The King of Anavrea (Book Two of the Theodoric Saga)

by Rachel Rossano

  At first, Ireic thought maybe she was slightly mad, but Aarint seemed to feel the same way. Ireic and Aarint spent hours in intense conversation while on the trail. Aarint explained why all of their faith hinged on this relationship they were in with the Kurios. It seemed to be the binding thread that wound through the Manuscripts too. They were men and women who, through the mediator of the Son, Iazus, communicated with the holy God and dedicated their lives to serve Him.

  Sitting down beneath a tree at the edge of camp, Ireic closed his eyes and tried to order his thoughts. He longed for his copy of the Manuscripts. For the last two days he had read repeatedly Ioannan’s portion. It boggled him that the Almighty God of all the universe would send his only son to die for men’s sin.

  Ireic understood sin, lying, cheating, hating. Pride corrupted the nobility, including him, like a rotting disease. Sin appeared everywhere in his life. Ever since he read the law that the Kurios gave His chosen people, Ireic grew increasingly aware of how he didn’t meet the requirement of perfection. The memory of each infraction pained him. They lay on him like a heavy blanket. He longed for the days before his eyes had been opened to sin’s existence. He even tried ignoring it, but his conscience refused to let him forget. Every time he lied, hated someone, or lost his temper, the burden grew. The constant pressure kept him reading the Manuscripts. Somewhere among the pages, he knew there was an answer to this weight on his heart.

  “Couldn’t sleep?” Aarint’s voice asked from the misty shadows. Ireic looked up to find his brother-in-law standing a short ways away, only a dim outline of black against grey.

  Ireic nodded as Aarint crossed and sat down next to him. “I am worried about tomorrow.”

  Aarint nodded. “Understandably.”

  They sat in silence for a few moments.

  “So, why are you up and about?” Ireic asked, seeking for something other than the company of his troubled thoughts.

  “I am not sure.” Aarint shifted, drawing his knees up to his chest and folding his arms around them. “I am just restless tonight, and somehow I needed to be out here.”

  The sounds of the night blanketed them again as they sat in companionable silence.

  Ireic’s thoughts returned to the problem of tomorrow. For the first time in his life he feared death. Before, he hadn’t given much thought to what would happen to him after death. He had worried about what he left behind. The concerns of state, like who would ascend the throne in his absence, weighed on him. But Ireic never spent much time contemplating his own fate. According to the Manuscripts, he was going to stand before a Holy God and answer for every sin that weighed upon his conscience as well as those he had forgotten.

  “Aarint?”

  “Yes.” Aarint turned his face toward him, but Ireic could not make out his features in the darkness.

  “How might I make myself right before God? I am a sinner. I know if I should meet Him face to face tomorrow, He would find me inexcusably guilty. I read about the sacrifice of Iazus, but I don’t understand how to accept it.”

  Aarint paused for a moment before answering. “Tell the Kurios just what you have told me. He will listen and accept you.”

  “It can’t be that simple. I am flawed, broken, sinful. It can’t be that easy.”

  “It is.”

  Still uncertain whether or not Aarint spoke the truth, Ireic looked up into the hazy night sky. Kurios? I know you are there, for you have been making it so I cannot ignore Your presence. I am a sinner. I am not worthy of the gift of Your Son’s death. In spite of this, I cling to the hope that You will accept my request for a part in His atoning sacrifice. According to Your Manuscripts all I need to do is believe. Kurios, I believe, help me in my unbelief.

  Suddenly, as if a great load had been lifted from his shoulders, Ireic knew that his petition had been answered. Thank you, Kurios.

  “Thank you, Aarint.”

  Aarint smiled, a lift to his voice. “Welcome to the family, Ireic.”

  Ireic couldn’t help smiling back. A peace unlike any he had ever felt before settled over his heart. Now if he could just work out a way to convince the Kurios to spare Lirth.

