Buckner was down on one knee, his face downcast. He was covered in grit, blood, and sweat. “One hundred and thirty-eight soldiers were lost, Your Majesty.”
“Including Chen?”
“No, that would make one hundred and thirty-nine. I wasn’t counting him. He’s not one of my soldiers.”
Rolem sighed. His handsome face seemed to sag. Frustration was in his tone and eyes. “I gave you five hundred men to bring back two. You had three hundred and sixty-two soldiers left at your disposal, excluding Chen, of course.” He crossed his arms. His fingers drummed on his elbows. “I don’t understand why you didn’t use all of the men at your disposal, Buckner. It’s a complete waste of my resources. It would have been better if you hadn’t come back at all.”
Pleading, Buckner explained. “Your Majesty, the magus, Finster, threw an entire ship on top of us. He dropped an anchor on Chen.” His body trembled. He’d been on one knee for over an hour. This was his third time explaining it. “Only a hurricane could have wrought more damage so quickly.”
Rolem’s brows knitted together. He kicked Buckner in the jaw, and the man collapsed. “Get back up on your knees, Buckner!” His hands clenched together. He seethed. “It’s hard enough to swallow the loss of my soldiers for two men, but the reminder that I lost three ships fully loaded with precious cargo adds even more sting to the blow. What are the odds?”
Buckner gathered himself and made it to one knee. Both lips were split. He pulled his shoulders back and kept his chin level.
“I said, what are the odds, Buckner?”
“I don’t know, sire.”
“Knights fleeing from battle,” Rolem scoffed. “Knights of Mendes, at that, fleeing from two people. All of the kingdoms in the realm will be laughing.” He cupped his ear. “I can hear the town criers now. ‘Rolem’s knights flee like rabbits!’ ‘Mendes’s finest dogs run with their tails between their legs!’ It’s preposterous that one man scared you so. You, Buckner, my bravest knight! Have I not told you that no man’s power is unlimited?”
“I did what I believed to be best at the time, sire. I would have fought to the death, but you needed a fair assessment of your enemy.”
“I would have gathered that myself when I came upon five hundred corpses and three sunken ships. It would not have required my cowardly knights reporting back.” Rolem rested his hand on Buckner’s head. “Tell me about this barbarian.”
“He was a hairless Neanderthal of a man, spit out of the snow caps of hell. He suffered scores of wounds but kept fighting like a tiger. He tackled my horse, and it threw me to the ground. My very sword bit deep into his back. The wound opened and then closed fast. Your soldiers were less effective than children against him. They were being slaughtered.” Buckner swallowed. “It wasn’t natural, I tell you, my king. My hairs stand on end just thinking about it.”
“You have failed, Buckner,” Rolem said. He turned his back, put his hands on the grand stone battlement, and faced the sea. “I hate failure.”
“Sire, I would rather die by your hands than those of a filthy savage. I returned, willing to pay the price for my cowardice.”
Roland tapped his fists on the battlement. “No, Buckner, I’m not going to kill you. I like you too much. Your service to me has been nothing but exemplary. If not for that, I assure you that you would be dead. However, I am disappointed.”
He faced Buckner. “I’ve fought many battles myself. I’m one of the few kings in the realm who have tasted blood and steel, perhaps the only one. I stand here and ask myself, if I had been there, what would I have done? I presume I would have led the men in a coordinated effort to capture this barbarian. I could have used the advantage of a lance or spear and gored the man from a distance. I can’t imagine this man being fully effective with shafts of ash wood run through him.” He shook his head. “There would have been so many ways to subdue him. But, I’ve dealt with supernatural elements before. There was a man that lurked in the Caverns of Zarnath. He was more boar than man, a terror in our hills. No mortal weapons could harm his skin. Do you know what I did?”
“No, sire.”
“I, with only a little aid from my men, threw a net over him. We weighted it down and dropped him in the bottom of the bay. He’s never been seen or heard from since. He is still out there”—he pointed to the bay—“dead perhaps. But if he’s still alive somehow, I sleep well knowing that he is suffering.”
“Your Majesty, I beg for your forgiveness. I panicked. Give me the opportunity to capture these men one last time. With your wisdom, I know that I can do it.”
The soft-eyed king smiled. He leaned over and put his hands on Buckner’s shoulders. “No, Buckner, you’ve served me well enough. I realize I’ll need a different kind of net to capture this pair. You are dismissed.” He looked up, over Buckner’s shoulder, and nodded.
A dagger tip burst from Buckner’s chest. Stunned, eyes fading from light to dark, he gasped. “You said you wouldn’t kill me, my king.”
“I didn’t kill you. She did.”
Buckner turned. A woman shimmered out of thin air and quavered in his sight. His last dying word was “Assassin.”
The woman’s robes were made of rich fabric that seemed to move with a life of its own. Her face was pleasant, her eyes cold, and her disposition deadly.
“Did you hear all you need to know, Alexandria?” the king asked.
Her voice was a whisper. “More than enough. The Circle will handle this.”
NEXT BOOK IN THE SERIES
Thanks for reading The Scarab’s Power. I’ve decided to continue the series, and the next book will be out this fall 2017. How many will I do? I don’t know, but I think we can all have a lot of fun with Moth and Finster.
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OTHER BOOKS AND AUTHOR INFO
Craig Halloran resides with his family outside his hometown of Charleston, West Virginia. When he isn’t entertaining mankind, he is seeking adventure, working out, or watching sports. To learn more about him, go to: www.thedarkslayer.com.
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Table of Contents
BOOK LIST
CHAPTER 1
CHAPTER 2
CHAPTER 3
CHAPTER 4
CHAPTER 5
CHAPTER 6
CHAPTER 7
CHAPTER 8
CHAPTER 9
CHAPTER 10
CHAPTER 11
CHAPTER 12
CHAPTER 13
CHAPTER 14
CHAPTER 15
CHAPTER 16
CHAPTER 17
CHAPTER 18
CHAPTER 19
CHAPTER 20
OTHER BOOKS AND AUTHOR INFO
The Scarab's Power (The Savage and the Sorcerer Book 2) Page 7