Gorinthians

by Justin Mitchell

  “Hello, sis,” Ferrich said to Princess Sentina good-naturedly. “I trust you’ve been well.”

  “Tolerable,” she replied with a smile that brought a small glimmer of beauty to her broad face. “Plenty of scheming and intrigues to keep me occupied.”

  “The usual amusements, I see,” Ferrich commented wryly. He looked up at Captain Kerns. “Am I still in trouble?”

  Captain Kerns had been watching Ferrich with a speculative glint in his eyes. “Nothing immediate, you’re Highness. You seem to have changed in the last week.”

  “Running for your life can be a life-changing experience,” Ferrich said with a laugh. “I handle confrontations a little better now.”

  “Who are all of your friends, Ferrich?” Princess Sentina asked curiously. She still seemed to be having difficulty taking her gaze away from Riah. Li had moved over to sit next to Celdic.

  Ferrich slapped his head. “Forgive me; I seem to have misplaced my manners. The beautiful lady next to me is Morindessa. She has saved my life more times than I would care to count. The glowing lady with the strange eyes is Riah, the lady who raised Morindessa. The tall fellow in black is Riah’s father, Lochnar. The young lady with the distracted look is Seranova from Laketown. She is quite the inventor. The small Zeran woman is Jesha. The young man next to Seranova is Jalorm, a Guardian from Chasel Ri’ Aven. Li is a student from the Tar Ri’ San in Chasel Ri’ Aven. Everyone, this is my sister, Sentina, and Captain Kerns.”

  The small party nodded politely as Ferrich introduced them. Captain Kerns and Princess Sentina blinked when Ferrich told them Riah was the one who raised Morindessa. Captain Kerns studied her speculatively, his gaze flickering between her and Lochnar. Lochnar stared at Captain Kerns with the same intensity he offered everyone else. Captain Kerns did not handle the unsettling gaze noticeably better than Lendel had.

  “And to what do we owe the honor of this visit, brother?” Princess Sentina asked playfully. “I do hope this is not another one of your experiments.”

  “We’ve got trouble brewing on the horizon,” Ferrich told his sister gravely. “I know most of you look at the Arcane Arts as an embarrassment most of the time, but this is too important to be shoved under the bed. There is an army moving toward the city of Chasel Ri’ Aven as we speak. There is a good chance we will be attacked soon as well, though it may not be an army.”

  “My agents have sent no reports of armies on the move,” Captain Kerns interrupted. “I would know the day after an army mobilized and began moving anywhere on the continent.”

  “Your agents are dead,” Thistledown told him bluntly. “Try to contact them if you want further verification, but you will only be wasting time that you do not really have.”

  “So you say,” Captain Kerns said skeptically. “I think that I would be happier with a little confirmation.”

  “I would rather be prepared and be wrong than not be prepared at all should a serious threat materialize, Captain,” Princess Sentina disagreed with him. “How long would it take you to mobilize The Barracks into more than a disorganized mob?”

  “More than twenty-four hours,” Captain Kerns admitted reluctantly. “But the Active Guard should be adequate for anything that can arrive at the gates before we have time to mobilize.”

  “I wouldn’t be too sure about that, Captain,” Thistledown suddenly vanished, appearing behind Captain Kerns. “I am not the only one who can do this. It is well within our enemy’s capabilities to move a large number of people in a very short time.”

  Captain Kerns spun around when he heard Thistledown’s voice behind him, cursing under his breath.

  There was a knock at the council room door, followed by a messenger in palace livery. He looked at the oddly assorted group curiously before approaching Captain Kerns.

  “You told me to inform you immediately if we had any more attacks in the outlying villages,” the messenger relayed quietly to Captain Kerns. “We just received word that the village of Terna was completely wiped out. The only evidence left behind were strange three-toed tracks.”

  “Completely wiped out?” Captain Kerns repeated with a frown. “They haven’t done that yet.”

  “What’s this?” Sentina inquired with a raised eyebrow.

