The Changing

by Jeremy Laszlo

  "I am honored by the gesture and the title you would bestow me. However I cast my vote a ‘nay’, though by majority it matters little. As such I then relinquish the title as there are more deserving men than I for the position," Garret stated honestly. "I would then recommend Jordin Mason for the title as he has been with the Knights of Valdadore longer, has more experience and has earned the loyalty of not only myself, but the rest of the knights as well,” Garret concluded.

  "Well done, Lord Garret!" Sulvis shouted. "You see, that is what we need in this kingdom, honorable, honest men who want what is best for everyone, not just themselves. You are an inspiration to an old codger like myself, Lord Garret," Sulvis stated a grin spreading across his face. "Let us put it to vote then shall we?"

  Many a man and woman in the room looked at Garret for a long moment before beginning the vote. Most of them looked at him in reverence, as if the old veteran's words had rung true within them, that Garret was a decent man like they should strive to be. Many of them nodded their approval to him then before that final vote. Not all, of course. Vladmere simply sneered and raised his nose thinking himself better, but most in the room now held the highest respect for Garret, and he felt he had done what he could to rightfully earn it.

  The vote to put Lord Jordin Mason as the new head of the order of the Knights of Valdadore went quickly as all cast their votes in his favor, and finally the council was again full. One last deed needed to be accomplished, and all were hesitant to even bring attention to the matter, all but one at least.

  "All the seats are filled, Sulvis. Will you not announce the next matter we need to attend to?" Vladmere asked impatiently.

  Garret sat silently watching the wheels turning in Sulvis' head. Earlier in the day none of them had thought to mention who they would put forward for this particular position, but Garret already knew that he would back Sulvis if the man stood to take the role he deserved. Everyone in the room observed silently as the grizzled old veteran looked around the room at them, his wise eyes falling upon each person surrounding the table as if he weighed them against the sole duty remaining. After a long uncomfortable silence, the aged man once again pushed his chair back from the table and stood to announce the position to be filled.

  "The matter at hand is the gravest of decisions. This vote alone could mark the beginning of a bright new future for Valdadore, or it could mark the beginning of its demise. It takes a singular person to hold a kingdom together, a person of untold strength to bear the burdens of rule. It takes a person of honor to rule in a way that gives a chance at happiness to even the poorest of our charges. This title alone belongs to a unique person who is willing to sacrifice everything that they are or would hope to be for the betterment of the kingdom as a whole. As the throne stands empty, it is with a heavy heart that I bring to the table the position of king, or queen, for each and every one of us to serve willingly and to the best of our ability," Sulvis concluded, taking a seat once again.

  Garret watched as Vladmere nodded across the table and Klythen, the head of the blacksmiths, who in response rose.

  "I would like to present Lord Vladmere for the position of king," Klythen stated simply.

  "Nay," Garret said before Sulvis could even start the vote.

  Springing up from his seat, Vladmere glared across the room, a wicked, menacing sneer spreading across his face. Pointing a crooked, boney finger in Garret’s direction he began to shout, "Who are you to cast the first vote, you sniveling whelp?" Vladmere yelled. "You are the pathetic spawn of an urchin and don't even deserve the title you already hold!" he added as his face began to redden.

  Garret kept his cool as best as he was able, but he simply could not allow such talk of his family.

  "Who am I?" Garret asked. "Who are you to think yourself deserving such an honor of a position that requires ten times your mental capacity? You are an evil, conniving, power-hungry, pathetic man with nothing but his blessing to hide behind. If it wasn't for your abilities you would not even remain on this council, for without your power you are nothing but intolerable at best."

  "Says the son of a barmaid and the brother of a murderer!" Vladmere roared back. "I have served this kingdom for near a century. I have been the head of the order of battle mages for longer than you have been alive. Again I ask, what gives you the right to a vote against me?"

