by S. K. Ng
Somehow, gradually and steadily, the warrior in Dawn awakened. Control and focus slowly purged the heavy emotions that plagued her heart. There was comfort in the control. There was assurance in the focus. A strange calm engulfed her. A sense of serenity came with the newly awakened mental discipline. But she was different somehow. She searched her soul to understand this difference that she felt. Then she realised what it was. It was the demise of trust and blind loyalty, and with their demise, a new sense of independence, of freedom, emerged. No longer was she a stooge or a pawn to the clanmaster, or to the clan itself. She was a new and independent being; a being uncontrollable by anyone, or by any means.
A resolution came to Dawn’s mind and with that, a strong sense of hope. She would break free from the clan and she would take her uncle along. She would cease to be an assassin, but perhaps make out a living as a mercenary instead; a mercenary who would be very selective of her clientele so as to ensure that she protected and served only the innocents and not the tyrants. She would have to leave the kingdom, of course. Free Falls was no longer safe for her as her identity was now known to the Fallsian Military. But where would she go? Surely not Serpentia or the Arid Plains! The faraway lands of Whitemounts or Breezeland, perhaps? A new land for a new beginning. Yes, why not? She was, after all, a highly trained and skilled assassin. Escaping the infirmary would be easy. Sneaking into The Lair would be a piece of cake for her. Just grab her uncle and leave the continent. Start life anew. Yes, start life anew, with the bitterness of the past buried and abandoned. Hope began to fill her heart, a hope for a new, different and independent life.
Meanwhile, a young, attractive and elegantly dressed woman approached the soldier standing guard outside the infirmary.
“Good evening, soldier! I wish to speak to the prisoner,” said the woman.
“I am sorry, Secretary Romar, but absolutely no visitors are allowed,” answered the Provincial Guard.
“Oh, such a firm voice … and such a handsome face as well” said the woman seductively as she batted her eye-lids, soften her posture coyly and then lifted up a finger to his cheeks and traced a line down his cheek-bones to his lips.
The Provincial Guard took in the scent of her perfumed finger and immediately, his eyes rolled up and he collapsed onto the floor. Verbena Romar ignored the unconscious soldier, removed the infirmary key from his belt and opened the infirmary door.
Dawn heard a ‘thud’ outside the infirmary door. The door opened and Secretary Romar stepped in, smiled at her falsely and then proceeded to sit on the edge of Dawn’s bed. Dawn was surprised to see her, but strangely, no expression formed on her face. She eyed the visitor intently.
“Listen and pay attention, I do not have much time, for the perfumed sleeping vapours I administered to the guard outside will wear off soon,” whispered Secretary Romar.
Dawn nodded her head gently.
“Did you tell them about me?” asked Secretary Romar.
Dawn shook her head, her expression still blank. A slight smile of gladness formed on Secretary Romar’s attractive face. She took out a key from her handbag and unshackled Dawn’s hands. The assassin massaged her bruised wrists.
Secretary Romar took out some items and placed them in Dawn’s hands.
“Hide these!” she said in a firm whisper.
Looking down at her palms, Dawn took a moment to examine what the items were. The first item was a metal key similar to the one that Secretary Romar had used to unshackle her. But the next few items were four tubes of bamboos, each approximately the length of four fingers width. She gave Secretary Romar a quizzical look.
“Blowpipes. Be careful, the poison on the darts is potent and instantaneous,” said Secretary Romar.
Dawn placed the items in a hidden pocket inside her shirt.
“They are going to transport you to Fallsene City tomorrow. Once you are there, there will be virtually no chance for you to escape; you know this, do you not?” asked Secretary Romar rhetorically.
Dawn nodded a silent acknowledgement.
“During your transportation, an incident will occur. Seize the opportunity to escape, do you understand me?” instructed the royal secretary.
Dawn nodded her silent acknowledgement yet again.
“I need to re-shackle your hands,” said Verbena Romar.
Dawn placed her hands back into the shackles and the royal secretary secured them and returned her key to her handbag.
