“I’m sorry,” Grover told him in a voice filled with compassion.
Samuel blinked and could not keep the tears from leaking out of his eyes. In the grass in front of him were blood, hair, and flesh. He recognized the ears and other fleshly parts. “Confirmation, Jeremiah Lassiter has been Condemned,” he stated for the record, almost as if his mentor was standing beside him demanding the verification.
The Senior Soarer had been more than a mentor, he was the first Aakacarn to show compassion to a lost, confused, and broken–hearted Talented, had taken him under his wing. He was more like an uncle than a mentor. Samuel wiped his eyes and stepped back. “Grover, please back up a bit,” he said, and then summoned the necessary potential and cremated the remains.
There was no sign of Bio, so Samuel cast, Locate: Bio, and found the palomino five hills away. He whistled the way Lassiter always did when he wanted the horse to come to him. It did not take long for the Taracopian bred stallion to arrive. He was unharmed and came to Samuel without hesitation.
“Good horse,” Grover commented.
“You can’t eat him,” Samuel quipped.
The butcher chuckled. “Well lad, at least you still got a sense of humor.”
Samuel nodded his head. The quip was his way of dealing with the tension seizing his innards. “This place, what you call the haunted hills, is actually a Serpent nest, an operating base for Tarin Conn’s guild. Serin Gell is one of his most powerful Accomplisheds and often works not more than a few hundred paces from where we stand.”
Grover’s eyes widened. “I thought Daniel Benhannon defeated them,” he said in a whisper.
“He hurt them, no doubt about it, but the Serpent Guild is far from defeated,” Samuel told him just as softly. “I believe the second set of invisible waves you felt was Serin Gell teleporting elsewhere.”
“Where do you suppose he went?” the butcher asked while eyeing the area cautiously, and a good thing too. Some of the renegade’s associates could still be in the area.
“I cannot say for sure, but my best guess is Tannakonna where he can harm Daniel’s family and friends, including Tim Dukane, You see, Serin Gell led the Serpent forces in the Battle of Bashierwood and later was captured by Daniel after dueling Balen Tamm. The renegade escaped. I and my associate came here to apprehend him,” Samuel told the retired Aid Provider.
“Tim Dukane, the mountaineer who hunted the Serpents with Daniel,” Grover replied, showing he was familiar with the details of the duel at Mount Gosian.
Samuel nodded his head. “Yes, the very man. What better way to exact vengeance than to strike at those Daniel loves while he is in Ducanton serving your Queen?”
Grover’s brow wrinkled and his eyes hardened, determination setting into his features. “You have to do something, get reinforcements, or, I don’t know, something.”
The man was too polite to say Samuel was in over his head, that he was fortunate to have survived the previous encounter, and not likely to fair any better at the next, alone at least. “I plan on going to Bashierwood and giving the people there warning, but I need your help,” he said and reached into his cloak and pulled out one of the amulets of his making and handed it to the butcher.
“What is this for?” Grover eyed the gift suspiciously.
“These hills are haunted by members of the Serpent Guild. I need you to let me know anytime something Aakacarn in nature happens. I know this is asking a lot and I understand the position helping me this way places you in,” Samuel replied, and for a few moments it seemed the man was going to throw the amulet back at him.
“What can I do against the Serpents? All I can do is get killed or Condemned messing around in these hills, and then what have you gained? Just me worse than hurt and you without the information you seek,” he replied. At least he still had the amulet in his hand.
“I don’t want you anywhere near these hills or confronting the Serpent Guild. All I want is for you to go about the routine of your life and if you happen to notice anything out of the ordinary, use that amulet, somewhere in secret, place the ruby against your forehead and let me know,” Samuel assured him. “That’s all, nothing more.”
Grover scratched his head, took a good long while to ponder the request, and then finally nodded. “I’ll do it,” he agreed and then placed the amulet in his pants pocket.
“Thank you,” Samuel told him, and then shook hands with the first of what he hoped would be a broad network of Eagle Eyes. “You are not only helping me, you’re helping Daniel and the rest of Ducaun.”
