She laughed. “It would to you.”
We marched on through the morning until Riverside rose before us. The settlement was far from the largest in Balendar, but it served a very significant purpose to the lands around it. With the river running through the middle, it was the closest trading post for all the farming communities along the border. It also meant that all the food that went to Thurlborn Peak went through Riverside. This made the Lord a very powerful man and someone we needed to get onside quickly.
As expected, the Lord was out of town so we had no reason not to get to the ferry quickly. Cathy took a moment, while I got our tickets, to send Bill back to Davalin with his mission. Bill seemed reluctant but agreed to go. The job was too important to turn down.
Cathy strolled over to the docks and I handed her a ticket. “He’ll head out in the morning. Should take a day to get back up there if he tags along with a caravan,” she said. “I gave him some of Lady Middleton’s gold to help him out.”
“Good,” I nodded. “It’s a shame to see him go.”
“He seemed to think I was going to murder you if he wasn’t there,” Cathy smiled.
I laughed. “I don’t think we have to worry about that.”
“Nope,” she replied sweetly. “But buy another hat from a merchant on the ferry and I will kill you in your sleep.”
I chuckled. “I learnt my lesson, don’t worry.”
“Good,” she said, still smiling sweetly.
She headed for the ferry and I looked over to Bill to wave a small goodbye. He smiled and nodded before heading away from the docks. I turned around and followed Cathy.
Chapter 11
The ferry ride down to Thurlborn Peak was slow and boring. The ferry was nearly empty except for a small group of soldiers and carried with it an air of desperation and suffering. Countless refugees fleeing the capital had passed through here on their way to a more peaceful land in the north. To many, the city was already lost.
We emerged from the ferry to view Desroche’s parting gift to Balendar. As the Lords’ armies marched on the White Castle, Desroche’s brainwashed army set fire to food stores and houses hoping to slow Balendar’s reconstruction and leave them vulnerable when he came back with a new army. It worked perfectly. If he marched now, the capital would collapse and the rest of the cities would fall one by one.
We thanked the group of soldiers for their information and they set off to assist the ongoing evacuation. Our goal was at the other end of the market, where the grand Stairway of Kings lay untouched by the battle. Without delay, we hurried for it.
The once bustling market had been reduced to a couple of stalls protected by the city guard that handed out what was left of the food to the homeless. The crowds parted as they recognised Cathy as Lady Middleton. A couple of soldiers had taken interest and helped clear the way so she could get to the stairs more quickly. Cathy thanked them as we climbed.
“Do you remember the story I told you when we climbed these stairs for the first time?” Cathy asked.
“Sort of,” I answered. “You were uniting kids to form a street gang.”
“Yeah,” she said. “Every time I come back here, I am reminded of it. This time, I believe I have come full circle.”
“What do you mean?” I asked.
“I had taken control of someone with power and united the weak against a much stronger foe,” Cathy explained. “Now here I am, inside a person of power, hoping to reunite the weak against a much stronger foe.” She stopped and turned back to the market. “Look at them.” I stopped beside her and faced the market. “They have no idea what is coming their way. How are they going to hold against the Evenawks?”
I smirked. “First time dealing with doubt?”
“Is that what this feeling is?” she asked.
“Yes,” I said facing her. “When we were balancing each other’s emotions we could overlook the importance of our tasks. This is definitely going to be a tough task, but I wouldn’t say impossible. We take it one task at a time and worry about the big stuff later.”
She sighed and turned to face me. “These emotions suck.”
I laughed. “Yes they do, but if it is any help, it’s not you and me against the world this time. We will have an entire nation at our back to help.”
She looked up the stairs. “That’s a bit of an uphill battle too.”
“More like a bump in the road?” I suggested.
She looked back at me and smiled. “I’m glad you are still holding it together.”
I chuckled. “Not really. With the tables turned and you needing my help to deal with new situations, it has given me something to focus on. I can keep things in perspective and not run away screaming.”
