it. We can’t speculate too much.”
William conceded a nod.
Another stare from the crowd startled him, though this time it wasn’t the Arracian scout. The same stranger from the courtyard watched him through the crowds, but William noticed something different this time, something in the stranger’s hand that he held up for William to clearly see:
A golden Arracian ring.
William gasped for air as he held onto his own golden ring, one given only to the Arraci and royal family; he thought of Richard and then of Aroden and the twins. His imagination boundlessly reeled with horrible thoughts. Whose ring did this stranger have, and what happened to the person he took it from? He felt sick. But William wasn’t about to let the person run away this time, not after seeing that ring. He refused to break eye contact with the person’s concealed face and noticed the stranger starting to run. He reached for Max behind him, who quickened his pace as he saw William preparing to run.
“That’s the stranger I saw earlier!” he called out, his blood boiling in anger. “Max, we’re being followed. The person carries a golden Arracian ring!”
“William,” Max called out as he tried to hold his brother back. “Let the Arraci…”
“No, we must follow! The person must know something about Richard!”
“William, wait!”
William dashed across the markets and followed the stranger up the marble steps to the courtyard; he wasn’t about to let him escape for a third time, especially after the sickening threat of the golden ring. Max followed closely behind, as did Rachel, and they could see the scout bolting for the steps, too. William reached the top first, but another sound caught Max’s attention – the sharp whip of a bowstring and the whistle of a soaring arrow. It all happened so quickly; Max listened to the whizzing of an arrow as William disappeared at the top of the stairs. After a brief pause, the next sound sent ripples in the air.
Max heard a thud.
Chapter X
The weak rays of the setting sun lit the road to Forelorne, sending shadows along the ground as they galloped as quickly as their horses would allow. The loud clapping of horse hooves striking the dirt road pierced the otherwise silent evening – and everyone’s quiet contemplation. Aroden rode in the middle while the twins led them, Adriana in the front, with the rest of the Arraci in the back. All of them stared wearily at the forest beside them, its grotesque stench penetrating the air. They’d never considered an enemy to dwell within those trees, not until now.
Adriana’s glaze never left the side of the road. “It should be coming up,” she called out behind her.
Aroden shuddered. Soon he would see the bodies with his own eyes, lay sight upon those that took his son for ransom – or worse. His heart felt heavy and his nerves unsteady. Of all the hard decisions he’d made through his reign and after, his strength always faltered with matters concerning his family. He thought of his murdered wife, the horrors of that night in the palace. A deep pain ran through his heart, reminiscent of that horrible memory. Where was his beloved son? Soon he would gaze upon the dead eyes of the enemy, a sight for which he simply couldn’t prepare.
Adriana began slowing down at the front. She continued to inspect the ground but registered a blank expression. Aroden rode up beside her. “Why do you slow down?” he asked while inspecting the ground. “There’s nothing here.”
“I don’t see the bodies,” Adriana replied.
“You are sure it isn’t further ahead?”
“Yes, I’m sure. Look,” she said while pointing to the ground. She stopped. “You can still see the tracks left behind.”
They saw the scatter of tracks on the ground leading up the incline. Brian and Adriana dismounted first, followed by Aroden and the rest. “Show me what you saw,” Aroden said as the twins surveyed the ground.
Adriana stopped and pointed to the ground. “A body laid right there,” she said. “It was the first one that we saw when we arrived, and it had an Arracian arrow through its chest.”
“Drag marks lead from this position into the forest,” Brian commented.
“There are more tracks on the ground than we saw before,” Adriana added.
Aroden shook his head. “Could it be the wolves dragging them? And where are their bodies?”
“Wolves wouldn’t do this,” Brian said. He shrugged. “And they wouldn’t have eaten the armour or weapons with the bodies.”
“More of these creatures must’ve pulled all of the dead into the forest,” Adriana suggested.
“They left a shield here,” one Arracian called out as he searched the ground. The shield lay next to the road, barely discernible in the dim sunlight, and he picked it up. He inspected it briefly, “and it bears the crest you described.”
“Let me see it,” Aroden said as he moved towards the Arracian.
The man handed the shield over. “Notice the crest at the centre,” he said, “and the blood across the front.
“It’s black,” Aroden commented as he held it. The shield felt heavy in his hands and horribly unbalanced – a poor shield entirely. Either a strong being wielded it or a weak one struggled to. He inspected the blood more closely, the unusual colour and terrible odour. “What are these beings?”
“Look at this,” Brian called from the side of the road, redirecting everyone’s attention. He pointed to another set of tracks in the dirt and waited for his sister and Aroden to look. “There are horse tracks.”
“They belong to Richard’s horse,” Aroden said. “I’d recognise Loin’s work anywhere. You can see the very small crown, barely visible, at the top centre of the track.” He paused. “Thank goodness Loin suggested that only I and my sons have horses with that symbol on their horseshoes; I never imagined it would help us.”
“And look at the direction of the crown,” Adriana commented. “The top leads towards Orwell.”
“Then they must’ve turned around to try and escape,” Aroden frowned before spotting another imprint further up the road. His expression softened in relief. “But the tracks continue,” he said while almost running down the road. “One of you,” he said and pointed to an Arracian. “Ride down further and see how far they go.”
An Arracian jumped onto a horse and galloped in the direction of the tracks.
“I see only one horse track,” Adriana said.
“Perhaps Orthol and Gringal stayed to fight while Richard escaped,” Brian responded.
“That would make sense,” Adriana nodded solemnly, thinking the worst for her comrades.
For some time, they continued to search for further clues. Brian came back to the single horse track and suddenly noticed something.
“But compare
the imprints going away from Orwell and towards it,” Brian pointed out, alternating his attention between the tracks running parallel in the dirt. “The ones leading towards the city sink into the ground much more.”
“Perhaps two of them made it on his horse?” Adriana suggested. “Though I doubt they’d opt to weigh him down like that…”
Her voice trailed off as her head started to hurt.
A high ringing pitch blurred her vision and abruptly ceased her thoughts. The others spoke around her, oblivious to her condition, but another sound entered her mind, that of a woman, a gentle voice repeating an indiscernible word. But she couldn’t understand the murmur. She rubbed her ears and eyes in an attempt to make it pass but nothing worked. The same sound repeated in her mind.
She looked towards the looming forest.
“Adriana,” the woman spoke, the voice coming into focus. “Adriana…” it repeated over and over.
She looked for an origin but saw none. The voice terrified her, yet she could do nothing about it. And no one else could do anything; she possessed no control over it, utter helplessness. Feelings of panic entered her mind in response to this new unknown enemy, one that she could neither see nor understand. She wanted to scream, her head hurt so much. It wasn’t until her brother put a hand on her arm that the voice finally stopped, vanishing as quickly as it appeared.
“How deep would the tracks be with two people?” her brother asked.
“I’m not sure,” she answered in a daze.
Her brother gave an inquiring look before addressing Aroden again. She thought of that voice while the others continued to talk around her. Had it been real? Was it because of the orange sap in the forest? She tried to recall the feeling she had in the forest, whether any of it connected. Two other Arraci were in there with her, though neither had touched the orange sap; but neither had she. The noxious gas above it, she thought about it; that’s what caused her to see the blue as she coughed. Perhaps it wasn’t simply toxic, maybe there was more to it than that, something more sinister.
The Arracian returned from further up the road, galloping right up to them and jolting her from her thoughts. “Aroden,” he started, “I could see the tracks lead far down this road, perhaps all the way to the city. I stopped following them to inform you.”
The Secrets of Brymar (The Elitherian Fragments Book 1) Page 11