Knights of Alcea

by Richard S. Tuttle

  "I have one stop to make in the city before we leave," answered King Arik, "but yes, we are leaving right away. I think it is time to ask our fairy friends to return to duty. Expect one soon. I will keep in touch as I can."

  King Arik embraced his father and then left the room with Queen Tanya right behind him.

  * * *

  Two riders rode through the dark streets of Tagaret, the sounds of the horses echoing off the stone walls of the buildings lining the street. Both riders were dressed in well-worn gray cloaks with the hoods pulled forward to conceal their faces. There were few people out and about, and the couple moved without hindrance to the Sword and Shield Inn. They dismounted in front of the inn, but they did not bother to tie their mounts.

  The couple entered the inn and glanced quickly around the common room. There were only a few patrons, and none of them paid much attention to the new arrivals. The two figures approached the innkeeper and spoke too softly for anyone to hear. The innkeeper nodded and led the couple up the stairs and opened a door on the left side of the corridor. The couple entered the room and closed the door. They waited in silence and darkness.

  Five minutes later the door opened without a knock. It closed quietly, and they listened to soft footsteps cross the room. The sound of someone shading the window was quickly followed by the flicker of light as a candle was lit and placed on the floor.

  "This is a most unusual meeting," Larc commented softly. "Is there trouble in Tagaret that I do not know of?"

  "Tagaret is about the only place that is not troubled," sighed the king as he pulled his hood off. "How did you know it was us?"

  "My people are well-trained," smiled the spymaster. "Why have you come?"

  "I am concerned about the state of my kingdom," Arik answered. "I know the Spiders have sources that my people do not. What can you tell me that my advisors do not know?"

  "Probably not a great deal," conceded Larc. "My people have been focusing on the leaders of the unrest, but we can find little that they have in common. Some of them are new to the locales of the disturbance, but others are locals. Some are male and some are female. Some have had prior run-ins with the government, but most have not. If there is a pattern involved, it is hard to see."

  "You said little in common, not nothing in common," Queen Tanya pointed out. "What do they have in common?"

  "So far the only commonality seems to be a belief in Balmak," answered the head Spider.

  "Balmak?" questioned the king. "Who or what is Balmak?"

  "Some god," replied Larc. "One that I have never heard of before. He is known as the God of Benevolence."

  "I have talked to all of the gods personally," frowned the king. "Balmak is unknown to me."

  "I first heard of him two years ago," declared the spymaster. "One of the old temples in Trekum was taken over by followers of Balmak."

  "There were protests in Trekum two years ago," interjected Tanya.

  "Indeed," nodded Larc. "What has us focused on Balmak is that trouble seems to arise wherever one of those temples is set up. I have had Spiders attend the services, but they have found nothing alarming. The priests talk about the good of common man and sort of toss scorn on the idea of the monarchy, but they do not preach rebellion. I can find nothing to fault them for."

  "Yet your gut tells you otherwise?" asked Tanya.

  "It does," admitted Larc. "I have tried to get some of my people into the priesthood, but none have been successful so far. We will keep trying."

  "Please do," requested the king. "I would also like to see a chart of when the temples were set up compared to when the unrest began for each place where Balmak has a temple. Can you do that?"

  "I will see that it is done," Larc replied. "That will take some time to get."

  "We are leaving the city for awhile," the king said. "Have it delivered to Prince Oscar when it is complete. Is there anything else I should know?"

  "Strangers have been asking questions on the west coast," revealed Larc. "I am not sure if it is anything more than a rumor going around, but it is something that I have people investigating. These strangers have been asking about a journey you made by ship from Dalek just before the darkness fled."

  "Did Reese take action against these strangers?" asked Arik after a sharp inhale of breath.

  "Reese has not been able to capture any of them," answered Larc. "They ask their questions along the waterfront and move on before anyone can summon Reese. I have not paid a great deal of attention to this. Is it something serious?"

