“Who’s there?” he grumbled.
“It’s me, Silas.”
Alric leaned up on one forearm, his eyes squinting. “Silas? What do you want, it’s the middle of the night?”
“I’ve come to take you up on your offer.”
“What offer?”
“You said after your little escapade in Timugo that you owed me and that you would pay me back.”
“Yeah, and you’re with your grandfather now,” Alric said, lying his head back down in the opposite direction.
“With no help from you,” Silas said. “Being reunited with my grandfather was mere coincidence. It took no effort on your part. You still owe me, Alric!”
Behind him, the other two were sitting up looking as bleary-eyed as Alric. Alric remained on the bed facing away from Silas.
“I don’t owe you anything,” Alric said pulling the covers over his head.
Silas shook his head and walked to the side of the bed. He squatted low and placed both hands underneath the bed frame and lifted it on its side causing Alric to tumble on the floor, landing with a hard thud, covers flailing.
“What do you think you’re doing?” Alric growled.
Silas walked around the heap of fabric toward Alric. “You swore to me that you would help me again in anything that I needed and I need you now!”
“I never said anything of the sort!”
Silas grabbed Alric by the collar and shoved him against the wall. “You’re lying! I told you never to lie to me again, didn’t I?”
The door to the room opened once again, this time with Inga rushing through the entrance. Lorcan and Coffman were now standing, not knowing exactly what to do.
“What’s all the noise?” Inga said. “Silas what are you doing?”
“You heard him,” he said to Inga and the others. “You heard him tell me that he still owed me, didn’t you?”
Hesitantly, the others nodded. Alric rolled his eyes. “Your support for me is overwhelming. I see I can always count on you.”
“I want to hear it from you, Alric,” Silas said.
“Yes, I told you I owe you. What is it you want that can’t wait until morning?”
Silas eased his grip and Alric pushed his arms away. Everyone stood waiting to hear what Silas’ answer would be.
“The other day you told me about your travels in Mudavé.”
The next sound came from Lorcan. “ Oh no, oh no! We’re not going to Mudavé! I am not going to Mudavé!”
Coffman began to chuckle. “Lorcan’s afraid of Stühocs. He refuses to even go near a place where there’s been rumors of them.”
“What about my travels in Mudavé?” Alric asked.
“Well,” Silas said. “You know the area. Or at least you know how to get there. I don’t know. Someone very important is being held captive by the Stühocs and the only way he can get out is for you to help me get to him.”
Alric sighed. “Silas, when I said I owed you I didn’t say I would commit suicide for you. What’s your plan? How do you think you can get him out?”
“The same way we got the medallion in Timugo,” Silas said. “We sneak in, and we run out.”
“Mudavé isn’t Timugo,” Lorcan said. “There are Stühocs on every corner, in every crevice, ready to eat you alive!”
“Lorcan is almost right,” Alric said with a slight twist of a smile. “I’ve never seen a Stühoc eat someone, but Mudavé is much different than Timugo.
“But you know the area,” Silas said. “You know how to get where I need to go, correct?”
“True, but that doesn’t mean it’s safe,” Alric answered. “I’m not going to risk my life just because I owe you.”
Silas slumped back from Alric. “That’s right,” he said. “You care for nothing but money. You don’t care about any other soul but your own.”
Alric lifted a finger. “You watch yourself.”
“I’m sure if I had a lot of money, you’d be ready to go in a heartbeat,” Silas continued, looking away to the fire. “I guess there’s not much more to you than the love of money.”
Alric swore. “Shut your mouth Ainsley! I care about a lot more than money.”
“Prove it,” Silas said, turning his head sharply back to Alric. “Take me to Mudavé.”
“It’s too dangerous.”
“Then would you at least take me as far as you are willing? Perhaps you can leave me on the outskirts and I will go in alone.”
“You wouldn’t last five minutes by yourself out there,” Coffman said.
“But I’m willing to try,” he said, looking at each of them.
“Is this about your friend that’s trapped there?” Inga asked.
“Yes,” Silas said. “He saved my life. No one here will try to help him. I feel like I have to.”
“Correct me if I’m wrong, but did I hear that he is the reason you are in Marenon in the first place?” Lorcan said.
“If he hadn’t stabbed me in order to save me from capture then I would be where he is right now. I now have the opportunity to get him out alive, so I am going to try with or without you. All I ask now is that you show me the way.”
Alric sighed and sat on the floor amongst his sprawled covers and sheets. He buried his head in his hands and rubbed his face. He was annoyed at this little bug named Silas Ainsley that had buzzed his way into his life. Payment for such operations was his way of life. There wasn’t a chance he would do this for any other person, but he knew there was something about Silas Ainsley that made him want to. He couldn’t place the reason, but he knew it was something he needed to do. He had never felt more of an obligation to help someone for free.
He sighed. “When do you want to leave?”
“Right now,” Silas said. “I thought we could take a few of the sarians and get there more quickly.”
“I’ll take you as far as the edge of the Reemlock Mountains,” Alric said. “From there you’ll be on your own.”
“You can’t be serious!” said Lorcan. “You will not have me along. I will not set foot near the Stühocs!”