They traveled back to the butcher shop where Samuel waited until night to change into his silks, mount Bio, and head out for Bashierwood. Grover’s middle son and daughter always had something that needed doing that kept them away, so he never met them, which clearly was how they wanted it. Whatever the reason, they avoided him and he respected their feelings, yet hoped more folks would become accepting of Aakacarns.
An owl hooted and the nocturnal sounds of the forest filled the night. Samuel summoned a faint ball of light, brightening the trail just enough to reveal any hazards, and continued all the way through, reaching the northwestern base of Mount Tannakonna just as the sun began to rise up over the horizon.
Chapter Eleven: An Official Representative Of the Queen
The royal reception hall was filled with hundreds of guest, lords, ladies, cabinet ministers, and dignitaries from all over the world. Daniel, dressed in his fancy knightly garb, preferred to be elsewhere, but duty demanded that he spend some time getting acquainted with all of the nobles. Silvia was beside him and dressed in a lavender gown fit for a ball. David was back among the Teki at the Great Carnival, where word of the Chosen Vessel had spread far and wide throughout the troops, and meetings were being held to discuss how to serve in his swirl, no one was asking him.
“That dark-haired woman next to the Queen is a Seer,” Silvia informed him with her hand resting on his arm while he escorted her around the room.
Daniel glanced at the person indicated. “She is Lady Kurts, one of the Queen’s counselors.”
“I don’t think your Queen wants the fact known,” Silvia added in a hushed tone.
“I agree with you on that. Her counselor being a Seer could explain how Cleona knew with certainty about my being chosen. I can see where having a Seer near at hand can be helpful.”
“Why thank you, Chosen Vessel,” Silvia teased with a dimpled smile and she curtsied.
Daniel winced. He still was not comfortable with that designation, even though the fact was on almost every tongue in the city, or so he learned from Jared and the hordes of people who came out to the estate looking for employment, some of which had been among those who had followed him from Jeeter to Ducanton. “It is bad enough I have to hear that title shouted by every group of Teki we pass in the street, they have citizens and people from other places taking up the greeting, I don’t need to hear it here.”
She actually smirked at him, one of the most powerful Accomplished on the planet, and she smirks. A chuckle escaped before Daniel could stifle it.
“How are you going to gather people if they don’t know who you are?” she asked sweetly.
“They seem to find me no matter what I say or do,” Daniel replied, resignedly.
Sir Carlo separated from a group of nobles and came over. “I hear being a Knight of the Realm and a Lord of the Land is not enough, you are the Chosen Vessel as well.” He was smiling when he said it, so it was meant to be funny.
“You can have the title, it fits you better,” Daniel replied.
Sir Carlo raised his hands in a warding off gesture. “Oh no, I don’t think it would suit me well at all.”
“Such a grand title to be bandied about so causally,” said a man of average height and build with greasy black hair and a thin mustache. His coat was black with silver scrollwork on the sleeves and his silk shirt was violet. A golden belt buckle held up his black silk pants. The handle on the sword in his silver scabbard was
gold with rubies set in the cross guard. The thing would be slipping in his hand the moment he broke a sweat in battle.
“Sir Daniel, I have the privilege of introducing to you, Prince Xavier Suchen of Pentrosa,” Sir Carlo said. “Prince Xavier, I give you, Sir Daniel Benhannon, the twenty-first Royal Knight of the Realm of Ducaun and his escort, Silvia Cresh of the Reshashinni Teki.”
Xavier’s dark beady eyes passed over Silvia as if she was not there and fixed on Daniel. “I am pleased to finally meet the person whose name is on practically everyone’s lips. Tell me, does having a meaningless title bestowed on you make up for your impotence?”
The man was obnoxious and Daniel smiled, he had been underestimated by people far more powerful than this puffed up jackal. “Does being born a prince make up for yours?” he answered. Silvia chuckled and Sir Carlo smiled just a crack.
Xavier’s face flushed red and he turned to Sir Carlo. “I can see why you are his watcher. The young man is still not out of training.”