She giggled, wrapping her arms around me awkwardly. “Thanks. But running and screaming sound like fun.” I gave her a weird look and she looked worried. “Am I doing this right? It doesn’t feel right.”
I chuckled and adjusted her into a better position so her armour wasn’t digging into my skin. We hugged briefly and disengaged. “Ready to continue up the hill?” I asked.
“If I don’t think about it, it seems better,” she responded.
“That’s the spirit,” I said with over exaggerated cheer.
She chuckled and shook her head as she marched up the stairs. It was amusing to see Cathy’s confidence shaken. She had always been the wild one, but quick with the answers in tight situations. Once she fell into the groove of things, all those doubts and insecurities would vanish, but for brief moments, it was interesting to see her act Human.
The White Castle loomed overhead as we finished climbing the stairs. The towers stretched towards the sky and the wall reflected the sunlight outwards over the land. On bright enough days, the reflection of the castle could be seen as far as Riverside. I was shocked to see that it had remained untouched by the battle, much like the stairs. Either they were the first to be fixed or Desroche didn’t want to damage them for when he returned.
How nice of him.
Of all the guards in the courtyard, only one broke away from his patrol to approach Cathy. He was wearing the armour of the Riverside guard. “Welcome back, my Lady,” he said, bowing slightly.
Cathy hesitated a second before smiling politely. “Thank you, Captain Brown. Has Lord Michaels arrived yet?”
“He hasn’t left,” Captain Brown answered. “He’s been working nonstop to get Balendar on its feet. Where is Ser Wilson?”
Cathy grew sad. “He died defending our escape. That is why we are here. There is trouble brewing in the west.”
“Then I will take you to the war room,” Captain Brown said, turning to me. “What of your...escort?”
“He is an advisor and can better explain what we are dealing with,” Cathy answered without skipping a beat.
“Very well,” he bowed slightly. “Follow me.”
Captain Brown turned on his toes and marched towards the front door. We followed closely behind and passed through the front door into the Grand Hall.
Even after a couple of years the grand architecture still intimidated me. This was the home of royalty and anything less wasn’t welcome here. The ceilings towered over us with large white banners showing a dragon sitting on a mountain, the symbol of the Balendar Kingdom, running down columns.
The castle was alive with energy as guards patrolled in every direction. All that remained of Balendar’s leadership was in this castle and they didn’t want to risk losing them. Captain Brown took us down a corridor to a large meeting room where said leadership were bickering or doing politician like things.
“We need to move our troops to the southwest,” a middle aged man with a thick moustache and fading brown hair said. “We are too vulnerable and Nesqa could attack at any moment.”
“The Nesqians still honour our alliance,” an old man with slicked back grey hair and a neatly trimmed beard replied. “Moving our troops will look like an act of war.”
“Gentlemen, it appears we have guests,” a clean sha
ven, black haired man said.
Everyone in the room turned to face us and Captain Brown bowed. “Sorry to interrupt, my Lords, but Lady Middleton has returned.”
“I can see that,” the moustached Lord said, looking a little annoyed.
“Lord Michaels,” Cathy said, matching the Lord’s tone. She turned to the old man. “I see I haven’t missed much.”
“You’ve missed plenty, my dear,” he replied. “Were you able to recapture Davenport?”
“No and that is why I am here,’ she answered, joining the others at the large table. “First, a quick introduction.” She motioned for me to join her. “This is Kairu, he will better explain it than I. Kairu, this is Lord Peter Cook of Malkia with his son, Ser Kyle Cook.” She pointed to the old man and a younger guy in plate mail behind him. “Next is Lord Gregory Kent of Rooksbend and Lord Randy Michaels of Riverside.” She pointed to the black haired guy and the moustache guy. “Kairu will take it from here.”
She sat down in a chair and I chuckled softly to myself. She was either still too nervous to explain or, more likely, she had put the pressure on me in some sort of fun. I made a note to get her back either way.
