Jenneva tugged on Alex's sleeve and stepped forward. "We might as well get this over with," she sighed.
"Hop into the caskets," advised Zalaharic.
Alex picked Jenneva up and gently placed her in one of the coffins. He then climbed onto the table and lowered himself into the other one. Zalaharic walked over to each of them and handed them each a cup of tea.
"Drink this down," he ordered.
Jenneva looked at the elf healer questioningly.
"Barrel weed," the elf explained. "It will make you appear dead."
"I trust you have pit berries handy?" Jenneva asked as she raised the cup to her lips.
"A large supply," Zalaharic nodded. "We must be quick about it, though."
Jenneva drank the tea and handed the cup to Zalaharic. "Keep the public viewing short please."
Zalaharic nodded as Alex drank his tea and handed his cup to the elf. Red Swords immediately hefted the two caskets and carried them out to the open wagon while other soldiers placed two more coffins on the tables. Fredrik scrambled onto the table and sat in his casket, eagerly accepting a cup of tea from Zalaharic. Tanya was a tad slower as her eyes continued to bore into the king's new bodyguard. As soon as Zalaharic received the cups back, Red Swords carried the casket to the wagon. King Arik and his new bodyguard returned to the carriage. Niki went with them for the ride to the Royal Palace.
The courtyard to the Royal Palace was already filled with a large number of spectators. The king's carriage pulled to the right as they entered the courtyard and the burial wagon pulled to the left. As the king, Niki, and the king's new bodyguard exited the carriage, the four coffins were unloaded from the wagon and put on display. King Arik immediately turned and walked to a small stage that had been set up for the funeral. His bodyguard followed him closely, her eyes always scanning the crowds for danger.
"Fellow citizens of Tagaret," King Arik spoke loudly as soon as he had mounted the stage, "we gather today to pay a moment's respect to those who died to protect us. While we mourn every one of the lives lost in the great battle, four of those who died were known as Knights of Alcea. There will be no grand ceremony for the deceased, but it was felt that the burial of these four would be symbolic of all of those we have lost. I choose to remember those who have died with images from within my mind of when they were alive, not the visions of their bodies in coffins. For those who wish to pay their last respects, there will be a short service in the Royal Garden."
The king nodded solemnly to the Red Swords and then turned and retreated into the palace. The Red Swords immediately covered the caskets and loaded them inside a waiting covered wagon, while soldiers began telling the crowd to form a line if the wished to witness the burial. The covered wagon moved swiftly alongside the Royal Palace as the line of mourners formed. What the mourners could not see was the switching of coffins inside the wagon. Four sandbag laden coffins were pushed towards the tailgate, while the human laden ones were opened and pushed forward.
"Feed them these berries," a Red Sword said as they pried open the real caskets. "Be quick about it."
As the Knights of Alcea awoke, each was handed a hooded cloak. The wagon turned the corner of the Royal Palace and halted briefly. The four cloaked individuals scampered out of the wagon and into a rear door of the Royal Palace. The wagon started rolling again until it reached the burial area where it came to its final rest. By the time the first of the mourners rounded the corner, the Red Swords were just pulling the first of the four caskets out of the wagon.
The four Knights of Alcea hurried along the corridors of the Royal Palace and into the library. The room was full with those people who knew that the burials were a sham.
"Well, that part of it is over," sighed King Arik. "I do not like deceiving my own people. I can barely imagine what they must think of a king that cannot even spare the time to honor those who died defending this city."
"I shall handle that problem after you have left the city," offered Prince Oscar. "I shall proclaim three days of mourning and explain that you were so heartsick by the loss that you had trouble facing it so soon after the battle. The people will understand."
"Perhaps," frowned King Arik. "The truth is that I am heartsick over our losses. Too many good people died to save this city."
"Without their loss," interrupted Alex, "there would be no people left to mourn. Stop being so hard on yourself. Prince Oscar will put the people right. When this is all over, you can offer the truth as to your motivation. Everyone will understand."
Tanya continued to stare at King Arik's new bodyguard. It was obvious to her that this new woman was dressed to imitate Tanya herself. She seethed with the thought that that was all she was to the king, a fancy bodyguard, something to put on display to stroke his own ego. The woman caught Tanya's gaze and smiled at her. Tanya bit her lips and quickly looked away.