  "Indeed you speak the truth. I am new in service to the kingdom. A kingdom that I love, and a kingdom that has shown me love. Indeed I am the son of an innkeeper and a barmaid, parents who taught me the difference between earning my keep and demanding that which I wanted. Yes, you are correct that you have served as the head of the battle mages since before I was even born, but only because you were the most powerful mage in the kingdom, not because you were well thought of." Garret waited for a response.

  "What do you imply by were boy, I am the most powerful magician in the kingdom and don't you forget it!" Vladmere said in an accusing tone.

  "Sorry to have to remind you, Vladmere, but before my brother came along, you were the most powerful magician in the kingdom. Now in comparison you are but a child's plaything," Garret replied coolly.

  "Oh yes, your all powerful brother...and where is he now?" Vladmere asked, grinning wickedly. "That’s right, the pathetic novice killed himself by accident when he murdered the king!" He shouted again.

  "You should pray to your god that he is dead," Garret stated, "for I don't think you will survive long in his shadow when he returns. Again I will agree with you though. Though I am sure it was by accident, and I know it saved all of our lives, what you say is true. My brother, Lord Seth, killed the king, but so long as I am here and upon this council, you will never be king," Garret concluded, rising from his own chair to a clamorous ringing of cheers and clapping.

  As he stood and those around him began to applaud and cheer his final statement, Garret realized all too quickly he had pushed the power-hungry mage entirely too far. As they glared at one another across the broad table, Vladmere thrust back the sleeves to his robe and began wiggling his fingers and chanting in preparation of a spell. Garret assumed a fireball would lance from the mage any second, though he dared not invoke his own power lest he bring the ceiling down upon all gathered in the war room. All he could do was hope to dodge the barrage at the last moment. But as soon as sparks began to take shape in Vladmere's hand, a chair shattered over the mage’s head with a crack and he crumpled to the ground in a heap. The old veteran Sulvis, head general to the armies of Valdadore, stood behind where the mage had been, the leg of a chair still in his hand, a mischievous grin across his wrinkled old lips.

  "Now that's over, shall we have a vote on Vladmere for king?" Sulvis asked sarcastically.

  "Nay!" the room shouted.

  "Well then, shall we carry on?" Sulvis asked.

  "High General Sulvis, if I may?" Garret asked wishing to address the room.

  "Indeed you may, Lord Garret," was the reply.

  "Honored council members, if we may but take a recess on this meeting, I feel it ill-timing to name the king's successor before he is laid to rest," Garret began. "King Valdadore shall have his parade, funeral and be entombed in mere hours. Can we not honor him first before naming a new leader to the kingdom?" Garret asked, hoping to be free of politics for at least a few hours.

  Again the room erupted in applause, everyone nodding their agreement to him. Within moments the members of the king's council began to rise and file out the door a few at a time, each going to tend to their own duties and to prepare the final arrangements for the king's parade. Garret lagged behind watching them all go, and catching Sulvis's attention before the old general made his exit, Garret led him away from the door and prying ears.

  "Sulvis, I wish to speak to you a moment if you have the time."

  "Indeed, Lord Garret. What can I do for you?" Sulvis asked, obviously intrigued.

  "First of all, thank you for rearranging the furniture so to speak," Garret said with a chuckle.
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br />   "He had it comin'," Sulvis replied, laughing as well.

  "More importantly, I will be announcing you as candidate for the position of king," Garret said.

  "I see," Sulvis replied. "I am honored by your high regard of me."

  "I can see no other man upon the council more deserving of the position, nor is there any other who is held in such high regard amongst all the council members," Garret said, stating the truth.

  "You do what you feel in your gut is right, Lord Garret, and I think you will never regret it," Sulvis said, and without awaiting another reply the old veteran turned and stalked out the door to attend to other matters.

  Garret stood alone in the silent chamber for a moment, glad that most of the politics for the day were over. He was beginning to get a real feel for the people of the council, what drove them, what swayed them, what held their loyalties, and most importantly, whom he could rely upon to vote Sulvis into the kingship of Valdadore. Assuring himself they would have the votes needed to place a good man upon the throne, Garret strode out of the room to do as he said he would many hours before, and return to Linaya’s chamber to check upon her well-being.