“Unfortunately, the Mage you know as Davenport is someone much more sinister,” I started. “He is Desroche, a Tower Mage who was put in charge of the Evenawks before I helped overthrow him.” Lord Cook’s eyebrows shot up in surprise. “We made it to Scert’chak, the capital of Ghanlar, and discovered that Desroche had activated a machine designed to brainwash the entire population of Evenawks. He plans on marching on Thurlborn Peak and finishing what he started.”
“Are you certain?” Lord Cook asked.
I nodded. “We barely escaped with our lives.”
Lord Cook leaned back in his chair to think things over and Lord Kent turned to Lord Michaels. Lord Michaels’ face was unchanged as he studied me.
“What proof do you bring?” he asked.
“My word as Lady of Davalin,” Cathy answered, rising to her feet.
“Your word doesn’t carry any weight, young Middleton,” Lord Michaels said. “You have been in a frenzy for Davenport’s blood since he escaped. This could easily be a ploy to get access to our armies and burn down half the countryside to find him. There is also the matter of the Mage. We will not make the mistake of trusting another one; even one that has helped Balendar in the past.”
“I take it you’ve heard of me too?” I responded.
“I haven’t received any reports since the Tower’s destruction, but yes, you match the descriptions,” Lord Michaels replied.
“Then you know why I am with him,” Cathy countered. “He is the only ally we can trust in a war against a Mage.”
“IF such a war exists,” he said. “I still require proof.”
“Does my word not carry any weight?” I asked. “I have helped Balendar and Nesqa achieve peace and helped the Evenawks overthrow the Mages to create a free society. Is that not enough to have even a small amount of trust?”
I had tried to make it sound convincing, but I didn’t believe it. If my actions were indeed good enough to have earned some trust, I wouldn’t have had to live on the run for two cycles.
“Your deeds are impressive but you followed your own agenda,” Lord Michaels stated. “You didn’t do these out of the kindness of your heart. You did them to achieve a goal. Judging by your knowledge of Davenport, it is fair to say you stand to gain from this and Balendar will not be pulled into a Mage’s agenda while its people suffer. However, Lady Middleton does inherit her father’s position on the council so it is worth discussing. Lord Kent.”
“Thank you,” Lord Kent said, rising to his feet. “I agree with Lord Michaels in this matter. We simply can’t chase this matter without proof and your presence with a Mage is highly suspect, Lady Middleton. This matter is closed.”
Lord Kent sat back down and Cathy leaned closer to me. “Not looking good,” she whispered.
“No proof and the Mage aside,” Lord Cook started, “we simply can’t ignore any threat at this point. Mobilising the full army would be useless, but there is a chance to kill two birds with one stone. The farm lands have been dealing with animal trouble out of Archanion. If we send a couple of divisions out there to hold off the animal attacks, we can also scout to see if Ghanlar shows any signs of aggression.”
“You may have something there, Pete,” Lord Kent said.
“Would that be sufficient, Lady Middleton?” Lord Michaels asked.
“Until I get the proof you need, yes,” Cathy answered.
“We will take care of the investigation,” Lord Michaels said. “You are to be placed in your quarters for the next few days.”
“What!” Cathy exclaimed.
“Did you forget that you stormed out of here against our wishes to begin with?” Lord Michaels asked. “We let you go once because it was the best course, but we can’t allow you storm around the countryside again causing problems.”
“He’s right, my dear,” Lord Cook said, looking at Cathy with pleading eyes. “You need a couple of days to get your head back on straight and grieve properly. We’ll take care of you.”
Cathy looked like she was going to argue, but stopped and nodded. “What about Kairu? Can he stay with me?”
“In separate rooms and if he promises to wear binds with Red Jacket honey on it,” Lord Cook said looking at Lord Michaels.
Lord Michaels nodded. “I’d still prefer to have him removed from Thurlborn Peak but you may be right, Cook. It would be better to have him here where we can watch and control him. Captain Brown.”