Verbena Romar got off Dawn’s bed and left the infirmary, turning around to glance at Dawn while placing a finger vertically to her lips as she closed the infirmary door. Then she returned the infirmary key to the unconscious soldier’s belt and woke him up.
“Are you all right, handsome?” she asked.
“Wha…what happened?” asked the soldier as he tried to compose himself.
“I do not know. One moment, you were standing there tall and foreboding and the next, you fainted and fell on the floor,” said Verbena Romar.
“But why? How?” asked the Provincial Guard in confusion.
“I do not know. You scared me half to death when you fainted just like that. Have you had your dinner? Maybe you fainted because of the low sugar level in your blood. Should I go and call for a healer? I think I saw one just around the corner,” said the royal secretary.
“No, that would not be necessary. I aah… I feel… I am fine, thank you,” said the soldier.
“Are you sure? The healer is just over there, around the corner,” insisted Verbena Romar.
“No, I am fine. I am all right. Thank you,” said the soldier.
“Are you sure I cannot visit the prisoner?” she asked.
“No, I am sorry. No visitors allowed,” insisted the Provincial Guard.
“All right, I shall leave, then. But please do take care of yourself, handsome,” said Verbena Romar flirtatiously as she got up and walked off.
Unknown to the royal secretary, one of Serene’s subordinates, who was disguised as a castle servant, had managed to witness the whole incident. He continued to tail her throughout the night until his position was relieved by his comrade, and then he immediately reported what he had observed to Ray, Clover and Serene.
Meanwhile, the Sollenthar who was assigned to tail Secretary Romar’s carriage driver was not so lucky. She was disguised as a maid and had followed the criminal since he left his chambers. At first, the criminal had walked out of the castle keep into the gardens. There he sat on a bench and seemed to be relaxing in the gentle breeze while looking at the clear night sky. She was cautious and kept her distance. She did not want her presence to be known, especially when her disguise was now inappropriate for her surroundings.
Then suddenly, the criminal got up and took a stroll around the gardens, stopping from time to time to admire a particular tree or plant. She followed him from far but now deeply regretted her chosen disguise, as parts of her dress got caught in the thorny branches of flower plants. The criminal quickened his pace as he made his way through the maze of shrubs and trees, and the female Sollenthar quickened her pace to follow. She had been discovered. She knew it in her heart. She was forced to make a choice. She could either break off the tailing, which would be a safer course of action, or continue and risk falling into a trap. She would like to break off the tailing, but there was no one around to pick up the tail after her. Besides, they were on the castle grounds. She thought that she was in no real danger, so against her better judgement, she continued to tail the criminal.
The criminal stopped walking suddenly. The Sollenthar did so as well, but not as abruptly. Her long, loose sleeves and skirt flapped in the gentle night breeze. The criminal heard the distant sound of cloth flapping. His suspicion was confirmed beyond a shadow of a doubt. He broke into a light run. She followed in turn. Then he disappeared. She looked, but he was no longer in front of her. There was nothing but shrubs and trees. She scanned her surroundings. He was gone.
Suddenly she feels a sharp pain at the back of her
head. Simultaneously, she hears a thump! The world spins around her. Her legs begin to give way. She falls to the ground. The world still spins around her, but it is not dark. She is still awake, but is severely weakened. Then she sees the evil grin and lustful eyes of the criminal, bearing down on her. She tries to push him off, but her hands are too heavy and will not move. She tries to kick him away, but she feels not the strength of her legs. She tries to scream, but manages to produce only silence. She sees in horror his hands landing on her feminine bosoms. What insult! What humiliation! No! No! No! She is not his, for him to play as he sees fit!
With a sudden burst of energy, the female Sollenthar screams a desperate scream and sends forth a burst of flames from her fingers to the criminal’s face. The criminal backs away screaming and stumbles as he is temporarily blinded. The world spins faster for the female Sollenthar. Her vision narrows like a tunnel. All she hears now is silence. And her world goes dark…
Two Provincial Guards on patrol nearby heard the female Sollenthar’s scream. They ran to the source of the scream and were shocked to see a maid lying unconscious in the middle of the garden. Then one of them recognised her. He instructed his partner to report the incident to their superiors as he picked her up and took her straight to Ray’s office.
