Preserving the Ingenairii

by Jeffrey Quyle

  “There typically isn’t so much, conversation, during that ceremony,” the duchess said with a smile.

  “Yet I don’t think anyone doubts its sincerity,” the emperor replied. “We’ll need to negotiate a dowry now.

  “You know,” he turned to Jeswyne, “if you had done this a month ago before I was emperor, you would not have to cost me so much as you will now.”

  “Actually, all I ask in dowry is that you end the war and withdraw your armies from the Dominion,” Alec spoke boldly.

  Every head in the room turned to look at him. “I speak from the heart,” he said insistently.

  “We’ll talk about this,” Sergey said, not wanting to negotiate in front of so many people, nor sure how serious the comment was.

  “If you’ll excuse me father, I’m tired after such an exhausting day,” Jeswyne said. “I’d like to retire to my room.” She looked at Alec, her golden eyes sparkling. “I look forward to locking my door and getting out of these clothes.”

  “By all means, dear,” the emperor acquiesced. All the members of the family rose to kiss and hug her good night, and a waiting lady escorted her to the door, where a guard joined them as they walked through the hallway.

  “I’d like to retire as well,” Alec said a minute later.

  “We’ve had quarters prepared for you in the visitor’s cottage in the garden,” the empress spoke. Alec saw that Geni was waiting at the doorway. Alec thanked them for their hospitality, said good night to everyone, and then joined Geni for the walk through the palace and the gardens to his cottage.

  “Is that what all this is about, an end to the war?” Geni asked.

  Alec looked at the man, and extended his Spiritual powers to judge his honesty. “No,” Alec answered, satisfied with the officer’s character. “This is all about Jeswyne. The prospect of peace is just a wonderful opportunity. I’d hate to have to go back to the Dominion and resume slaughtering all my father-in-law’s soldiers, you know?’ he grinned, and he felt the reciprocating humor as Geni joined him in a grin.

  They reached the cottage door, where two guards waited. “You’re sure that was Jeswyne’s room we visited?” Alec asked.

  “As sure as I can be,” he replied.

  “In that case, good night all,” Alec said, and he stepped inside the cottage.

  Chapter 50 – At the Promenade

  Alec walked around the rooms in his guest cottage. A fire blazed merrily in the sitting room fireplace, while candles were lit in most rooms.

  Meanwhile, Jeswyne stood in the middle of her own room, a maid removing the heavy gown that she wore. “Would you go start a hot bath for me please?” Jeswyne asked the woman as her layers of clothing fell to the floor. “I’ll be there in just a moment. There’s something I want to do first.” The servant bowed and quietly slipped away.

  “Alright Alec, here I am. What promise do you intend to keep?” Jeswyne said aloud, standing and laughing at her own audacity.

  “I’m surprised you don’t remember,” Alec spoke from behind her.

  Jeswyne shrieked in confused embarrassment, and flew into a closet.

  “How did you do that? I locked the door and there are guards out there?” she demanded.

  “I happen to have certain abilities,” Alec reminded her. “Pick out a dress, one that’s not too regal, so we can blend in with the crowd,” he suggested.

  Jeswyne emerged from the closet a minute later, wearing a dark blue dress that was almost austere. How did you get here?” she asked.

  “Come here,” Alec replied, and he placed his arms around her. He closed his eyes and concentrated, and moments later they were standing on a hillside among trees and bushes.

  “That’s it! You used that power to sneak into my room!” Jeswyne shrieked.

  She looked at Alec and saw his eyes were unfocused, and a moment later there was laughter and music and light below them on the hillside.

  “I think ‘sneak’ is a harsh word,” Alec replied, and he laughed at the expression on her face.

  “I promised you that someday I would take you to the promenade, and we would walk among the common folks to enjoy the crowds and the food and the entertainment,” he told her. “So here we are,” he took her hand and led her a few steps down the hillside so that they emerged from bushes to step into the promenade crowd.

  “Here now, what were you two doing in the bushes?” a laughing minstrel asked as they stepped onto the pavement nearby. His audience laughed, and he began to strum his lute to a bawdy tune that made Jeswyne blush.