  "It could be," nodded the king, "but I am not sure why. There was great secrecy surrounding the trip, and that alone could cause people to be curious, but that curiosity should not be persistent or widespread."

  "Evidently, Reese is rather concerned," stated Larc. "That is the only reason that I still have people working on this. Your trip must have been very secret because the Spiders had not heard of it before."

  "It was," the king responded. "We were searching for the Amethyst of the Gods at the time. There was a fear that Sarac would go to any cost to halt us from reaching the gem that would complete the Sword of Heavens. There were only twenty-one people in the world that knew about the voyage. Reese was one of them."

  "Who were the other twenty?" asked Larc.

  "I and twelve Knights of Alcea," answered the king. "Admiral Hill and six crewmen were also present."

  "The voyage itself was not a secret," interjected Tanya. "Only the destination was. Even Reese did not know where we were going."

  "That is correct," agreed the king.

  "But you retrieved the Amethyst of the Gods," frowned Larc. "Why would anyone care about the destination of that voyage now? There is no treasure left for them to find."

  The queen suddenly gasped, and the king grabbed her hand and squeezed it.

  "Keep an eye on that situation, Larc," ordered the king. "Unless there is something else that I should know about, we should be leaving."

  Larc cocked an eyebrow as the king suddenly changed the subject, but he said nothing about it. "I will remain in the room for a while. Have a safe journey."

  The king and queen raised their hoods and left the room. They passed through the common room without notice and were soon mounted and riding through the western gates of Tagaret. As soon as the trail made a turn obscuring the city from view, they halted. King Arik opened the flap on his breast pocket and stuck in a finger, gently waking up the Prince of Fairies.

  "The quest has begun?" chirped Prince Midge.

  "It has begun," smiled Arik. "You are to head home and round up an army of fairies. Have them report to Prince Oscar so that he can set up a communications network. You will find us in Elderal when you return."

  "A fairy army for the Bringer!" saluted the tiny green man just before he leaped into the air and disappeared.

  "It feels just like old times," smiled the king. "Chaco, Frea, take us to Elderal."

  The unicorns cast the spells to make their wings appear and leaped into the air.

  * * *

  The unicorns flew through the night sky and glided into the forest near Elderal. Arik and Tanya rode silently for a few minutes towards the magical entrance to the hidden glade.

  "We have company," Tanya said softly. "Lower your hood."

  "You heard the elves?" Arik said with surprise as he pushed his hood off his head.

  "I did not hear them," corrected Tanya, "but I feel them around us."

  "Dismount," ordered a voice unseen.

  The unicorns halted, and Arik and Tanya dismounted. Tanya pushed her hood back and looked around.

  "I accompany Valon," Tanya said loudly. "Hold your arrows."

  An elf stepped out from behind a tree and gazed at the riders. He bowed low to King Arik. "It is Valon!" he called to his companions. "Notify the Queen."

  Elves stepped out of the forest in every direction and one of them took off running to spread the word of Valon's arrival. The assembled elves bowed in respect to their prophesied
leader.

  "Lead us into the vale," requested Arik.

  The leader of the patrol took Chaco's reins and started walking through the forest. Arik and Tanya followed, as did Frea, and the remaining elves formed a cordon around them. Within a few moments, the group stepped into the hidden vale. The accompanying elves immediately reversed course to continue their patrol except for the leader who guided the visitors towards the gazebo. Waiting on the steps of the gazebo were Queen Lyander, Princess Rhula, and Prince Garong. The ruling family of the elves of Elderal bowed respectfully and smiled when Valon approached. Arik and Tanya bowed in return.

  "I am sorry to have disturbed your sleep this night," greeted Arik, "but I have need of a clever and courageous elf."

  "You will find many of them here, Valon," smiled Queen Lyander. "Did you have a particular one in mind?"

  "I did," grinned Arik. "My needs require a Knight of Alcea. I am taking your son on a journey if I might?"

  "Without question," grinned Prince Garong. "Let me get a horse."