  Chapter 9

  Unwitting Prisoners and Unlikely Allies

  Gathering his wits, Seth pulled the ruined form of the woman he loved into his arms and deeper into the shadow. There he clung to her a moment, his eyes closed, unable to gaze upon her devastated visage. Once again Seth began to drown in despair. It seemed that everything he touched turned to ruin. Because of him Sara had been injured at the battle with the black horde. Because of him she had been altered into a bloodthirsty, less-than human being. Because of him she could no longer dwell in the light, and because of him, Sara’s face, head and hands were a desiccated mess of burned and melted flesh and bone. Seth could not imagine the pain that the still sobbing Sara must be enduring, nor could he do anything to ease it. Seth was helpless and knew that in time, if he could not repair the physical destruction he had done to Sara, it would take a toll on the love she had for him. Defeated, Seth opened his eyes in an attempt to assess the damage further, hoping that he had imagined it worse than it actually was.

  Seth sat astonished with Sara in his arms as the nature of the life within her revealed itself once again to an extent that Seth would not have even dared to hope for. As Seth watched Sara’s ruined face, he noticed small slithering vessels at first begin to spread across the bare bone of her skull and face. Stretching across the smooth surfaces of her bones the small tendrils sought each other out and connected and intertwined with one another before beginning to pulse with the beat of her heart, restoring blood to damaged areas. Still Seth watched in wonder as burned and charred groups of muscles began to regenerate and tendons crawled across her skull to attach to these newly-formed muscles only to retract again, pulling them taut. Soft tissues began to grow to fill the void between muscles as the few remnants of skin upon Sara’s wrecked head began to undulate and grow in all directions, spreading and regenerating at an astounding rate, eventually covering her head and face in entirety. Even the seams where the flesh met itself closed and smoothed into flawless perfection. Just as eyelashes began to sprout from Sara’s eyelids her eyes opened as she gasped for a breath of fresh air, expelling what appeared to be smoke and soot. Once again hair sprouted from all of the bald patches upon her head and within moments had grown back to the length it had been prior to her destruction.

  Evoking his vision of the gods Seth watched as Sara’s aura pulsed so fast he could barely mark the beat. However, he also watched as with each pulse her aura diminished noticeably. She had retained enough of the bat's extraordinary ability to heal even from a wound as grievous as this had been, but it had cost her an immense amount of life to regenerate to this extent. Though Seth had given into Sara the life of twenty men, she now only held that of perhaps ten. She had spent over six hundred years of life to heal, and Seth could only imagine what it would have cost her had she not been wearing her armor. Focusing again on Sara, Seth watched as she looked up to him from within his arms and smiled, completely restored. But Sara was again changed.

  It was not anything that any other person on Thurr would notice, having not spent an excess of their time looking into Sara’s face. However, Seth easily marked the change as an artist might note a forgery of his work. People aged every day, though none would notice the alterations day by day. It took months or years to notice the subtle changes of the flesh due to age and elements. But Sara, it appeared, had regressed several years within moments. Where her skin had been burned away, new flawless flesh like that of a new born babe had re-grown in its place removing all signs of age, making her look remarkably younger and more beautiful than ever. Seth could not help but to smile at the sight of Sara looking up at him with her even more beautiful face, and though he knew she endured much to love him, he knew that one day he would make it up to her.

  "So it seems we won't be doing much traveling today," Sara remarked as if she had not only moments before been burned nearly to death.

  "It would appear not," Seth replied. "I am sorry I did not anticipate this setback, Sara. Once again I have failed you, but I will make it up to you somehow."

  "You didn't fail me," Sara stated almost harshly. "I am alive, am I not? I owe you my life Seth, no matter how that life has changed or been altered. I am alive because of you and don't you forget it!" She added.

  "I wish I had a mirror to show you," Seth stated, his mood changed already. "I think you would like what you saw.”

  "Why is that? Have I changed?" Sara asked reaching up to feel her face and hair.

  "You have. Your skin is perfect, flawless, beautiful, and I have to admit you look at least a few years younger," Seth stated honestly.