  Alec led her away and then pointed up. “This is the promenade from last year. I thought it would be a happier time. Look up there and tell me what you see?”

  Jeswyne looked up at the veranda and saw her family there. “Look! There’s me,” she pointed to a girl who appeared bored.

  “You didn’t have much fun at the promenade last year, it appears,” Alec said.

  “We have to sit up there and be seen. That’s all,” Jeswyne said.

  “Let’s go do more than that,” he replied, and he bought them two candied apples, then skins of berry juice, and carved wooden knifes, and they began walking along the crowded pavement.

  An animal trainer with four chained monkeys put on a show that made Jeswyne laugh, while she insisted that Alec throw a coin to a musician who played cheery tunes on his flute. They bought meat kabobs even though they both said they weren’t hungry. The crowd was festive, and Jeswyne laughed at the laughter and good humor they encountered all night long.

  “Look over there, Alec,” Jeswyne whispered, and she pointed to where a discrete couple stood in the shadows off the walk, kissing passionately.

  He slid his arm around her waist and held her tight, and his lips touched hers as he bowed his head. “Go get a room somewhere!” an anonymous voice called, and Alec good-naturedly waved his hand above his head as the kiss lingered for a moment more. They strolled further, to the end where the carriages were dropping off and picking up guests, then turned and began to stroll back.

  “I always imagined it would be fun, but I never knew it would be this much fun,” Jeswyne said as she laid her head on his shoulder.

  “Step up and win a prize for your pretty friend,” a barker shouted to Alec, stepping in front of him.

  “No thank you,” Alec replied, looking at the throwing game.

  “It’s simple,” the barker insisted. “Just knock down those three cans with three balls. Even someone like you could manage this.”

  “Not tonight,” Alec refused again.

  “Afraid you’ll look bad in front of the girl?” the barker needled.

  “What will I get if I win?” Alec asked, tired of the pitch. He’d been in a carnival and he knew the game barker fully expected him to lose.

  “Double your money back,” the operator said, confident now that he’d found his mark.

  “Tell you what,” Alec began. “I’ll only throw one ball, and if I knock them all down, you have to get up on the counter, dance, and sing a song as loud as you can.”

  “There’s no way anyone can knock those three cans down with less than three balls,” the barker laughed. “You’ve got a deal!”

  Alec handed him a coin, as people began to gather around to see the game. Alec took a moment to study the angle of the wall behind the cans, then rifled a ball that spun so fast its trajectory curved. It hit the first can on the right, hit the second can in the middle, missed the third can, but bounced off the wall and ricocheted back to knock the third can down.

  The crowd laughed and applauded, while the barker stood dumbfounded. “Jeswyne, our friend needs some help. Why don’t you sing the song for him while he does the dance?”

  “I would be honored to help his performance,” she laughed, and Alec helped her stand up on the counter while the unhappy barked climbed up and began a wooden dance to Jeswyne’s voice singing a children’s lullaby.

  The crowd laughed and applauded again, and began to throw small coins to J
eswyne for her singing. She laughed and curtsied as the song ended, then stooped so that Alec could lift her down.

  “Don’t give up your day job to be a dancer!” Alec laughingly told the barker and they strolled away.

  Imagine what my mother would say if she saw that!” Jeswyne laughed. She laid her head on Alec’s shoulder again, and he felt her body vibrate with a yawn.

  “It’s been a long day,” Alec said. “I need to get you back to the palace so you can have a good night’s sleep. He pulled her by the hand up into the bushes, and wrapped his arms around her, then jumped forward in time to the moment they had left, and jumped again back into her bedroom in the palace, where they heard the maid humming as she emptied hot water into the tub.

  “That was wonderful Alec. Thank you so much, for everything,” Jeswyne said. She started to rise on her tiptoes to kiss his lips, when another yawn erupted, and Alec laughed softly. He kissed her cheek.

  “I’ll see you in the morning,” he promised, and he disappeared from the room.

  Alec arrived back in his own cottage and let out a big sigh. He snuffed out the candles, undressed, and fell soundly asleep.

