Pulling back, Arise felt a pang of guilt and horror wash through her as she looked her sister over. Her sister was a beautiful woman, but her time in captivity hadn’t been kind to her, nor had her captors. Someone had brutally cropped her ears short, doing something to make them almost look like a human’s ears with multiple piercings along the edge, almost like a silver cuff to conceal the damage. Other jewelry adorned her sister’s face, while still others had obviously been removed. While Iris wasn’t scarred, her dark skin was crossed in patches that were lighter than others, and Arise swallowed hard.
“What… what happened to you?” the dressmaker finally asked, her voice soft. “Your ears and skin…”
“I… don’t want to talk about it. Let’s just say that one of my jailors was a sadistic witch of a woman. She also overstepped herself with what she did to me, but that was a cold comfort at the time,” Iris spoke flatly, taking a deep breath as she admitted softly, “I… I nearly lost myself a few times. I’m a bit adrift even now. Part of me doesn’t believe that I’m free of them. I’m not really, I suppose.”
“You are. You are,” Arise murmured, hugging her sister and rocking back and forth, hardly believing that she was seeing her again. It took a minute before she opened her eyes and looked at the Baron, who looked uncomfortable as she spoke, sincerity flooding her. “Thank you for bringing her back to me, Baron. It means everything to me.”
“As much as I can… appreciate your feelings, I believe that you should not feel such. It’s only right that we free those who’ve been captured. Besides, I bring ill news for you as well,” the Baron replied slowly, frowning as he settled almost into a parade stance.
“What?” Iris asked, pulling away, concern growing on her face. “But…”
“It’s fine, Iris. I expected something like this,” Arise interjected, turning toward the Baron and nodding as she spoke. “I assume that you’re speaking of my punishment for being a spy?”
“Yes. Despite your recent actions, you did betray both the nation and Galthor. However, due to you actually changing sides prior to disaster, I asked Her Majesty for her opinion on your punishment,” Baron Galthor explained sternly.
“Of course, that makes perfect sense to me. May I ask what she chose for my punishment?” Arise asked, worry gnawing at her stomach. She really didn’t want to spend decades in a prison, or die, but if that was what it took, that was what would happen.
“Her Majesty has decreed that you are to be exiled, along with your sister. You will be taken to the border of Sifaren, one of your choice, and be sent on your way, never to return,” the Baron replied, his voice soft.
“How could you do that? She didn’t even—” Iris began hotly, only to have Arise shake her head at her.
“Considering everything that has happened, that’s actually less painful of a punishment than I expected, Iris,” Arise said gently. “Baron, might I ask what will happen to my shop and things?”
“Half of your wealth, as well as half the value of your home and shop, will be returned to you, along with the tools of your trade. The rest is forfeit to help rebuild in the aftermath of the war,” he explained. “You received almost nothing from Kelvanis, so a greater penalty was considered, but discarded. That should be more than enough for you to set up a life elsewhere.”
“I can agree to that. Considering what I have, it should be more than enough. Iris? Are you still reasonably skilled at weaving?” Arise asked, turning her gaze to her sister.
“I’m rather out of practice, since they didn’t give me a chance to use a loom often, but I don’t think I’ve lost my knack for it,” Iris replied, looking worried. “I didn’t think…”
“It’s fine, sister. I was willing to give up far more than just this to save you,” Arise murmured, looking back to Baron Galthor, and she smiled sadly as she asked, “You said I could choose any border, yes? What of Beacon?”
“There’s been some discussion of dispatching a few companies to escort those who’ve been branded there, as well as to reinforce the city. It would be dangerous, though. Is that what you wish to do?” The Baron frowned at her.
“I’ll have to discuss it with Iris… but I think it is. From what little I’ve heard, perhaps Queen Phynis will be understanding,” Arise replied, then hesitated for a moment before bowing her head. “Even if she is not, I think I owe her an apology in person. My reports very nearly led to her enslavement, after all.”
“In that case I’ll leave the two of you to catch up and make a decision. Good evening to both of you,” the Baron told them, shaking his head as he left, his guards closing the doors behind them.