  "I see," Sara said simply, a mischievous grin spreading across her lips. "So you mean to say, the day you married me, you know, before I burst into flames, my skin wasn't perfect, flawless or beautiful?"

  "Technically you didn't actually burst into flames," Seth answered, avoiding the real question.

  "Technically you aren't getting out of this that easily," Sara replied before thrusting her body upwards, bringing their mouths together for a shared moment of passion.

  "So what do we do now?" Sara asked Seth.

  "We hide from the sun and wait," Seth shrugged.

  "Shouldn't we get moving? I can use my clothes to cover my face and hands and you can guide me. It will be slow but at least it will be progress." Sara began to undress.

  "I can't, Sara," Seth stopped her before continuing. "When you bit me, somehow your blood mingled with mine and I too am changed. When I stepped into direct sunlight my eyes felt like they were burning and I lost my sight. I am day blind as you are, only to a lesser degree." Seth added once again feeling defeated.

  "But if we are traveling west, won't your back be to the sun? So can we not travel at least a few hours before the sun gets too high, and find a safe spot to spend the rest of the day?" Sara asked, speaking her thoughts aloud.

  "You, my love, are a genius," Seth stated. "But before we take any chances we need to take precautions."

  Reaching within himself, Seth drew out a portion of his massively swelled life force and again removed a share equal to that of twenty men, releasing it within Sara to meld and become one with her own aura. That completed both Seth and Sara went about protecting all of Sara’s exposed flesh. She decided it best to wear her helm, but a small portion of her neck was still exposed at the seam in her armor, as were her hands. Tearing his tunic into pieces, Seth and Sara were easily able to create mitten-like portions from the sleeves which Sara slid her hands into, pulling the excess snugly up her arms beneath her armor where the straps would hold them in place. Then using what remained of the fabric, Seth wrapped it tightly around Sara’s neck like the scarves that were worn by the wealthy women of Valdadore. Though she looked ridiculous, Seth imagined the new additions to Sara’s armor would serve their purpose. As prepared as was possible, Seth an
d Sara, careful to keep their backs to the sun and its direct rays, climbed back down the western side of the pyramid.

  Entering the foreign jungle surrounding the pyramid was akin to entering another world entirely. Again the large, colorful birds glided between the towering trunks of the massive trees that surrounded them. Vines clung to everything both vertical and horizontal making every step a difficulty. They had to be extraordinarily careful as a single trip among the vines could cause Sara to expose her flesh. The soil here was rich and damp, and the humidity was so thick Seth could feel the moisture in the air as it touched his skin. Seth and Sara attempted to find the easiest trails to navigate that led them generally west, back towards what they hoped was their home. As they walked Seth felt more than looked around them for any large auras that could mean danger, and on one instance he and Sara paused on their trek through the jungle for more than half an hour to let some large beast ahead of them on the trail wander off a safe distance before Seth allowed them to continue once again. The day was filled with discoveries, as in this part of Thurr completely different species of both flora and fauna flourished that the young couple had never before even imagined. Insects seemed to live in abundance in the great jungle, though fortunately for the pair none of these seemed to be akin to the mosquitoes that flourished in Valdadore in the spring and summer. Thus it was a peaceful walk, with each new twist and turn revealing something unexpected for the couple to discuss and share in the discovery.

  A little off the trail nearly two hours into their trek, Seth spotted a gathering of birds clinging to the branches of a small bush at ground level. The birds were a wondrous sight with rainbow-colored feathers and great wide beaks that emitted squawks in musical tones. However, it was not the birds Seth was interested in. For upon the bush where the breathtaking birds had settled were some sort of large berries, each nearly the size of an apple. It was these berries that had attracted the birds and as Seth led Sara, approaching the bush, they could see the birds ravenously attacking the berries in an effort to consume as many as possible. Neither Seth nor Sara had eaten in days and the berries were a welcome sight. Chasing off the birds in a flourish of squawks and feathers, Seth plucked one of the large berries from the bush for further inspection.