  Chapter 51 – Wounded by Scarle

  Alec awoke late in the morning, as rays of sunlight slanted steeply into his room. A tray of tea, fruit and rolls was in the sitting room, and Alec ate it voraciously. He cleaned himself then stepped outside, where a sentry was waiting.

  “Where would you like to go, sir?” the guard asked.

  “Let’s go see commander Anatoli,” Alec answered.

  The guard obliged and led Alec to the armory area, where they found a council of war gathered around a map of the city.

  “Welcome, we’re glad you could join us,” Anatoli said.

  “My apologies for being late. Yesterday was a busy day,” Alec explained.

  “Understood,” Anatoli grunted. “Here’s what we want to do,” he pointed at the map. “This is the Scarle compound. We want to seize control of it and neutralize it even more than you did yesterday. The emperor intends to confiscate the compound as punishment for an act of treason.

  “Over here is the palace where Mikhail has retreated,” Anatoli’s finger moved across the river. “It’s not a glamorous or comfortable palace. It’s more of a castle, set up on a hilltop, easily defensible.

  “We want to take control of it as well. Then here,” he pointed to a third location, “is the sorcerers’ guild hall. We want to be careful there, for many reasons, but we need to destroy the treasonous parts of the organization.”

  “I’d like to wipe them all out,” Alec muttered

  Anatoli looked up and met his eyes. “So would many of us, but that’s not our mission now.”

  Alec accepted the ruling. “Who is the leader of Scarle?” he asked. “Is it someone named Kirill?”

  “He is their master, yes,” an officer agreed.

  “What if I could get into the Scarle compound and capture Kirill and bring him back to you?” Alec asked.

  “Well, they would be likely to fall apart,” Anatoli said.

  “Give me some weapons,” Alec said. “I want another sword and a second bandolier of knives.”

  The imperial officers looked at one another. “I’ll be back in five minutes if you’ll do as I say,” Alec said.

  Anatoli nodded at a junior officer, who returned shortly with the weapons. Alec buckled them on. “Keep the armory clear of people until I return,” Alec warned, and he disappeared from the imperial compound.

  Alec arrived back in the parlor of the Scarle compound, and heard an immediate shout. “Who are you and how did you get here?”

  Alec pulled out a sword and engaged his warrior powers, observing the two men who came into the parlor with their own swords drawn. “He’s the one who fought in the tournament yesterday,” the man on the left told the one on the right.

  “I’m just here to see Kirill. If you lead me to him, no one will get hurt,” Alec replied.

  “Help! Help! Intruder!” one man began screaming in response.

  Alec flung two knives, sinking them in the ribs of each man as more guards came running to the scene. Alec ran forward with his sword and engaged the new arrivals before they were aware of what circumstances existed. Three men fell before him, and others began to scramble backwards. Alec guessed that Kirill’s quarters might be upstairs, and he bolted up a staircase to begin banging on doors and looking in rooms for the Scarle leader.

  “Healer! Healer! I’m down here,” he heard a voice call. Running back to the staircase in the main hall, Alec saw Kirill standing in a doorway. “If you want me, come get me,” the man threw the challenge in Alec’s face. He stepped back a step into the darkened room behind him. An arrow flew at Alec from another doorway suddenly, but he knocked it aside with his sword.

  “Come back out into the open, Kirill,” Alec demanded, sensing a trap hidden in the room. “You will be taken to the emperor for punishment. If you cooperate, the Scarle clan may survive.”

  “That’s quite a speech in your barbaric tongue, isn’t it Healer?” Kirill answered. “You may have done some damage to our cause yesterday, but we have plenty of support, and Mikhail is still free. In just a little time we’ll recoup and keep putting the pressure on to restore a strong sovereign to the throne.

  “So come downstairs and we can talk about letting you walk peacefully out of the compound. Otherwise, this is going to go poorly for you.”

  Alec glanced at the parlor door to the side of the hall. The room appeared to be empty, and was behind a knot of armed men who faced him. Dropping his warrior energy, Alec translocated himself to the parlor, hearing the curses and exclamations of the Scarle forces as Alec disappeared. He pulled out his sword and came up behind a guard, pulling his sword around in front of the man’s throat. “Kirill! I’ll kill everyone here if you don’t surrender,” Alec shouted.