  "It can wait until morning, Prince Garong," chuckled Arik. "We had to leave Tagaret under the cover of darkness, or I would not have arrived at such a rude hour."

  "What adventure are we off on?" asked the elven prince.

  "One that will require great courage and nerves of steel." Arik suddenly became very serious. "Recently a Cordonian village was destroyed by elves."

  The elven queen gasped, but the princess scowled.

  "Never," Rhula declared loudly. "That is not the truth."

  "Can you be sure, Princess Rhula?" asked Valon. "I also find it hard to believe, but that is the report that was sent to me. Is it not possible that some elves from Dielderal have grown weary of peace?"

  "Do the Dielderal even exist any more?" frowned the elven queen. "No one is sure what became of them, but their numbers seemed to diminish greatly after the Collapse of the Universes. If they do still survive, I doubt that they even function as a tribe any more."

  "The story is within the realm of possibilities," conceded Prince Garong, "but I am skeptical. If it had been a dwarven village that was attacked, I might suspect some Dielderal renegades, but not human victims."

  "I hope you're right," sighed Arik, "but the problem is worse than I have told you so far. There was a lone survivor of the massacre, a woman. This woman is still in shock and her husband is out for revenge."

  "Revenge on who?" asked Queen Lyander. "Does this man know which elves attacked his village?"

  "He does not," Valon replied. "Worse, he is gathering other humans to join with him. I mean to stop him from causing trouble between our peoples."

  "You hardly need me to stop a crazed man," frowned Prince Garong. "Why not let the Cordonians destroy the man and his band of misfits?"

  "My goal is not to destroy anyone," explained Arik. "I want to stop this band of humans peacefully. To do that, I need you. I have doubts about the woman's story, but even if it were elves that attacked Hega, the Cordonians must learn that elves hold no animosity towards humans."

  "How many humans are in this group?" asked Queen Lyander.

  "Over one hundred," answered Arik.

  "You are asking for my brother's life," scowled Rhula. "When they see an elf, they will attack like mad dogs. You cannot ask this of him."

  "Valon has no need to ask permission," Prince Garong said softly as he placed his hand on his sister's shoulder to calm her. "The lives of all elves are pledged to Valon. I will be ready to ride at the first lightening of the sky."

  "I think you know me better than that, Garong," King Arik said softly. "I will not take you against your will. This journey will be fraught with danger, but I will protect you with my own life."

  "Are you trying to talk me out of this journey?" posed Garong. "I would gladly follow you anywhere, even unto death, but not when my presence would endanger your life. Promise that you will not risk your life for mine, and I will be ready to ride in the morning."

  "I cannot," Arik shook his head. "I would risk my life for each and every Knight of Alcea."

  "May we not talk of death?" pleaded Tanya. "I know both of you well enough to say that neither of you would needlessly endanger himself or others. The whole purpose of our journey is to save lives, not waste them."

  "The bride of Valon is correct," stated Queen Lyander. "I think each of us here would risk our lives for the others, but not in a way that disregards the sanctity of one's own life. Let us stop playing with words. I will join you for the morning meal before the three of you leave."

  King Arik gazed at Princess Rhula, and the elven princess nodded.

  "Garong may face death with you, Valon," she said anxiously, "but by your side is where he belongs. I also will be present for the morning meal to see my brother off."

  Chapter 5

  Fear Not the Goblins

  Wei-ra was on his way to the training room and thought he would take a detour and try to spy on Bin-lu. He thought the junior officer might make the perfect recruit for his secret organization, but there was something tugging at his subconscious that made him hesitant to take the chance of revealing himself. The hour was late enough to ensure that Bin-lu would have already left his room, but Wei-ra knocked loudly just in case the junior officer had overslept.

  When no one answered the knock, Wei-ra extracted a key from his pouch and opened the door. He moved swiftly into the room and closed the door. The room was small, barely larger than a servant's quarters. The bed was neatly made and there were no adornments on the walls. A spare uniform was neatly folded on the floor, and a pack sat in the corner. Wei-ra opened the pack and rummaged through the contents. There was nothing of interest in the pack, and Wei-ra began to smile at the prospect of inducting Bin-lu into the organization.