“Relax,” Alric said. “You don’t have to go. I’ll take him by myself.”
“I’m not missin’ a chance to kill me some Stühocs,” said Coffman. “I’m coming too.”
“Me too,” said Inga.
Silas’ heart began to feel lighter. He couldn’t believe that this worked. When he came into the room, he never expected them to actually agree. Now, Kaden’s rescue felt like a real possibility.
“You might as well come, Lorcan,” Alric said. “We wont be going where the Stühocs are. If we do cross any, they will be few. It won’t be like before, I promise.”
Lorcan placed his head in his arms, breathing slowly and deeply. Silas was too excited at the prospect of having help, to inquire about Lorcan’s unexplainable fear.
“So, you will take me then?” he asked. “You will show me the way to Mudavé?”
“You’ve got your tour guide, Ainsley,” said Alric. “I just hope I’m not leaving you to the fate I already had planned for you in Timugo.” Alric grinned at himself for this.
“I’ll be the one to worry about that,” Silas came back.
“Yes you will.”
It didn’t take the group long to get ready. They put on their traveling clothes and gathered their weapons. Lorcan kept mumbling to himself about the ferocity of the Stühocs until he was shut up with a punch to his arm from Coffman. With weapons strapped to their back and sides they made their way to the east tower where the sarians slept. The animals woke, one by one and growled their protests as their riders came up to them. One or two snapped at the mercenaries, but no harm was done. They would fly.
Alric and Coffman stood together trying to decide which sarian to take. Coffman stared at Alric curiously. “Why are you carrying the staff?”
“Well, I doubt they’ll want us to come back after they found out we’ve stolen their sarians. It’s valuable, you know.”
“You know how
to use it?”
“To me it’s nothing more than an expensive stick,” Alric said. “Which bird are you taking?”
Coffman pointed to Fury. “That one.”
Silas knew exactly which one to take. He stepped over to Skarret, Garland’s sarian. The animal bowed low in acceptance of rendering its services to an Ainsley. He’ll sure be mad at you, Skarret.
As he got ready to attach a saddle to the large animal, it snapped at him with its large beak. Silas jerked back, confused.
“What’s the matter, boy?”
He walked closer again and this time Skarret flapped its wings at Silas in protest, with another snap of its beak.
“Looks like it doesn’t want to wear the saddle,” Coffman said, standing next Silas.
“Can you ride these things without one?” Silas asked.
“You’re askin’ the wrong guy,” Coffman said with a chuckle.
Silas watched as the others placed their saddles on the sarians without incident, and set his down on the floor. He walked slowly toward Skarret, the beast unmoving. He wondered if the bird was protesting because it knew that Silas was stealing Skarret from its master. But without the saddle, it no longer protested. Silas mounted Skarret without incident.
Each of them straddled a sarian and was ready to leave. Inga had chosen Kaden’s sarian, Cole. Silas smiled at her until Lorcan hopped on the back of the animal with her.
“If I’m going into Stühoc territory, I’m not responsible for flying,” Lorcan said. Inga rolled her eyes, but laughed slightly. Silas wanted to tell Lorcan to grow up.
Within moments they were in the air, all of them flying high behind Alric who led the way to Mudavé. Silas held on tight to the deep-rooted feathers of the animal’s neck almost hugging it. Fear gripped his heart as the beast tumbled and soared at high speeds, flying as it had always been meant to. It took a few minutes, but Silas soon became more comfortable as the sole rider without the saddle, praying Skarret would catch him if he were to slide off the back.
It would be hours before anyone would notice that they had gone, giving Silas plenty of time to get into Mudavé by himself. There was also no way of knowing where to go or what to do once he got there. He was sure that Alric would be able to give him some general direction, but that was all. It was a long shot to expect them to go into Mudavé with him and rescue his friend, but he had to try. Silas feared what was ahead, but there was no other choice. How could he stand idly by, knowing that there was a person in Mudavé suffering to death all because of him? If it had not been for Kaden, Silas would be the one enduring the imprisonment and torture. He knew his grandfather would have tried to get him out of Mudavé if it had come to that. Wouldn’t he? Kaden had been the leading member on the Dunarian council in Garland’s absence. That much mattered little to Silas at this point, but it was true nonetheless. If Silas was successful, the council should have no problem with his actions. And if they did, he would go somewhere else and try to start a new life in this land called Marenon. He didn’t necessarily need the Dunarians to do that.
The sun began to rise sooner than Silas thought it would. The cold night air slowly began to warm as they flew their way toward the Midland Pass. The quicker route would have been to fly directly over Timugo, but Alric thought it would be too much of a risk to be shot down in that territory. There would be no escaping a second time. According to Coffman they would be at the other side of the Midland Pass by nightfall and at the foothills of Mudavé. There, Silas would be left alone to fight his way through to Kaden, that is, if he even made it that far.
Chapter Twenty-Four
It was early morning and Julian had just woken after a deep sleep. The depth was surprising considering how much work there was to be done. He thought that perhaps his dreamless slumber had mostly to do with the fact that Ward Holden was not in the castle; therefore there was no immediate threat to his life. He knew there was still a possibility others on the council were against him and ready to kill him at any moment, but there had been no evidence to support that theory. Holden’s absence was disturbing to say the least, but it provided a good chance to collect his thoughts and prepare for what was to happen next.