Chapter 32
After the intense rush to reach Beacon, Diane hadn’t felt so tired in years. It was a combination of little sleep, the suspicion of others toward Wenris, and long days in the saddle in their attempts to shake off pursuit. The former queen couldn’t blame the others for the suspicion directed at the succubus, but even if Wenris didn’t seem to care, it added to her own stress. Still, even if she was tired, she couldn’t help but stare at Beacon.
The city wasn’t the biggest she’d ever seen, but it certainly was the most impressive. Kelvanath, for all its size and power, had been much smaller and only about two miles from one edge to the other, not as huge as the fortress before her. Two shelf-like paths lined with buildings slowly wound their way up a mountain half a mile high, with five tall stone walls defending the city, and with the eye-catching beacon of ruby light shining from the marble palace atop the city. Softening an image that otherwise would have been far more intimidating were numerous canals, ponds, and even waterfalls, along with gardens that were just beginning to flourish and add greenery to the city.
They’d been allowed through the gates after only a short conversation, and upon entry Diane paused, looking on a street that had a number of dusk elves meandering about. She’d been told that most of the city was deserted due to lack of residents just yet, but that the gates had a decent population at the moment due to the Adventuring Guild’s presence. Even so, it was a bit of a surprise to her, seeing so many people speaking and working happily so close to Kelvanis’ territory. Beyond that, Diane felt something strange about the city.
“Interesting, and somewhat impressive,” the human-disguised Wenris murmured as she looked upward, her eyebrows raised.
“What’s impressive?” Jaine asked, her nervousness around the demon having eased over the course of the journey.
“The spellwork over the city. There’s a shielding spell designed to protect the area within the walls from attacks, and it’s disguised from the outside,” Wenris explained. “It takes an incredible amount of power, but breaking it would be a non-trivial task for nearly anyone. I’ll freely admit that it’s more impressive than I expected to find here. There’s also something else, but I can’t quite put my finger on what it is…”
“While it may be interesting, we don’t have time to sit around,” Slaid interrupted, nodding to Uvar and his other soldiers, who began to stream toward a large barracks-like building to their left. He continued a moment later. “We need to report to Queen Phynis and get word out that you’re safe, ladies.”
“Aww… I didn’t know you cared, Slaid,” Wenris cooed.
Her words prompted a scowl from the man, who spoke flatly. “I was talking about Diane and Jaine, not you. I don’t consider you a lady.”
Diane couldn’t resist a soft giggle, and she even caught a hint of a smile flicker across Serel’s face, before her guard asked, “Should we not be moving, then?”
“Yes, we should. This way, please?” Skylark replied softly, the young woman looking even worse than Diane felt, and Diane felt a pang of mingled fear and pity. The woman began leading the way toward the palace, taking several staircases to cut down on the length of their journey.
She’d heard what Skylark had experienced, and that Alissa and Desa hadn’t joined them told them far too much about what had happened. Also quite informative to her was how
Wenris hadn’t even seemed surprised at the Archon’s powers, and had calmly told them that he’d obviously been holding back in order to not kill the crowd outside the manor wall as well. That bit of news had chilled Diane’s blood.
Soon enough she and the others were occupied by their climb, though. It was a punishing ascent after the last few days, and it was made worse by the city obviously having been designed to slow down attackers. No one was going to casually get to the palace, that was for certain!
As they finally reached the palace gates, Diane was limping, sweating, and breathing hard while Serel was lending her an arm. The gates were heavily guarded, but a weary-looking woman, tall and with an icy demeanor, let them into the palace. It took Diane a moment to notice the woman’s worry and barely suppressed rage, but she said nothing as they were guided to a side chamber where they could rest and enjoy a few refreshments. The only one who didn’t join them was Skylark.
It was about half an hour later that a guard finally opened the door, the scarred elven man looking around and speaking in a raspy voice. “Ladies and gentlemen, Her Majesty will see you now. All but you, Ms. Wenris. She would like you to come a short while later.”