"Well," King Arik said, "I think it is time to find out where the Amethyst of the Gods is hiding. Would someone light a fire in the fireplace?"
Sheri stepped up next to Tanya and whispered in her ear, "How do you like king's new bodyguard? She is my cousin, Shel. Doesn't she look a lot like you?"
"I do not see the resemblance," Tanya replied snidely. "I doubt that she could even swing that sword."
"Oh mercy no," giggled Sheri. "The sword is just for show. I don't think Shel could even hold it well. I think someone else has to put it on her. That's not the point, though. King Arik can certainly take care of himself. He has no need for a bodyguard, but it fits the image that people are used to now."
Tanya's hands clenched into fists as she said, "You must excuse me, Sheri. I want to get a better view of the vision from the Sword of Heavens."
Tanya strode away from Sheri. She eased her way through the crowd until she was far away from Sheri and the new goddess, Shel.
Chapter 19
The Vision
The library in the Royal Palace of Tagaret was full of people. All of the Knights of Alcea were in attendance as well as the most important of the king's advisors. A fire in the fireplace of the library had been lit and the people in the room formed a large semicircle in front of it. King Arik drew the Sword of Heavens and held it before him. From his pouch, the king retrieved the bead that had fallen from the Sword of Heavens when the Dragons' Onyx had been restored. With a last glance around the room to make sure everyone was prepared, the king tossed the bead into the fire.
Almost immediately, a thick dense cloud of white smoke formed in the fireplace. Rather than escaping up through the chimney, the white smoke invaded the room. The cloud grew in size as the smoke swirled around and around. The room fell deathly quiet as everyone held their breath and focused on the cloud.
Slowly a hazy blue vision appeared within the cloud. The image was indistinct at first, but as the smoke thinned, the image grew clear. Everyone gazed at a view of the dark blue waves of an ocean. Whatever was the viewpoint of the vision, be it the bow of a ship or a bird in flight, it appeared the same for everyone in the room. The viewers were skimming across the top of the gentle ocean swells when an island appeared in the distance. It was no more than a blemish on the horizon when it first appeared, but it grew in size rapidly.
With a sense of amazing speed, the viewers closed in on the island. A tall mountain was prominent as the major feature of the strange island, and the viewers were naturally drawn to it. The island grew larger until the mountain itself filled the vision. Suddenly the viewpoint started rising, taking the viewers upward along the slopes of the mountain. A deep crevice marred the side of the mountain, and a long and narrow footbridge spanned the crevice. Across the footbridge was an entrance into the side of the mountain. It was an ornate entrance with a door of black stone, and two statues flanked the door, one on each side. The statues were grotesque, depicting some obscene creatures with horned heads and large bat like wings.
The door and statues quickly disappeared as the viewpoint continued climbing upward. The vision was dark and sudden
ly nothing could be seen. All of a sudden, the vision burst forth in brilliance. The viewers could see that they had passed through a thick band of clouds as they climbed upward, but more shocking was the sight of the mountain itself. Rather than a mountain of gray or brown rock, as most people were accustomed to, this mountain was an icy blue, its slopes appearing slick and impossible to climb
As the vision halted, everyone stared at the summit of the mountain. There was an open cone indicative of an ancient volcano. The impressive image on an icy volcano protruding through a thick layer of clouds suddenly vanished. The white smoke dissipated swiftly and was sucked up the chimney. For several moments, nobody moved and nobody spoke.
"That was entirely different," Alex finally said. "I have never seen such a mountain in my life, and I suspect that I have been to most known places over the years."
"Unlike any island that I have ever seen," agreed Admiral Raymond Hill, "and I have sailed every part of the world that is charted. Does the vision mean that we are to find this island and go there?"
"I suspect that is does," nodded King Arik as he stepped closer to the fireplace to get out of the crowd.
The king lifted the Sword of Heavens and held it out before him. Slowly he rotated in a complete circle. He frowned slightly and repeated the procedure.
"Is it not working?" Jenneva asked with concern.
The king did a third rotation and ended up facing west. "It is working," he declared, "but the Sword of Heavens indicates that the Amethyst of the Gods is very far away. The vibrations are very weak, the weakest that I have ever felt them."