The Captain bowed and exited the room to retrieve the binds with Red Jacket honey on it. It wasn’t the most favourable of positions, but things could have gone worse. When Cathy and I could get some time alone, we would figure out how to get out. If it was proof they wanted, we would have to find it somehow.
*****
The meeting ended shortly after Captain Brown returned with the binds, or iron shackles if you had a different definition of ‘binds’. I handed him my short sword and awaited the shackles. With my arms secured to ensure there were no magical shenanigans, we were led to the upper level where Lady Middleton’s visiting room waited.
The room was far larger than our little house in the forest. It was hard to imagine what one person, even a high standing official, would do with such a large room, but judging by the look on Cathy’s face, she was going to go a little crazy tonight.
Cathy requested that I stay with her for dinner and Captain Brown nodded before leaving. In his eyes I was safe and docile because of my binds. Not that there was much reason to fight in the middle of the castle.
My hands grew itchy as the Red Jacket honey worked its weird powers. How could something that helps speed up healing and protect against infection stop the use of magic in Mages? It was beyond my understanding and I just attributed it to one of life’s cruel little jokes.
“It’s a shame I’m not in you,” Cathy said, emerging from the dressing room in a silk dress. “I could help you break free of those.”
“A necessary evil in the name of peace,” I said, sitting down at a large dining table.
“Well at least we are going to get a decent meal out of this,” she said, sitting next to me.
“Decent as long as we don’t think about our task,” I said, scratching my palms again. “Finding proof of Desroche’s plan? That’s a tough one.”
Cathy chuckled. “Yeah, if only we could kill Michaels and intimidate the others into joining us.”
I chuckled and lowered my voice. “Don’t say that too loudly. I can’t help you if everyone comes up here to kill you.”
“You have to admit,” Cathy smiled. “It would be easier.”
“Yeah, but nothing is that easy,” I countered.
“Sadly,” she sighed. “Shall we start dinner then? I am excited to eat my first meal since...” She stopped and thought. “A long time ago.”
“Go for it,” I said, scratch
ing my palm again.
She stood up and crossed the room to a rope hanging off the wall. She gave it a couple of pulls and returned to the table.
“It signals a bell in the kitchen,” she explained.
“Lady Sandra’s memories have been serving you well,” I said. “I didn’t think you could absorb that many.”
“Just from the past couple of months,” she answered. “A cup of water from the ocean, if you will. She spent some time here before the whole Desroche mess.”
I nodded in reply as the door knocked. Cathy crossed the room and opened the door for two servants. They brought in a couple of huge trays of food and placed them on the dining table in front on me. The aroma of fresh vegetables and grilled meat was unbelievable.
“For you, my Lady,” one servant said to Cathy.
“Thank you,” Cathy replied with curiosity in her voice.
“Someone will be up to gather and repair your armour shortly,” the servant continued.
“That would be great,” Cathy said. “A change of clothes for my friend as well.”
“As my Lady commands,” the servant said.
The food had my complete attention as I awkwardly grabbed for anything within my reach. After the servants left, Cathy returned to the table and sat down beside me. “What did he give you?” I asked.
“A letter,” she answered, handing me a folded piece of paper.
I wiped my hands on my trousers and took the letter. Cathy searched the envelope while I read:
Dear Sandra,
I need your help. There is an important matter to discuss.
Please meet me at The Sewer Rats at midnight.
Be careful,
Lord Peter Cook of Malkia
“Nothing is easy, you say,” Cathy smiled, holding up the key to my shackles.
Chapter 12
I watched the courtyard from my window and counted the two patrolling guardsmen again. The moon was high in the sky and illuminated the land. This made it easy to plan our escape but much harder to execute it. My Illusion skills were going to be tested and a small part of me welcomed the challenge.
The Vacant Throne: The Legend Of Kairu Vol 3 Page 9