  Captain Kerns waved the messenger out before turning to Princess Sentina. “We have been receiving reports of disturbances in the outlying villages for several months. People are disappearing without a trace. Several of the local trackers have found strange tracks in the vicinity of the disappearances, but we still have not had an eye-witness.”

  “I think that we may be able to help you there,” Lendel remarked with a glance at Lochnar. “We ran into some of these creatures to the south of a town called North Fork. Until Lochnar killed them, I was unable to see them with my eyes or sense them with my yar.”

  Captain Kerns glanced at Lochnar once more, his eyes calculating. “What did the creatures look like after they were dead?”

  “Lizard men,” Lendel replied. “They walked on two legs like humans, but they were scaly and reptilian in appearance. They have three toes, with a large claw sticking out on the middle toe. They also have a mouth full of razor sharp teeth large enough to swallow my head in one bite.”

  “Why were you unable to see them?” Princess Sentina asked in puzzlement.

  “They are able to match their resonance to the environment around them,” Thistledown explained. “They also use a technique we call a light curtain to bend light around themselves. It renders them invisible to the physical eye. Like this.”

  Thistledown disappeared again, but this time he did not reappear. “The only way we could detect them, was by using our yar to feel the impressions their feet were making on the ground.” Thistledown materialized in the same place. “These are new creatures to this world. I have never felt them here before.”

  “New to this continent, anyway,” Captain Kerns grunted. “It sounds like we are going to need to do something about them soon.”

  “One more reason to mobilize now,” Morindessa commented quietly. She was watching Captain Kerns with a level gaze. She knew he was responsible for the earlier attacks outside of North Fork and Lendel was sure she still felt a strong desire to jerk his heart out. Captain Kerns stared back at her with cold, dispassionate eyes. Her presence as a guest obviously disturbed him.

  “We can return to the subject of mobilizing later,” Thistledown told them briskly. “First, we need to publicly proclaim Ferrich’s support for Sentina. I suggest that we make the announcement at the same time that Celdic is introduced.”

  Captain Kerns slapped his hand down on the table hard. “Who do you think you are, to come in here giving orders the way you have been doing?” he demanded of Thistledown angrily. “Against my better judgment, I listened to what you had to say because you told me you were Terrance’s brother, but this is ridiculous! You have no authority to be commanding the Crowned Princess or her brother as if they were stable hands!”

  Almost everyone in the room stared at Captain Kerns in shock. The small group of companions had accepted Thistledown as the leader by default once Terrance was gone. He was older than anyone in the room, with the possible exception of Lochnar, and he had more knowledge than the rest of them put together. As far as Captain Kerns knew, however, he was just a wild-looking, half-breed human. Lendel looked to Thistledown to see what his reaction would be. Princess Sentina was watching the little man curiously, probably agreeing with Captain Kerns.

  “I told Terrance that your father would never produce a son as stubborn as himself. I have met asses that are less stubborn than you are. In this case, I think that they were smarter as well.”

  Captain Kerns leapt out of his seat with a snarl, his sword whipping out of its sheath in a flash. There was a whistling noise as the sword whipped forward toward Thistledown. Lendel was unable to follow what happened next with his eyes. Thistledown was out of his chair like a striking viper, kicking the sword out of Captain Kerns’ han
d so hard that it spun across the room to bounce off the far wall. As if the broad-shouldered soldier were no more than a rag doll, Thistledown flipped him into a complex knot that looked extremely painful. Captain Kerns stood half-stooped and red face, gasping painfully.

  “If you ever attack me again, you will not live to repeat the mistake,” Thistledown instructed him in the same conversational tone. “While we are communicating so well, I will explain exactly who I am and where my authority came from. You are a member of a very secret society, one that I started to avoid this kind of confusion. When I give you a certain sign, you invite me to your councils, listen to my suggestions and do your best to accommodate me however possible. You obviously did not take your vows very seriously. Normally, I would kill you, but because we need you so much right now, you are going to live. However, if you continue to suffer from this incessant stupidity, I will find someone to replace you. Is that understood?”

  “Yes!” Captain Kerns gasped, his face contorted in pain.

