* * *
The soldiers pulled the wagon up to the rear of the prison. They grabbed the bodies of the girls and carried them inside. A guard opened a sturdy metal door and the girls were carried into a cell. The soldiers took the girls’ belt knives and slashed the ropes that bound their hands together. Before Mistake could get the sack off of her head, the door had slammed shut.
“I would have liked to have seen what is outside that door,” whispered Mistake. “They were not very efficient at searching us.”
“Perhaps they don’t expect us to live long,” frowned MistyTrail as she untied her feet. I am beginning to get a poor taste in my mouth for Elvangar. Even the humans that didn’t like us treated us with more dignity than I have seen in this land.”
“True,” sighed Mistake. “Even as a slave I was never carried with a dirty sack over my head. What do you suppose happened to cause them to arrest us?”
“Maybe Garl was arrested in the city?” shrugged MistyTrail. “Maybe he said we were going to try to escape and return to the Sakova?”
“Garl would never do that,” sighed Mistake.
“I know,” agreed MistyTrail. “I just can’t think of any possible reason for arresting us. Do you think it is illegal for foreigners to learn elven magic? Maybe that is it. Yes, Garl was arrested and said he had to get back to give us magic lessons, but that is forbidden.”
“Nice try,” Mistake shook her head. “Although,” she added thoughtfully, “the sacks and binding of our hands is what you would expect to see if they knew they were arresting mages. Maybe it does have something to do with our learning magic, but Garl would protect us. I cannot see him ever bowing down to anyone. He does what he thinks is right.”
“Well,” posed MistyTrail, “maybe we should concentrate on what to do to get out of here instead of wondering why we are here.”
“I am sure that I could pick the lock on the door,” assured Mistake, “but we have no idea what lies beyond it. Let’s wait until they bring us a meal or something. Be alert when it happens and try to see as much of what is outside as you can.”
“At least our room was so small that we had to sleep with our packs,” MistyTrail said as she rummaged through hers for a bite to eat.
Mistake brightened as she watched MistyTrail rummage through her pack. She reached into her own pack and extracted the carozit.
“Give me your hand,” Mistake said to MistyTrail as she turned the carozit upside down.
MistyTrail placed her hand over Mistake’s and watched as the balls separated barely enough to slip a piece of paper between them.
“We are close,” Mistake said. “Our relative is in this city, probably only blocks away from us. I wonder what he or she is doing right now?”
“Probably sleeping,” frowned MistyTrail. “We might want to do that ourselves. If we do escape out of here, we will not have time to sleep along the way.”
The girls curled up on the cold stone floor and went to sleep. A few hours later MistyTrail heard a noise beyond the door. She quietly nudged her sister. Mistake sat up and listened to the noises. A key turned in the lock and the door suddenly swung open. A tall man in a white cloak walked in the door holding a torch high above him. The shadows distorted the man’s features, but his long black beard was obvious to both girls. He glared down at them as he placed the torch in a holder on the wall.
“Who are you?” asked the man.
“I am MistyTrail, and my sister is Mistake,” answered the Sakovan. “Why have we been arrested?”
“I will ask the questions,” snarled the man. “You have made statements that you are descended from Kieran. Is this true?”
“I am from Fakara,” Mistake said quickly before MistyTrail could answer. “I do not know what a Kieran is. May I ask your name?”
The man glowered at the girls for a moment before exhaling in frustration.
“You may call me Karaza,” declared the questioner. “Are you denying that you were overhead stating the you are descendents of Kieran?”
“I think whoever overheard us must be mistaken,” smiled Mistake. “We have no idea who our parents were. They died when we were quite small.”
The interrogator looked on with suspicion. He suddenly waved his hand, and Mistake felt a wooziness come over her. She closed her eyes tight and tried to will the feeling away, but it did not help.
“Have you ever said that you were descendents of Kieran?” asked Karaza.
“Yes,” replied Mistake.