  The men in the room jumped back in shock at Alec’s sudden appearance behind them.

  “Go ahead,” Kirill said and he fled back into the darkened room. Alec pushed his hostage roughly aside and ran after the fleeing Scarle leader. As he ran, Alec felt a sharp pain in his shoulder, and he stumbled into the doorway where Kirill had fled. A heavy net fell down over him and pushed him to the ground.

  Alec had an arrow in his shoulder, and he saw shadows bobbing wildly as Scarle guardsmen came running at him. Dropping his warrior powers, Alec focused on translocating, and willed himself back to the armory at the palace.

  He closed his eyes as he saw the comforting sight of the armory walls, and passed out in pain.

  Chapter 52 – Planning a Wedding

  Alec wasn’t sure how much later it was when he awoke, but he found himself lying on his stomach on a comfortable bed. “Where is this?” he asked, feeling the pain in his shoulder. The memory of the ambush at the Scarle home came back to him.

  “You’re back in the guest cottage,” he heard Jeswyne’s voice answer, and she circled into his field of vision. “Are you alright?” she asked.

  “I know I was in your bedroom last night, but should you be visiting my room so soon?” he asked, trying to make a joke that would put a smile on her worried face.

  “Alec, there are other people in the room,” she said through gritted teeth.

  Alec closed his eyes and groaned. “Can someone cut the arrow out of my shoulder?” he asked.

  “Our best infantry surgeon is here,” Anatoli replied. “But it will be a painful operation and recovery period, he tells us.”

  “I don’t sense that the arrow is poisoned, is it?” Alec asked.

  “No, it doesn’t appear so,” the surgeon agreed, coming into view.

  “Then just strap my arms down and cut the head of the arrow out, and I’ll heal the rest of it,” Alec spoke abruptly, wanting to get back and get revenge on Kirill and the Scarle clan.

  “He is a healer ingenairii,” Jeswyne explained, as she saw the look on the surgeon’s face. “He has powers to heal injuries, like
this wound.”

  “Trust me on this,” Alec said, struggling to sit up. He raised himself on his good arm and looked around the room at the small group of officers and Jeswyne present. “I’m not going to take this from Scarle. If you remove the arrow I’m going to go back there and finish what I started. They know now that their compound isn’t safe, and I imagine they’re going to start fleeing from it quickly. Kirill is there now, and I intend to bring him back here,” there was real anger in his voice.

  “Calm down, Alec. You will win; you don’t need to be like them,” Jeswyne quieted him, placing a hand on his cheek. “Doctor, would you please do as his majesty has ordered?” she asked.

  “This will be painful,” the surgeon said, stating the obvious. “Please lie down.” He directed two orderlies to tie down Alec’s arms and legs. “Here, bite down on this,” he offered Alec a rolled up piece of leather.

  Alec clamped down on the leather and held Jeswyne’s hand. He felt the doctor probe at the arrow head, making pain streak across his back and down his arm. Then a blade slipped into the wound, and the surgeon deftly popped the arrow out. Alec bit hard, and grunted, then spit the leather out of his mouth. “Untie my right hand please,” he asked Jeswyne, who undid the strap around his wrist.

  He focused through the pain and established his use of healer energy, then placed his hand on the wounded shoulder and knit the flesh back together, leaving only another scar as evidence of his injury.

  “That’s remarkable!” the surgeon said, lifting the cloth further away to inspect the instantaneous repair.

  “I’ll be back,” Alec said quickly, and before anyone could speak, he translocated himself back to the Scarle compound, returning to the top of the staircase. A man was just inches in front of him when he arrived, and Alec reflexively shoved the startled man down the stairs. “Where is Kirill?” he shouted. He pulled out a knife and threw it at a guard in the hallway, then ran down the stairs and through the trap he had been caught in before. He stepped over the empty net and looked around the room. It was an office, with another door on the far side, and Alec leapt over to that door, and stood there surveying the room beyond.