  __________

  Chapter Thirteen

  For Lirth, the days passed in a blur of bone aching riding and brief sleeping periods. She tried to stay awake until Ireic joined her each night, but her body betrayed her. Every morning it was the same.

  After the first day, Ireic made a point to join her during the long stop for the midday meal. Unfortunately, every time he started to talk to her he was interrupted by someone regarding military plans. Lirth understood, but she found her heart growing heavy with loneliness. Even Aarint’s thrice daily visits with her didn’t seem to alleviate her isolation.

  The morning of the fifth day, the camp was unusually loud. Lirth dressed quickly and emerged to hear Liam shouting orders to the rest of her personal guard.

  Apparently, Ireic planned to split the army into smaller sections. Individual companies could maneuver through the countryside more smoothly. Their movements would be surreptitious as they approached the city. Lirth and her personal guard, however, were going to stay to the rear of the company. They would approach at a leisurely pace to a place of refuge outside the city walls. Lirth understood. Ireic wanted her safely away from the battlefield and chaos.

  “You should wait in the tent, Your Majesty,” Liam offered. “It will be a while before we move.”

  Lirth retraced her steps into the tent and found the camp chair by touch. Just as she settled in a chair to spend some time in prayer, something rustled. Tilting her head to the side to hear better, she waited silently. Something moved again. Then the stench of human sweat filled her nose and something cold touched her throat near her ear.

  “You scream, Brat, and I shall slit you ear to ear.” The voice from her nightmares rasped from above her.

  She froze. Kurios, help, she prayed.

  Then as an answer to prayer, someone entered the tent door.

  “What are you doing in here?” Liam demanded.

  His question was followed by a deep grunt as if the air had been driven from him. What little hope Lirth had held disappeared with the sound of Liam’s body falling to the ground.

  Please don’t let him die, she prayed.