“Mistake!” scowled MistyTrail. “What are you saying?”
The man waved his hand again and it was MistyTrail’s turn to feel woozy. She also fought the feeling, but she was incapable of doing anything about it.
“Who told you that you were descended from Kieran?” asked Karaza.
“Garl,” they answered in unison.
“And what leads him to believe this?” asked the interrogator.
“Our ability to cast a certain spell,” answered Mistake.
“It can only be cast by those of the Kieran line,” added MistyTrail.
“Do the names Alahara or Alastasia mean anything to either of you?” inquired Karaza.
“No,” Mistake and MistyTrail answered in unison.
“Are you aware that Garl is a criminal?” asked Karaza.
“We know that he was banned from the Society of Mages,” answered MistyTrail.
“Because he is a criminal,” declared Karaza. “If you allow his deceit to enter your minds, it will bring trouble for you. You are not of the Kieran line. He lied to you. Do you understand now?”
“No,” MistyTrail shook her head. “Garl is nice to us. He would not lie.”
“He lied to you,” shouted the interrogator. “You are not of the Kieran line. Repeat it. You are not of the Kieran line.”
“I am not of the Kieran line,” Mistake offered instantly.
MistyTrail’s mouth opened, but nothing came out. Karaza glared at her.
“Say it,” demanded the questioner. “You are not of the Kieran line. Say it.”
“I am not of the Kieran line,” came the sound from MistyTrail’s mouth.
“You are not to have any further contact with Garl,” declared Karaza. “Never again.”
“Does that mean that we are free to go?” asked Mistake.
Karaza shook his head and stared at Mistake. He frowned deeply at her question.
“You will be free to go when I decide that you may go,” he snapped. “I am not yet through with my questions for you, but I have enough for now.”
The interrogator rose and grabbed the torch. He left the room and the door slammed shut. Both girls shook their heads as the spell dissipated.
“What was that all about?” asked MistyTrail. “What happened to us?”
“He used magic to make us tell the truth,” explained Mistake. “It took me a while to understand what was going on. I guess we had already said too much to save Garl from the trouble that will now come his way.”
“I couldn’t answer his last question,” MistyTrail declared, “but he seemed to think I did.”
“I answered for you,” smiled Mistake. “My years of being a thief made the lie come easily to my tongue after I understood what he was doing to us. I just cast a small air tunnel to your head and answered for you. He would not have left until you promised something that your mind would not allow you to say.”
“What were those names he asked us about?” questioned MistyTrail.
“I do not know,” frowned Mistake, “but I got the impression that some one thinks those names belong to us. Alahara and Alastasia. They are pretty names.”
Chapter 24
The Royal Family
Karaza stepped into the throne room and bowed to the queen.
“What did you discover from them?” asked Queen Alycia.
“They were fed a line of nonsense from an old meddling fool that I once begged you to execute,” replied the head of the Society of Magic. “Garl convinced th
e girls that they were of the Kieran line. I am sure that he is plotting against you. He is probably aligned with Vitalora and the other renegade elder.”
“Volox,” supplied the queen. “So these girls believe that they are of the Kieran line?”
“Not any more,” smiled Karaza. “I convinced them that Garl was a criminal using them for his own ends. They will be no more trouble to you. I will visit them again later to ensure that they remain no problem to you.”
“They will be no trouble as long as Garl is eliminated,” replied the queen. “I should have acceded to your wishes many years ago, but Garl is a Kieran. It did not seem right to me.”
“I understand,” nodded Karaza, “but now he has shown his true colors. You must understand that we cannot tolerate his existence any more.”
“I do,” sighed the queen. “Find some reason to have him arrested. Make it a major offense.”
“With all due respect,” frowned Karaza, “he might try to use a trial to convince others that the girls are Kierans. It is best to just eliminate him.”
“Murder?” balked the queen. “I could not do such a thing.”
“The stealing of the throne of Elvangar is an act of war,” declared Karaza. “Do you not send soldiers out in wartime to eliminate the enemy?”