“Diplomacy is not yet his strongest quality so it is probably best for all concerned if we stay in recognized boundaries,” Sir Carlo replied evenly.
The Pentrosan prince chuckled. “Boundaries, I think it is you Ducaunans who have a problem with boundaries. I seem to remember a map where everything north of Mount Geble and all of the area around the Taltin Sea belonged to Pentrosa,”
Daniel laughed. “Only in your fanciful dreams, Ducaun has always held its borders, and will continue to do so.”
Xavier smirked. “You can take the mountaineer off the mountain but you still have a person only half educated,” he said and touched the sword at his hip. “Perhaps I will have leisure to give a lesson or two.”
The thought of going a few rounds in the practice arena with this flatlander had a certain appeal and Daniel looked forward to thumping him a few times with a wooden sword. “Swatting you in the rump is not going to change the facts, but if you want ..,”
“But Sir Daniel has urgent business and has no more time to mingle tonight,” Sir Carlo finished for him, and then actually pulled him away so fast Silvia had to hike up her dress and jog to keep up. The prince just stood there laughing.
Sir Carlo escorted them out into the plaza where people were dancing and an orchestra played Felsum’s Fifth Overture, which caused Daniel to remember the concert he, Tim, Sherree, Samuel, and Jerremy performed for the cavalry escorting him to Aakadon.
“That was almost a no-win situation for you and Ducaun,” the Knight said after coming to a stop in a vacant corner.
“I was just going to offer to go a few practice rounds with him,” Daniel replied, and was a little annoyed at being rushed away like a child.
“I know; which is why I pulled you out of there. He was goading you into challenging him to a duel,” Sir Carlo explained.
Daniel laughed. “You’ve got to be kidding me. That little man couldn’t hurt me if his life depended on it.”
“I agree, and that is part of the problem. When you are in that uniform, you officially represent the Queen of Ducaun. An official representative of Ducaun issuing a challenge to an official representative of Pentrosa, if you fight him, and hurt him even just a little, it would have severe consequences that could set back years of negotiations that have kept our two kingdoms from going to war,” Sir Carlo told him.
“Why would he want to provoke a war?” Daniel wanted to know. The prince, unpleasant as he was, knew the stakes better than him.
“He doesn’t want war. He wants to have a grievance to bring up at the Board of Inter-kingdom Relations. He never mentioned the type of lesson he would teach and would claim touching the hilt of his sword was inadvertent. You would be seen as the aggressor,” Sir Carlo explained.
“Oh,” Daniel replied, feeling way out of his depths.
“You will learn these things in time. And just so you know, Prince Xavier was correct. The Suteck Empire did hold the boundaries he described, ending about two thousand years ago, after lasting nearly five centuries. Paul Tarsheese, a Grand Maestro put an end to it and had the old boundaries restored. We have held ours ever since, but some folks on the Pentrosan side still harbor fantasies of taking the land back and re-establishing the empire,” Sir Carlo educated him.
“So thumping him on the rear with a practice sword wouldn’t have made me right,” Daniel said. He raised his hand when it looked like the older Knight was going to belabor the previous point. “I understand, and will not let him goad me any further.”
Sir Carlo glanced back toward the reception hall. “I have to meet with some people, so enjoy yourself and try not to get into any duels.” He said it with a smile, but his tone of voice indicated he was serious.
“I think the prince could use a good thumping,” Silvia remarked, after the Knight walked away. “He didn’t even acknowledge me.”
“Being acknowledged by a hound would be more meaningful,” Daniel replied.
Silvia smiled. “I can’t argue with that.”
“I think my knightly duty has been satisfied for the evening. Let’s go by the Excursion so I can change into my blue suit, and then we can grab Jared and eat with your troop,” Daniel suggested.
“Well, if you’re changing clothes, then I am too. My regular clothes are better suited for riding out to the wagons, unless the carriage you rented takes us there,” Silvia was quick to reply.
Daniel wanted to be out of his knightly garb and into clothes that did not make him stand out in the crowd. The coat and hat the Teki had given him along with the shirt and pants Jared purchased would do nicely. “I want to ride Sprinter. He’s been stabled for two days.”