  Then pain exploded through Lirth’s head. She fell off her chair into nothingness.

  ~~~~~~

  Ireic and his men, one fifth of the army, moved quietly along a road south of the city. Aarint, acting as Ireic’s second in command for their contingent, rode next to him. Trahern commanded the fifth north of the city, General Tremont led the east assault. The General’s second in command, Major Orana, rode in from the west. The final fifth remained with Lirth, moving toward the safe location as Ireic had arranged. He found his mind constantly wandering back to her.

  “She is in the Kurios’ hands,” Aarint had said only that morning as they rode out. That fact seemed to comfort him more than it consoled Ireic. A part of Ireic’s heart remained behind with her, a piece that he was loath to lose.

  “You are thinking of her again?” Aarint asked, breaking through Ireic’s concentration.

  Ireic glanced over at his brother-in-law with a frown. “I know that I shouldn’t be worrying, but I cannot seem to get it out of my mind.”

  “Well you better wrestle it back into a corner of your brain. It looks like we are coming upon the main road. Your kingdom and these men need you now.”

  The dense woodland faded to a thinner brush as their road met with a wide thoroughfare. Raising a hand to signal a halt, Ireic surveyed with dismay the heavy traffic passing before them.

  Farmers on produce-laden carts, merchants in finely painted wagons, and an occasional well-sprung coach all filed passed among straggling travelers on foot. Some of them looked up to gawk at the armed company.

  “Form up by twos and follow,” he ordered. “Be courteous, but keep moving.”

  “So much for moving by stealth,” Aar
int commented as he turned in his seat to shout out the orders.

  “These people will not betray us,” Ireic predicted. “At least, I hope they will not. Either way, it comes down to the success of Yorn’s work to keep the gate open. Signal the drummer and bugler to the front. If they lead and play, the people will part.”

  After a moment of rearranging, the company moved forward again. As he hoped, the travelers parted before the beat of the drum allowing soldiers to pass two abreast. So they marched for an hour. Just as the city was looming on the horizon, a message arrived from the back of the ranks.

  “Sire.” A flushed young man gasped as he trotted next to Ireic’s steed. “Men are requesting to join up. They ask who we are for and we say ‘King Theodoric,’ and they say they want to fight.”

  Ireic couldn’t help the leap of hope in his breast. “Then let them.”

  The man coughed awkwardly. “But Sire, we have no weapons to give them.”

  He had a point, Ireic admitted.

  “Why don’t the men share?” Aarint gestured to the columns behind us. “Each commissioned soldier was given a sword and an axe or mace. If each of them gives up one weapon, the new additions will at least get one.”

  The boy seemed surprised at this. He jogged thoughtfully along considering it.

  “Make it so,” Ireic ordered.

  The young man saluted and fell back.

  “I take it you were not expecting this,” Aarint commented as soon as the young man was out of hearing range.

  “It was that obvious?” Ireic asked.

  Aarint smiled. “It is in the Kurios’ hands, and it appears that He wishes you to win with the people at your side.”

  “I hope that is so.” His thoughts returned to his wife and her fate.

  “He will take care of her also. Leave her in His hands, Ireic. I left her there years ago and He gave her back to me. I have seen her as I never thought I would, happily married and loved. It took five years, but I was able to see her again. She loves Him and trusts Him. Do the same.”

  Ireic grimaced at Aarint’s uncanny ability to know when he was thinking on Lirth, but he understood. After four days of wrestling, he still wasn’t ready to let go.

  Kurios, creator of heaven and earth, other kings before me have sought You as they marched into battle. I don’t recall anyone seeking Your protection for his wife, but I ask that now. Place your protective hedge about Lirth. Keep her from harm, if possible. Bring her back to me safe and whole. I love her, Kurios. Ireic’s heart tightened unexpectedly as he realized that he had not told her since the previous night. Please show her know that I love her.

  “There it is,” Aarint announced, pointing between his horse’s ears at the gates of Ana City that stood tall and majestic. “It looks like the gates are open, but they might not stay open for long.”

  Ireic signaled for the drummer to double the speed and the bugle signaled the call to arms. The steady tread of hundreds of feet in unison grew more syncopated and demanding. The familiar rush of fear and anticipation flowed through his veins. Reaching for his shield, he closed his eyes once more. “Thy will be done, Kurios.”

  “Amen,” Aarint assented, sword in hand and shield raised.

  It had taken Ireic four days to reach this point of reluctant submission, but the Kurios brought him the last span. As Ireic looked within his heart, he found the desire for the Kurios’ will to be done, whatever it may be. “Shall not the King of all the earth do right?” he asked and drew his sword. “My life is in Your hands, Kurios. Do with it as You desire.”

  Taking comfort in the assurance that he knew where he would be should this be his last battle, Ireic signaled the bugler. The man drew a deep breath and then sounded the charge. The gates still stood open as the company broke into a gallop. Ireic prayed they stayed that way until they all made it through.

  ~~~~~~

  Lirth woke to pain, a throbbing fist at the back of her skull that flexed and contracted with her heart beat.

  “When she wakes, say nothing,” a familiar voice whispered. “If you say nothing she will not know that you are here. Then when I give the signal...”

  “But what about him?” a new voice inquired. It was high and slightly nasal.

  “Not a word. As far as she knows, he is dead.” A slight scuffling sound was followed by a muffled groan. “See, he can’t make enough noise to bother with that gag.”

  “When will she wake?” the nasal voice asked.

  Someone crossed the room and slapped her cheek. “Ah, I think now is a good time for sleeping beauty to wake.”

  Without warning, a pail of icy water cascaded over her head. She brought her head up and gasped for air as her body reacted to the abrupt temperature change. That was when she discovered that her head was the only thing that was free. Hands, arms, feet, and legs were all bound to something that felt like a metal lattice. Cold water dripped down her face, trickling down her neck and between her shoulder blades, crying for her to wipe it away. Father, please give me strength, she prayed.

  “Good morning.” Her old assailant’s voice rasped next her ear. “It is time to begin. Let us see what can be found in that little skull of yours, Brat.” He stepped back. “Where shall we begin?” He stepped back again. “Ah, yes, military secrets. It seems so boring to begin there, but it is necessary considering your husband’s plans.”