“But that is different,” protested Queen Alycia.
“It is no different,” advised Karaza. “Elvangar can be defeated by the attacking humans, or it can be defeated from within. Make no mistake about this; Garl is an enemy of Elvangar. He seeks to destroy your rule as much as the humans do. He is an enemy soldier. Eliminate him.”
“I see your point,” Queen Alycia hesitated.
“Not as strongly as you should,” pushed Karaza. “Every time Garl speaks to another elf, he poisons the people against you. If he is not killed quickly, he will strike you down even after his death. The words that he speaks to others will remain within them when he dies. They will act upon his lies as if they were truth, and it will be too late to expose him. He must die soon, or your throne is forfeit. I would be happy to arrange it for you.”
“Very well,” sighed the queen. “Do what must be done, but I do not want to know anything about it. His name will never be discussed between us again.”
“It shall be as you wish,” smiled Karaza as he bowed deeply.
No sooner had Karaza left then Malid entered through another door. He bowed before the queen.
“I heard that the foreign girls have been arrested,” Malid stated. “Am I to prepare a trial against them?”
“I don’t think that will be necessary after all,” answered the queen. “I plan to have a talk with them today. If they are open to reason, there will be no charges brought against them. What is the state of the Council of Elders today?”
“Things died down with the arrest of Vitalora,” replied Malid. “There have been no further grumbling or accusations. I think things will get back to normal.”
“Oh,” said the queen as one eyebrow rose. “Volox is no longer demanding that I send an emissary to the humans?”
“Not a word out of him,” smiled Malid. “I think the arresting of Vitalora took the wind out of his sails. Volox has been as meek a new fawn. I think we should delay the trial of Vitalora for a while just in case. If Volox acts up, I can threaten to expedite the trial.”
“I like the way you think,” smiled Queen Alycia. “Perhaps over time we can even get a confession out of Vitalora. It would be very helpful to keep everyone in line if he was forced to give it publicly.”
“I will work on that,” promised the Head Elder. “Is there anything on the agenda for the Council of Elders today?”
“I want the elders to review our preparations for war,” replied the queen. “I have been thinking that we might benefit from some advance notice of the human's attack. I would like the views of the elders on this topic.”
“Do you mean along the line of spies sent abroad?” asked Malid. “Or ships constantly patrolling the Barrier Islands? Things like that?”
“Yes,” frowned the queen, “but there will be no spies sent abroad. There will be NO contact with humans whatsoever. Not even spies. Perhaps signal fires from the Barriers Islands? We could station some men on them, can’t we?”
“We could,” nodded Malid. “They would be quickly overrun, but they would be able to warn us of an impending attack. We will look into it.”
“Good,” the queen replied dismissively. “Notify me when you have something for me to review.”
Malid bowed and backed out of the throne room. Queen Alycia walked to the railing and gazed down upon the citizens as they made their way to their places of work. She wondered if any of them truly appreciated what she was doing for them. They had no cares except doing their daily chores, while the queen was burdened with great responsibilities. Her thoughts drifted to the need to remarry. Even by elven standards, the king had been dead a long time, and the country had no heir.
She frowned as she thought about Tamar. She had been close to suggesting such a union with the young officer, but he had turned into such a disappointment lately. She was glad that she had not broached the topic. Her mind was reviewing all of the potential suitors when she heard someone enter the chamber. She turned to find Rattal bowing to her back. With her mind still on suitors, Queen Alycia chuckled to herself at the sight of the officer. Rattal was definitely not on the list.
“Tamar has assigned this meeting to you again today?” asked the queen.
“Actually,” frowned Rattal, “I do not know where Tamar is. He did not arrive at his office this morning.”
“What do you mean?” the queen asked sharply. “Where did he spend the night?”
“I do not know,” Rattal said softly.
“You don’t know?” shouted the queen. “Wasn’t it your job to keep track him? What do you mean you don’t know?”