  “Good,” Thistledown released him and he crashed to the floor. He lay quivering for a moment before pushing himself up and sitting in his chair. Princess Sentina sat white-faced, glancing back and forth between Morindessa and Thistledown. Lendel wondered what Morindessa had said to her the previous night.

  Lochnar had a faint smile on his harsh face. Lendel was sure the tall Talon would have killed the belligerent Captain had the man attacked him. Riah also had a faint smile on her face. He wondered if he were missing something. Morindessa just looked coldly satisfied.

  There was a polite knock on the door, followed by a servant in palace livery. “The nobles are assembled, my lady,” he told Princess Sentina with a bow.

  “Shall we?” Riah asked with a small smile. “I would hate to keep the Lords and Ladies waiting.”

  Thistledown grinned his feral grin. “Oh no, definitely not.”

  Lendel rose slowly, sharing a glance with his sister as they began making their way to the large hall next to them. The two of them seemed almost contemptuous of nobles. Lendel had thought people held nobles in great respect.

  The throne room was full of loud echoes as the nobles, who now filled the large hall, chatted loudly with each other. Lendel made his way to his seat in the honorary guest section beside the throne. The nobles slowly stopped talking as the strange group sat down as honorary guests. Lendel studied them with as much interest as they studied him. Their eyes were cold and calculating and studied the strange group with a predator’s curiosity. Lendel scanned the front row of nobles, his eyes trying to take in all of the strange clothing. Most of the nobles wore velvet slippers with bells on the tops. The lords were decorated in finely stitched coats with emblems of their houses on their chests. The ladies were covered in lacy dresses that cinched beneath their breasts to fan out to their feet.

  Lendel jerked his eyes back to a man he had just scanned on the first row, staring at him hard. The man was dressed much the same as the other nobles around him, but his eyes were a light brown color, tinged with orange. His face was clean-shaven and completely untouched by age. Lendel recognized the man. He was the same man had been in his dream that morning.

  Chapter 31

  Celdic watched the growing cluster of nobles with a certain sense of unease. There was a dissonance in the room he could not put his finger on. It was almost like an itch on his back he could not reach. Glancing at his companions, Celdic tried to determine if he was alone in his discomfort. Thistledown’s face was taut with concentration, but it had been for the past several days. Li and Cha’le seemed completely mesmerized by the bright display of aristocrats arrayed before them. Jalorm was preoccupied with Seranova, trying to engage her in a conversation she seemed unwilling to support. She was more interested in studying the large marble colonnades that supported the domed ceiling above them to pay any attention to Jalorm. Lendel was staring intently at one of the nobles in the front row, his eyes alight with recognition. He turned to study the man who appeared to fascinate Lendel. The man was tall, even sitting down. He had powerful shoulders and a clean-shaven face. His dark hair reached just above his eyes. Celdic frowned as he studied the man’s strange eyes. They were a light brown color, with a strong band of orange around the pupil. He could not tell how old the man was. The sense of dissonance seemed to be originating from him. It almost seemed that the dissonance was between the two of them. There was also something familiar about the way the man’s resonance felt.

  Celdic glanced behind him when he heard a low, growling sound. Lochnar was staring around the large hall with hate burning in his eyes. A moment later, he vanished completely. There was a gasp from the assorted nobles. Riah stood up, her eyes as hard as agates, staring straight at the man with the strange eyes. There was nothing beautiful about the way she was glaring at the tall noble.

  Princess Sentina glanced toward the honorary guest section nervously as the tension in the room began to escalate. She made an impatient gesture to a bluff-faced servant that stood at the dais with a tall, wooden staff. The servant immediately pounded the staff on the floor several times. The nobles slowly quieted, half of them staring at Riah as she continued glaring pure hate at the strange-eyed noble.

  The man with the orange-tinged eyes seemed oblivious to any tension in the room, and instead watched Princess Sentina attentively. The dissonance was beginning to make Celdic feel queasy.

  “What’s the matter?” Li whispered in concern. “You’re as white as a sheet.”

  “I’m not sure,” Celdic replied uncertainly. “Something feels strange.”