Ray and Serene were there when the Provincial Guard rushed in. Ray instructed him to lay the unconscious woman on his desk. Serene poured some water into a bowl and after dipping her fingers into the bowl, flicked drops of water at the unconscious woman’s face several times.
The female Sollenthar began to feel a tingling sensation as light spots of coolness covered her face. Then she felt the droplets of moisture gently flow down her cheeks. Slowly, voices could be heard; first vaguely, then increasing in volume. She opened her eyes, and began to cry. But it was not out of fear or pain that she cried. Rather, it was due to the embarrassment that she felt. Embarrassment that resulted from her failure to execute her orders properly and from the fact that she had failed to protect herself from being violated, both of which was unacceptable for a Sollenthar and a Royal Guard, the elite of the Fallsian Military. Serene did her best to comfort her. Ray complimented the Provincial Guard for doing a good job and dismissed him.
Clover rushed in from her quarters. She was wearing a thick robe over her night gown and she had her sheathed sword held tightly in her left hand. Her usually neat hair was in disarray. The commotion had woken her up from her sleep and she rushed to Ray’s office as fast as she could. Ray summarised the event for Clover, assured her everything was under control and asked her to go back to sleep. She bid Ray and Serene goodnight and went back to her quarters. Serene sat in silence, waiting for the female Sollenthar to pull herself together so that she could be fully debriefed. It was quite a while before the female Sollenthar got herself together and delivered her report. After that, Ray called for another female Sollenthar to escort her back to her bed in the barracks.
Ray shook his head in disappointment. He was not disappointed with the female Sollenthar for failing in her duties, but instead, he was disappointed with himself for not training her well enough.
“Convian Arfix!” Ray shouted out of his office door.
Moments later there was a knock on the office door and a young, tall blond man in his early twenties stepped in.
“Reporting _ I, Convian Arfix, am doing of this, sir!” said the young man after he gave a sharp bow.
“Orders _ mine of this to you, Snap, is to take 1st River and carry out a discreet castle-wide search for Secretary Romar’s carriage driver. Search _ you are to conduct of this in civilian clothes and in disguise. Tail _ upon finding him, you are to continue of this of him and be careful so as not to reveal your presence! You may proceed!” commanded Ray after returning the bow.
“Understand _ I do of this, sir!” replied Convian Arfix as he gave another sharp bow, to which Ray returned, and stepped out of the office to carry out Ray’s orders.
Ray returned to the seat behind his desk and shook his head. He was still upset with what had happened.
“Think _ what do you of this?” he asked.
“Think _ I do of this that the criminal is carrying out his plan now. Track _ we have lost of this of him for the past half an hour and by the time Convian Arfix locates him, he would have been done carrying it out,” answered Serene.
“Agree _ I do of this,” concurred Ray.
Serene thought about Ray’s plan for Dawn. She decided that it was time to get into some of the details.
“Supervise _ who shall do of this of the actual transportation itself?” asked Serene.
“Supervise _ I shall do of this of the transportation, meanwhile, I need you to ride out tomorrow at dawn to supervise 3rd River in the setting up and manning of the observation posts, as they need to be perfectly concealed. Wish _ I do of this that I do not have to send you; for I know how tired you have been these past few days, shuttling between Fallsgreen and here, but with Rod severely injured, you are the only one suitably qualified,” said Ray in an apologetic tone.
“Understand _ I do of this, Minvian Iddell,” said Serene.
“Assign _ I shall do of this of Clover to arrest Secretary Romar and her carriage driver when the final phase of their plan has been executed, whatever it maybe,” added Ray.
“Evidence _ would we have sufficient of it?’ asked Serene.