While in the middle of pouring a hot drink, a loud rapping at the door rumbled through his bedchambers.
“Who is it?” he asked.
“It’s Garland,” the voice said from the other side.
Curious. Julian had expected the old man to come visiting him with some sort of plan soon, but not this soon. Julian stood and walked to the door and unlocked it for his unanticipated guest. Before he had the door all the way open Garland pushed his way through and into the room.
“We’ve got a problem,” Garland said pacing wildly.
“What are you talking about?” Julian wasn’t ready for a new problem.
“Silas is gone. So are the others.” Garland stopped, looking Julian in the eyes. “They took four sarians.”
Julian knew what this meant and he knew that it would take Silas and the four mercenaries to a place they did not want to be.
“They’re going after Kaden,” Julian said.
Garland nodded. “Silas was pretty angry about us leaving him in Mudavé.”
“To be honest with you Garland, I’ve been slightly confused about why we haven’t started making plans to get him out of there as well. The past few days have been a little busy for me with all the medallion snatching, Morgan’s death, and traitor catching, but I still think it’s worth a shot.”
“Excuse me, Morgan’s what?”
Julian hoped Garland hadn’t caught his slip up. He bit his lip in frustration of his carelessness.
“Yeah, about that,” Julian said, scratching the back of his neck. “We’re in a bit of trouble.”
Garland’s eyes squinted, quizzically. “What sort of trouble?”
Julian’s stomach had fallen into a pit. He was not expecting to have to divulge this information to anyone, ever. He closed his eyes for a moment, sighed, and opened them quickly, deciding to spill it out.
“I uh… I accidently…”
Garland stepped forward. “Accidentally what, Julian?”
“My brother is dead. It was an accident.”
Garland’s eyes lowered. Anger was welling within him, Julian could tell. “How is he accidentally dead?”
“He was drunk. The medallion was in his room. He caught me and we got into a fight. He fell over the side of the balcony. I swear it was an accident.” Julian scratched his chin, averting his eyes from Garland’s stare. He knew he wasn’t convincing the man of anything.
“Was it?” Garland asked sternly.
Julian knew he was lying to Garland and himself. But he didn’t believe admitting that he let Morgan fall to his death on purpose would make anything better. “Are you implying, that I planned to kill him?”
“Was it because of your father?”
“You are saying that I did it on purpose!” Garland was stepping his foot into something that was none of his business.
“I know that there has been reason to believe he was responsible for your father’s death,” Garland said. “And I know how he executes most of the Humans that are sent to Marenon. I know he can be ruthless and I know that his existence is in the way of The Reckoning.”
“You have said too much,” Julian said. His breathing came fast and his face was red with anger. “It was an accident.”
“I have said nothing that isn’t true.” Garland shook his head and paced to the window on the far side of the room. He stared out at the cloud-filled sky, deep in thought. A storm brewed in the distance. The gray and black mounds floated with bellies full of nourishing rain that would grace the land of Marenon in their terrible fury. “How many people know it was you?” he said finally.
By this time, Julian had calmed a little. Garland was not showing any more aggression towards him. Perhaps he was just angry that things were not going as planned in The Reckoning.
“Holden probably know
s, which means that anyone working with him probably knows. None of them can prove it, though.”
“No one else saw you there?”
Julian shook his head. “No one.”
“Then we have some time.” Garland looked to his right. Julian could see that something caught his attention. Julian glanced over to see what the object might have been when he realized it was the letter he had left on the basin.
“You don’t plan on opening it?” Garland asked.
“I haven’t had the stomach to read a long list of reasons why my brother has done the things that he has done. I’ve considered burning it.”
“I wouldn’t do that,” Garland said. “Things may have changed since my absence, but that letter carries the king’s seal. In Marenon, a personal letter has never carried the king’s seal, unless your brother has changed age-old traditions, which wouldn’t be surprising. The letter may not be what you think.”
Julian stared at the red wax stamped on the back of the paper. What else would Morgan want to say to Julian? His brother specifically said it was a letter to try and make everything right.
Garland’s input on the letter made Julian a little more curious. He was considering opening it when Garland sighed. “I need the medallions you carry.”
“What?”
“I need the medallions.”
“You’re not getting the medallions.” Julian said.
Garland held up a hand. “Relax. I have something to show you.”
Julian stood with a puzzled look on his face.
“Below Jekyll Rock there is a stone pedestal made to fit six medallions. I’ll show you just one of the many reasons these medallions are so coveted.”
“I know why they are coveted,” Julian said. “We can see every move before the Stühocs make it.”
“You know little of Marenon’s Map,” Garland said. “Forget everything you know about it and come with me.”
Julian found it difficult to contain his excitement. He had known the map was below Jekyll Rock for a long time. He had known that Garland knew the entrance to where it rested. His mind reeled as he walked over to his cloak and wrapped it around him. What does it look like? How exactly does it work?
The Marenon Chronicles Collection Page 23