“That would be perfectly acceptable, though if possible I’d like to see the palace library? This room looks rather boring when one is on her own,” Wenris replied, smiling sunnily at the elf.
He hesitated a moment, then nodded. “Very well. If you’ll come along, I’ll have one of the others show you the way.”
“Excellent!” The succubus grinned, rising and helping Diane up from her chair.
The others who were sitting rose from their seats, and the man frowned at Serel, but didn’t say anything. Walking down the hallways, Diane found many of the walls were carved to make it seem as though they were made of wood or had plants climbing them, seeming oddly lifelike in many ways. After a few hallways, the man stopped to speak with not one, but two other guards, both of whom nodded in response to his soft orders.
“Ms. Wenris, if you’ll come with us? The library is this way,” one of the two said calmly, and the succubus smiled at Diane.
“I’ll see you in a bit, Diane. Don’t have too much fun, hmm?” Wenris said mischievously, her eyes glittering.
“Of course not,” Diane murmured, and watched her go before following the guard again. She had to wonder what Queen Phynis had in mind.
“Her Majesty intends to call for you as soon as she’s done speaking with the others, so please be ready at that point,” the female guard explained as Wenris looked around the library in interest.
It was a large library, much larger than the demon had expected, but the broad, well-lit chamber had depressingly few books. Only a single book-case out of dozens had tomes on the shelves, but a number of crates sitting on the floor, as well as what looked like bookbinding materials, showed more promise for the eventual state of the library. Wenris supposed that even the largest of libraries had to start somewhere.
“Ms. Wenris?” the guard said again after a moment, her voice questioning.
“Oh, yes, of course! My apologies, I was just examining your library and thinking,” the demon replied, shaking her head and smiling back at the woman. She was cute, but Wenris didn’t want to risk herself here, not with the interesting mana density in the palace. “I’ll be ready to join the others whenever you need me.”
“Thank you. If you need assistance, I’ll be outside,” the woman replied, relaxing slightly as she nodded, then left the room.
In the woman’s absence, the demon relaxed, slowly approaching the table with the bookbinding materials, curious to see what the locals were working on. Several signatures of paper were finished already, with more sheets set aside for the next few, and Wenris’ eyebrows rose as she read the smooth handwriting and saw how perfect the paper was.
She recognized the content of the third volume of Marin’s Codex, though it being translated to modern elvish was something of a surprise. Her voice was soft but amused as she murmured, “Found a copy of that, hmm? Probably translating it…”
Her voice trailed off as she noticed a small box with discarded sheets of paper. Some of them were blotched with ink, while others had mistakes or had torn the paper. It was one in particular that caught her attention, though, the writing on it ancient beyond belief, though the ink and paper was new. It was text she’d seen before, and the blood slowly drained from Wenris’ face as she pulled it out.
“By all the stars in the heavens… What is this?” Wenris asked softly, unable to overcome her shock.
“I’d heard that you’d changed, Queen Diane, but this is a bit of a surprise!” Phynis said, looking on Yisara’s former ruler in astonishment. The increased height and changes to the dawn elf were stunning, and she took a moment, trying to gather her thoughts. Keeping Desa out of her mind was difficult, but she couldn’t allow herself to be overcome by grief now.
“I’m not a queen anymore, Your Majesty. It appears that our roles have changed since we last met,” Diane replied softly, her eyes bright, but her smile hesitant.
“Perhaps you’re not, but to me you’ll always be Queen Diane. The last time I saw you was what… when I was fifteen? Beryl shoved me into the pond because she thought I was too timid,” Phynis reflected, shaking her head.
“Beryl did what?” Jaine gasped, staring at Diane in shock.