“Evidence _ I hope that we shall have sufficient of it, considering that one of our subordinates had witnessed Secretary Romar incapacitating a Provincial Guard and convening secretly with the assassin; and her carriage driver had assaulted a Royal Guard. Circumstantial _ these are of this, of course, but when the final phase of their plan is executed, hopefully we shall get more evidence of their guilt,” hoped Ray.
Serene nodded her head. Ray’s plan was sound. She could think of no better plan herself.
“Tranquil rest, Minvian Iddell!” said Serene as she got up and bowed, then walked out the office door.
“Tranquil rest, Serene!” answered Ray as he stood up, returned Serene’s bow and sat back down again in his chair.
It was truly a big gamble, Ray knew, to go ahead with the transportation of Dawn Breven when there were signs of imminent sabotage, but the need for evidence was greater. He knew that the more complex the crime, the more evidence would be left behind by the perpetrators. And he truly needed every scrap of evidence against Secretary Romar, for she held the key to locating the Shadow Deathmerchant Clan, who in turn was needed to reveal the true mastermind behind the assassination attempts on Prince Patrum. But more importantly, through the Shadow Deathmerchant Clan, Ray could also find out the identity of the mastermind behind his order’s massacre, this so called Baron Chessmaster!
The sun shone brightly on the 7th Noon of Fourth Month of Dry Season. Ray sat uneasily on his horse. He was drenched in sweat. And this was not just due to the heat, but more so due to the grim thought of what was surely to come. Secretary Romar’s plan was still a mystery and the fact that it was designed to be executed at the very last moment deeply concerned him. He took no chances this day. He had ordered his subordinates to be in full battle gear. He had arranged for 1st River to escort Dawn and two rivers of Provincial Guards to follow in the rear as backup. One additional river of Provincial Guards would be moving ahead as scout.
Ray rode over to the prisoner carriage. It was more like a horse-drawn cart with a huge square metal cage secured to it rather than a carriage in the normal sense, but to him, it was like a vault. It was a vault that would keep his precious prisoner safe and secured. He waited restlessly for Dawn to be brought out of the infirmary to the prisoner carriage.
Dawn was nervous too. But unlike Ray, she showed no signs of it. Her heart pounded fast and her mind raced through every possible escape scenario, but her composure betrayed nothing. The result of the tough training that she had undergone throughout her childhood was being put into effect.
The door of the infirmary opened. Four Sollenthars
stepped in. Dawn’s stomach contracted when she saw how they were dressed. The battle helm reduced her potential target area and the shield’s presence reduced her chances of hitting her target even further. The normally exposed face was now protected. There was only one weak spot that she could aim for if she was to use the blowpipes, which was the throat. But her darts would have to get through the links in the chain mail. Under some rare circumstances she could also aim for the soldiers’ inner upper arms, but she would still have to get her darts through the chain mail. Not only would she have to be accurate, but her targets needed to be in the right position and posture for her to hit them. A slight sense of panic threatened to consume her, but she held it back. She was a highly trained assassin, and this escape was well within her capabilities.
Ray eyed Dawn like an eagle as his subordinates brought her out and secured her inside the prisoner carriage. Ray took one look around to confirm that his subordinates were ready, and then gave the signal for the convoy to move out. The scout river galloped ahead while the two backup rivers trotted behind. Between the scout, escort and backup rivers were a quarter of an hour’s difference in either direction, by the time they had established a moderate and constant pace. Ray hoped that a quarter of an hour’s warning from the scout river would be sufficient for him to turn the prisoner carriage around and outrun any pursuers; and if they were attacked, they would be able to hold off their attackers long enough for the backup rivers to arrive and rescue them.
The road to Fallsene City was bumpy and uneven. Small columns of dust rose in the air as the convoy past by. All eyes were wide open, scanning left and right into the dense forest that lined either side of the road. The big, tall forest trees provided ample hiding place for ambushers. It was now late afternoon and both men and horses were tired, thirsty and hungry. Yet Ray did not order for a break for fear of being attacked. So the convoy pressed on, with the hopes of reaching the next town before nightfall.