  The servant with the staff pounded it against the floor again before stepping forward to address the audience.

  “My lords and ladies,” he began pompously, “we are honored to have her Highness, Princess Sentina, as our first speaker today.” Turning, the bluff-faced servant bowed deeply. “My lady.”

  Princess Sentina slowly rose to her feet, hiding all traces of the nervousness that she had shown earlier. He was impressed with how well she maintained her emotions. He felt as if his skin was stretched taut around his body as he searched the crowd before them. Why had Lochnar disappeared like that? Was it because of the strange-eyed noble? Celdic could only think of one person who might cause Lochnar to react that way; Jerard.

  “My fellow lords and ladies,” Princess Sentina opened grandly, “I am honored to address you. It brings me great sorrow to announce the death of his grace, the late Duke Teran. He served this great nation with honor and integrity. His presence will be missed.”

  There were many gasps and a few cries in the audience at Princess Sentina’s announcement. Celdic wondered how many people had known his father. The orange-eyed man wore a small smile, as if he found something amusing.

  “Duke Teran’s son will be assuming his father’s responsibilities,” Princess Sentina continued. “I hope you can welcome him to this court with the same warmth with which you welcomed his father.” She finished with a grand gesture toward Celdic.

  The nobles turned as one to stare at Celdic in a mixture of curiosity and interest. Thistledown had warned Celdic about this part of the ceremony. Trying to hide his nervousness, Celdic stood up and slowly walked over to the golden circle from which Princess Sentina had addressed the audience. When he looked down at the audience, he found orange-tinged eyes filled with hate, staring up at him. Celdic unconsciously took a step back from the sheer animal fury in the man’s eyes.

  The man slowly rose to his feet, his hate-filled gaze locked on Celdic’s face. “My lord’s and ladies, I must intercede, on humanity’s behalf,” he declaimed in a loud voice. “The youth you see standing before you is not even human, but a filthy mixture of another race. As you can see from looking at his companions, he is not alone in his impurity. He has surrounded himself with half-breeds and mongrels of other races. Would you have one of your own, a noble of this great nation, make a mockery of our court? As a noble of this great nation, it is my duty to stand and denounce such an act. Do
any of my fellow nobles have the courage to support what is right?”

  There was an instant uproar in the great hall, with almost every noble shouting in outrage. Celdic stood uncertainly in the circle of light, glancing questioningly at Thistledown. The little man stood and casually walked over to stand next to Celdic. “I did not expect to see you here, Jerard,” Thistledown said loudly, his voice drowning out that of the crowd. “I see that you are still the puritan that falls back on racial slurs when a real purpose eludes you.”

  “And I see that you are still the same ignorant fool, Terrance,” Jerard stared at Thistledown with a burning hate that made his earlier perusal of Celdic seem friendly. “I can’t tell you how much I have looked forward to this moment, but I am sure you will understand soon.”

  Celdic felt a surge of yara so powerful his knees buckled from the concussion. He could sense millions of hair-thin tendrils shooting out from the ground beneath all of the nobles, wrapping themselves intricately around the Tramnel of the stupefied aristocrats. The same tendrils shot up from the ground beneath Celdic and his companions, but they seemed unable to grasp anything. There was a deafening roar from where Ferrich stood, followed by a channel of devastation that blasted through the stone floor until it connected to Jerard. The blast died abruptly when it hit Jerard. Celdic could sense the invisible barrier that Jerard had erected.

  Jerard shook his head disdainfully. “Your teacher would be disappointed.”

  Ferrich let out a scream of pure agony. Celdic realized he had his sword in his hand, though he did not remember unsheathing it. Ferrich’s scream abruptly cut off and he dropped limply to the floor. Celdic had not felt anything from Jerard or Thistledown, but he could tell by the intensity on their faces a battle was waging beneath what he could sense that dwarfed what his eyes revealed. The very air around them seemed to dance with energy. Morindessa ran toward Ferrich when he fell. As soon as she saw that he was still alive, she vanished. Celdic could still sense her with his yar. She was using a Light Curtain.