“Jared might be a little disappointed. I think he likes riding in carriages.”
“I think you’re right, but he loves Sandstorm, so I don’t think he will mind,” Daniel replied, and escorted her out of the palace to where the coachmen stood ready to assist those who were arriving and departing.
---------------------------
Vance Cummin sat in his cherry wood-paneled office. The surface of his desk was covered with reports and hundreds of amulets were in the drawers. To his right, on a side table, was a golden crown on the front of which was a sapphire-eyed cobra poised to strike. Inside the circle of the crown were communication-infused gemstones, three rubies, two emeralds, two diamonds, and five sapphires, one of which was flat with a round diamond set in it. Double gemmed amulets were rare, but not unheard of.
“Are you hearing me?” the voice of Prince Xavier sounded in his head. The man always began these reports with the same question.
“Yes, Highness, what news have you from the court of Ducuan?”
“I met Sir Daniel earlier.”
“What was your impression?” Vance sent back. He had to remind himself to be patient with commoners because they simply did not understand the workings of a communication amulet.
“Without his Aakacarn powers, he is nothing more than a backwoods mountaineer. It is obvious his Queen took pity on him, giving him a noble title and a uniform, but he is still only a half educated commoner, yet the peasants refer to him as the Chosen Vessel,” the Pentrosan sent.
Vance already knew Daniel Benhannon was safely out of the way. Tarin Conn had appeared in a dream and warned him to avoid confrontations with the young man. The Supreme Maestro no longer seemed to have any desire to recruit the Ducaunan, but indicated there were ways the young man could be of future use to the guild. Tarin Conn had plans within plans and would disclose them at his pleasure. Meanwhile Vance had plans of his own.
“Your information is valuable,” Vance always told the prince even if the information was trivial. “I think you should start your journey home soon.”
“Does this mean my father has rejected your proposal?” Xavier sent back.
“He and your two brothers do not see, nor can they perceive the benefit of cooperation with me and my associates. They are satisfied with the status quo. You, on the other hand, have the vision to see how P
entrosa can gain greater glory,” Vance sent in response.
“The Suteck Empire rising from antiquity to once again be the mightiest of the nations,” Xavier sent with undertones of euphoria and exaltation. This was the man’s dream and he would agree to almost anything to make it a reality, which is what Vance was counting on.
“Don’t you mean, the Suchen Empire?”
Waves of excited emotions flowed through the link. “That does have a better sound to it,” the prince agreed.
“Then, I’m afraid I have some bad news for you. By the time you arrive home, King Jarred Suchen will have fallen from his balcony and broken his neck. Prince Romin will have died in a hunting accident. It seems one of his friends will loose an arrow and the wind will take it slightly off course and strike your eldest brother and heir to the throne in the neck, killing him fairly quickly. Prince Xaan will have plunged to his death off Jerdin Falls after his horse panics and they both go over the edge, leaving you heir to the throne.”
“That is sad news. One wonders what the Serpent Guild gets out of this,” the Prince sent, and suspicion flowed through the link along with the words.
“We get a strong ally, one who will be on the right side when the Chosen Vessel rises from Kelgotha. His coming is eminent and those who are faithful will be in his favor, while those who resist will face his wrath. The Supreme Maestro’s victory was never in doubt but it is assured after he maneuvered Efferin Tames into Silencing the other Chosen Vessel,” Vance replied, his last sentence being an out right lie. Tarin Conn had not planned what occurred, but he did warn the foolish young Accomplished what would happen if he placed his trust in the Grand Maestro of Aakadon.
“You mean that woodsman is the Chosen Vessel?”
“His bite was poisonous enough to kill Balen Tamm, but now he has been defanged, and is unable to defend himself against even the weakest Aakacarn. The first time he ever touched a sword was probably when his Queen handed him one, which means he is not even a threat to a common soldier. Even so, my associates and I will continue to keep track of his doings,” Vance sent.
To Be Chosen Page 19