  As the Intelligence Officer turned to leave the room, he saw a small slip of paper that had been shoved under the door. He had no need to examine the paper because one had been shoved under every door in the palace the night before. It was an announcement from the staff that the dining halls would have restricted hours for the coming week due to a need for repairs. While the note was not ominous, the significance of it still being on the floor was. It indicated that Bin-lu had not returned to his room the previous night. That annoying tug of uncertainty instantly returned.

  Wei-ra left the room and locked the door. He began to think of all the possibilities for the disappearance of Bin-lu, and a deep frown started to form on his face as he walked towards the training room. The junior officer had stated that he knew no one in the capital, which left out the chance of a romantic liaison. His superior officer was stationed in Barouk, so he could not have been sent on any army-related business. Wei-ra decided that he needed to initiate a fuller investigation of the junior officer.

  As Wei-ra was passing through the section of the palace that housed the officers' quarters, he heard someone softly call his name. He halted and turned around, but there was no one in the corridor behind him.

  "Wei-ra," the voice called softly again. "Come closer."

  Wei-ra whirled and saw a dark figure in a small alcove behind a statue. He tensed as he stared into the darkness. The shadow moved to come closer, and the Intelligence Officer prepared to defend himself. He frowned in confusion when Bin-lu stepped out of the darkness and approached him.

  "I did not want to leave my concealment," Bin-lu whispered, "but I was afraid you would walk onward."

  "What are you doing hiding in there?" Wei-ra demanded.

  "That is the door to her room," Bin-lu replied as he pointed to a door across the corridor. "She has not emerged from her room since our meeting last night."

  "Rut-ki?" Wei-ra asked with surprise.

  "Of course," Bin-lu nodded. "Whom else would I be spying on? Did you not ask me to do so?"

  "How long have you been hiding there?" asked Wei-ra.

  "Since you gave me the assignment," answered the junior officer. "Is this not the proper way to spy?"

  Wei-ra chuckled softly
as the tug of uncertainty evaporated. "You have a natural talent for spying," grinned Wei-ra. "Perhaps she spent the night with a friend. Let's hurry to class, or we will be late."

  The two students walked together to the training room. Wei-ra was more than pleased upon discovering Bin-lu's dedication to his orders, but he wondered what Rut-ki was up to. The two students entered the training room as other students were leaving.

  "There will be no class today," said one of the students as he left the room. "The instructor has a family emergency and has been sent to her home city. A new instructor will be announced in a few days."

  "What city would that be?" asked Wei-ra.

  "I do not know," shrugged the student, "but it must be far enough away to require a new instructor. I do not think we will see Rut-ki again."

  "She had a northern accent," Bin-lu commented after the other students had disappeared. "She will be gone for a long time."

  "I guess she will," nodded Wei-ra as he raised an eyebrow at the junior officer. "I am pleased that you were able to deduce that. There might be a promising future for you in intelligence."

  "You will find me a most willing student," beamed Bin-lu. "Should I try to find out her home city and follow her?"

  "No," chuckled Wei-ra. "Rut-ki no longer matters to me. I will find a different project for you."

  "I hope it is soon," commented Bin-lu. "My only purpose for being in Ongchi is to take lessons in martial arts. I am supposed to return with enough knowledge to train the rest of the detachment in Barouk."

  "Is that the only reason for you being here?" questioned Wei-ra.

  Bin-lu nodded.

  "Then there is no need for you to take classes," smiled Wei-ra. "I can teach you all that you need to know. I am qualified to teach Rut-ki's class. Besides, you will not be returning to Barouk. I will put in for your transfer this afternoon."

  "Then what will I do to fill my days here?" asked Bin-lu.

  "You will learn other skills," answered the Intelligence Officer, "but today I will introduce you to religion."

  "I know little about the gods," Bin-lu shrugged with an apparent lack of interest.