“I was attacked while following him last night,” admitted Rattal. “It was made to look like a robber attacked me, but I believe that it was Tamar. I will find him soon.”
“You had better find him soon,” threatened the queen, “or you will be on the wall defending the city during the first wave of attacks.”
“I will find him,” Rattal promised.
“Leave the reports,” snapped the queen. “I will look at them later.”
“As you wish,” bowed the officer.
“Just a minute,” interrupted the queen. “The two foreign girls are in the prison. Have someone bring them up to see me. I want to have a friendly chat with them. You can find the prison, can’t you?”
“I will see to it right away,” bowed the officer.
* * *
Garl held up his hand when he heard the noise of someone approaching. The boys immediately dashed out of sight while the old man slid behind a tree. A few moments later, the elder walked into view. Garl grinned and stepped onto the trail.
“Tayo, Volox,” smiled Garl. “A bit of a long walk for a city lad, isn’t it?”
“Tayo, Garl,” frowned the elder. “Actually I was on my way to Etta. Perhaps we can walk together.”
“I am not heading that way,” shrugged Garl. “Why are you going to Etta?”
“I wish to see Mistake and MistyTrail,” answered Volox. “I miss them.”
“So you just decided to walk for several hours to visit?” probed Garl as he signaled for the boys to come out of hiding. “Do not think poorly of me for failing to believe you, Elder. What is your true goal?”
Volox looked at Eltor and Caldal moving out of their hiding spots. A deep frown etched into his forehead.
“I should be asking you the questions,” retorted Volox. “As en elder I am aware that all three of you have been forbidden to enter Morada, yet you all appear to be heading directly towards it. Why?”
“The girls were arrested in the middle of the night,” offered Eltor, earning him a glare from the old man.
“The girls trusted Volox,” Caldal jumped to his friend�
�s defense. “Besides, we may be able to use his help in freeing them.”
“Arrested?” gasped Volox. “Then I am too late. You are right about my motives, Garl. I was coming to Etta to take Mistake and MistyTrail to someplace where they could hide. I feared that the queen might strike out at them.”
“Then you know who they are?” asked Garl.
Volox stared into Garl’s eyes trying to find the answer to the question the old man had just asked. Finally, he sighed and shook his head.
“I think I understand who you say they are,” Volox answered. “I do not know if that is the truth, or just something that your crazy mind has dreamed up for excitement, but either way it puts their lives in jeopardy. I wanted to spare them from that.”
“How will the elders act if they girls are indeed the princesses?” asked Garl.
Even though Volox expected that Garl’s premise was that the girls were the lost princesses, it still startled him to hear it verbalized. He stared at the old man and wondered if he really was crazy.
“The elders do not speak as one,” Volox finally answered. “The queen is not at her best these days. She has had Vitalora arrested for treason. Whoever the girls are, it is best if they disappear for a while. The last place we want them is before the queen.”
“We agree on something,” nodded Garl. “For your information, they are Alahara and Alastasia. I have no doubts about it.”
“How can you be sure?” asked Volox. “There is no sure way that you can know.”
“Isn’t there?” retorted Garl. “You are not a mage, but even a learned elder has probably come across some references to the Kieran spell of compulsion. Have you heard of it?”
“It is tickling my memory,” admitted Volox, “but I cannot bring it forth.”
“It is a spell created by Kieran himself,” explained Garl. “It is a peculiar compulsion spell because it has strange side effects. It can only be cast by one of the Kieran line, and it cannot be used against one of the Kieran line. Both girls have mastered the spell.”
“So they are indeed of the Kieran line?” Volox inhaled deeply. “You are sure of this?”
“You may think me crazy,” smiled Garl, “but you will not find a man alive who does not acknowledge my skill in magic. I am positive that both girls are of royal blood. Now, can you point to any twins in the recent Kieran line that are unaccounted for? Any other than the princesses, that is?”
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