  Something struck close to her head, shaking the lattice and her helpless body.

  “How many?” he demanded from across the room. “How many troops answer to your husband’s orders?”

  Lirth kept her mouth closed. The lattice vibrated again as something struck it with a deafening clang. She couldn’t help wincing as the other man struck again, this time hitting her defenseless arm. Fire shot up into her shoulder. Closing her eyes, she drew within herself and began to pray. Within the Kurios’ shelter, she would cling to Him and by His strength, survive.

  “Speak,” her old enemy yelled suddenly in her ear. Instinctively, Lirth turned away from the sound, but a fist drove her head back against the metal. Blood flooded her mouth with its bitter taste and her upper lip grew cold.

  Kurios, I need your strength.

  ~~~~~~

  When Ireic and his men reached the south gate, the great doors were barely open. Yorn’s men struggled to widen the gap. The soldiers in the gatehouse fought to close them. Aarint signaled some of the men behind to aide Yorn’s men. They charged and overwhelmed the gatehouse defenders. By the time Ireic, Aarint and the remaining company passed beneath, the gate was in crown control once more.

  The city streets reached off in four directions from the main court beyond the gate. Ireic chose the main thoroughfare, wide enough for twenty to march abreast. He led the soldiers on toward the palace in the northeastern corner of the city.

  They met the first resistance at the turn onto the royal approach. A hastily constructed barricade of farm carts, an overturned vegetable stand, and empty flour barrels from the local baking house blocked the turn. Sheltering behind them, dozens of men wielded crude arms constructed of household items. Ireic’s chest constricted. Only weeks before, Ireic had rode in a carriage over these very cobblestones as Anavrea’s rightful king. Apparently some of the common people shared the former councilors’ views of his inability to rule well.

  Aarint began giving orders and within moments, their men were preparing to assault the obstacle. Ireic flinched when the bugler sounded the charge. The civilians fell beneath the blades and hooves of the first assault. Ireic’s heart ached as he rode past the casualties. More wives and mothers would wait in vain for their men to return to them this night.

  Farther along the avenue they were greeted with some cheers as they passed. Bittersweet, considering the opposition they had just overtaken.

  Ireic didn’t glance behind at the ranks, but reports of civilians joining kept arriving. When the main thoroughfare opened into the great courtyard before the palace’s southern gates, Aarint signaled a halt. The
columns of mounted soldiers stopped but more men on foot kept coming, swarming around them and flanking the original army on both sides, tripling its size. Ireic’s army had gone from outnumbered to massive. Taking the castle now was a given, once they breached the gates. However, then the army might have to control the mob and figure out how to discourage plundering. Ireic tensed as the possible negative possibilities unfolded in his head.

  Cheering off to the east and west signaled the arrival of those contingents. A few moments later, the deep throated call of a hunting horn announced Trahern’s arrival at the northern perimeter. Still the palace’s front gates remained silent and closed. They seemed to defy Ireic, taunting him.

  “Sire!” The voice echoed among the clatter of hooves on cobbles. A man on a dark stallion approached from the east. He pulled up sharply and saluted. “Lord Yorn wishes to inform you that all the council members and their families are barricaded within the palace walls. They had fifteen hundred troops at last count.”

  “You mean their wives and children are with them?” This seemed foolish unless they were planning on using them as hostages. Or they might be trying to ensure that their family members couldn’t be used against them. Ireic’s stomach clenched. That meant innocent bystanders to be sorted through and negotiated around when they finally breached the wall.

  “They closed the palace gates as soon as they got word that you were coming.”

  “Does Yorn have a way into the Palace grounds?” Ireic asked. They hadn’t built siege equipment because Ireic was sure he could get the gates open, but not without letting someone in on the secrets of the defenses. It would be better if Yorn had someone inside.

  “He said that you would know how to get the gates open, sire.” The man lowered his head apologetically.