“Yes, she did. Jaine, I don’t think you’ve ever had the chance to meet Phynis… or I should introduce her as Queen Phynis Constella, should I not?” The older woman smiled, and Phynis couldn’t help but notice she almost couldn’t sense the age difference between Diane and Jaine. Only the more refined manners of the elder woman betrayed her maturity, which was a surprise. Diane continued after a moment. “Your Majesty, may I present my daughter, Jaine Yisara? Also with us are our maids, Maria and Meredith Carpenter, and a… rebel Enforcer, Serel Swiftblade, who has been acting as my bodyguard.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Jaine, though I wish it were under better circumstances,” Phynis replied, but couldn’t help but tense at the mention of the Enforcer, who looked back at her levelly, her pale eyes cool. After a moment Phynis asked, “A rebel Enforcer? Are you certain?”
“I…” Diane paused, then looked at the other woman. “Serel?”
“Rebel may not be accurate. Archon Sorvos betrayed me and my subordinates, killing half of us and performing experiments on the survivors. I hate him with a burning passion that I find impossible to truly describe.” Serel’s voice was level and seemingly emotionless as she looked back at Phynis, her eyes filled with challenge. “Fortunately, I was enslaved directly to Wenris, and as she has chosen to rebel, I have a chance to sabotage him. I don’t care about you or any of the others at all, I just want to hurt him. Wenris directed me to guard Diane with my life, though, and I will do so.”
“That certainly clears the air. Not what I was expecting, I suppose, but it’s… tolerable. We can’t pick our allies. Not entirely, at least,” Phynis admitted, stunned by the woman’s explanation. Taking a deep breath, she turned her attention to Slaid and Vendis. “Thank you for getting them out of Westgate, both of you. While the price may have been much higher than I hoped or feared, rescuing Diane and Jaine is a great achievement.”
“Thank you, Your Highness, though I admit to a good deal of unhappiness about what happened to your subordinates,” Vendis replied softly, looking down as she added, “I… considered Desa a close friend. I wish I could have done something.”
“If you want to talk about feeling helpless, I was right there, Vendis, and I feel like utter shit. If they hadn’t held the Archon, we might not have made it out. Not that it makes me feel any better about what happened,” Slaid interjected, reaching out to lay a hand on Vendis’ shoulder.
“I wish that you could have done something, but before she left I told Desa to be careful. She promised me she would, but we can’t control everything. We each have our own destiny,” Phynis replied softly, sitting up straighter b
efore she took a deep breath and nodded. “Now, I believe other introductions are in order before we go any further.
“On my left is Sistina. She appears to currently be occupied, likely in the dungeon. Sistina is the dungeon, and she built the city which you’re inside, so be polite,” Phynis explained, nodding toward her beloved, who was sitting in a chair with her eyes closed. The dryad didn’t move, so Phynis turned her attention to Farris and Sapphire, who were standing nearby looking worried. “Farris is the Royal Magister of Beacon, and is primarily a nature mage, which helped during some recent… unpleasantness, and Sapphire is a priestess of Medaea, and one of the guardians of the city.”
Farris nodded, looking like she was going to speak, but Sapphire spoke first, her voice oddly formal. “If I may, Your Majesty, I have something I wish to speak about.”
Phynis blinked in surprise, looking at Sapphire curiously as she nodded. “Of course you may.”
“I know that you’re aware of the attack on the temple where I was living, Phynis. What you haven’t been told, because it hasn’t mattered before this, is that Enforcer Serel led that attack,” Sapphire explained, her tone much less pleasant than normal. All eyes turned to the Enforcer, even as Diane and the others took a step away from the woman. The priestess continued, her voice growing angry. “If anyone knows what happened to Medaea, it would be her or the Archon.”
“Enforcer… would you care to explain what you know?” Phynis looked at Serel, shock flooding through her.
“I cannot,” Serel replied, and at several angry inhalations, she continued loudly over them before they could speak. “Not will not, Queen Phynis. I literally cannot speak about it unless I am given direct permission.”
“Who can give you permission to speak about the matter, then?” Phynis asked, her own spike of rage cooling at the woman’s clarification.
“The Archon or Wenris are the only ones who can overrule the order,” Serel told them, her smile cold as she added, “Though I suspect that he would be exceedingly displeased to know that she can undo the order. He spent a great deal of time and power to ensure no one else could do so.”
Halls of Power (Ancient Dreams Book 3) Page 25