"You were wise in inviting Admiral Hill," Alex nodded to Prince Oscar. "It would appear that we have a sea voyage ahead of us."
"It was only logical," shrugged the prince. "The Darkness is cleared over all of the land. Wherever we went next would have to be at sea."
"I hate sea voyages," remarked Wylan as he remembered the trip to the Island of Storms in search of the Diamond of Edona.
"Nobody will be forced to go on this voyage," declared King Arik. "I know that there are some among you who feel this quest should not be undertaken. I will hold no animosity towards those who elect not to come, but I leave in the morning. You have until then to make up your minds."
"I said that I hate sea voyages," grinned Wylan, "not that I was abandoning you. I have given you my vow, and I intend to be with you when you find the Amethyst of the Gods."
The king smiled and nodded to Wylan. "I will leave you now so that you may discuss this among yourselves. I would like each of you to let me know your decision when you make it."
The crowd parted as the king and his bodyguard, Shel, made their way towards the door. Tanya glared at Shel as the bodyguard trailed after the king. When the king had left, the room erupted with the sounds of dozens of conversations. It took only a few words between them for Prince Garong and Prince Darok to decide. They hurried out of the room to tell the king that they would be going with him. Tedi, Natia, Wylan, and Sheri gathered neared the door to the balcony.
"You are coming," Wylan asked Tedi, "aren't you?"
Tedi looked briefly at Natia before answering, "Like yourself, I have sworn to stand by Arik until the end. I could give him no other answer than my promise to go with him. It is something that I must do, Natia."
"You will get no argument from me, Prince of the Gypsies," Natia grinned. "Gypsies believe that each person has the right to make such a decision for himself."
"Thank you," grinned Tedi.
"Which is, of course, the reason why you will not object when I tell King Arik that I am going with him as well," grinned Natia.
Tedi's mouth opened in prelude to an objection, but he ended up smiling instead. "I should have known," he chuckled. "And here I was worried about what you would say about my going. It will be dangerous you know."
"And that is supposed to persuade a gypsy to change her mind?" giggled Natia. "The very fact that it is dangerous is why I must go. Someone must save you while you are saving the king."
"That is great," beamed Wylan. "It will be just like old times."
"I hope I don't have to tie you to the rail again," laughed Tedi as he recalled the sea voyage to the Island of Storms.
"You needn't worry, Tedi," Sheri said. "I will take care of Wylan should he get sick."
"What do you mean?" frowned Wylan. "You are not going."
"Of course I am," declared Sheri. "The king already knows of my decision. Why do you think my cousin, Shel, is in the Royal Palace."
"I thought she was here to act like Tanya," Wylan answered. "What does that have to do with anything?"
"She is to replace me as head of the Queen's Helpers," Sheri stated. "King Arik had the idea to use her as bodyguard. He figured it would downplay the importance of Tanya to any spies that were lurking about, and it would give him a chance to talk to her about what he wants her to do in his absence."
"But you are not a warrior," objected Wylan. "You will get hurt."
"I was warrior enough to kill Klarg," pouted Sheri, "and I am a Knight of Alcea. King Arik said so."
"I am glad that you are coming," smiled Natia. "It is about time that we got better acquainted seeing as our husbands are such good friends."
Sheri beamed, and Tedi laughed and slapped Wylan on the back. Across the room, Niki's voice was getting louder.
"You have to find a way to stop him," ranted Niki. "You cannot allow the king to go running off on this quest with no regard to Master Khatama's orders. He must be stopped."
"King Arik will not be halted in his quest to restore the Sword of Heavens," Alex stated. "Why should he be?"
"There is a serious question here of what the Mage has planned," interjected Jenneva. "It is clear from the message that Fredrik delivered that the Mage believes that Alutar will return when the Amethyst of the Gods is restored. This is not some petty disagreement."
"There is logic in what Boris is thinking," added Tanya. "Sarac is locked in his castle. He cannot escape because of the spell of binding that Jenneva cast upon him right after the Collapse. His forces are all but gone. What harm can he do now?"
"We don't really know what Boris is thinking," Alex shook his head. "We know what Fredrik told us, which he heard from Mustar. Why wouldn't Master Khatama tell us directly what his plans are? Why is he being so secretive?"
"That is something that has bothered me," admitted Fredrik. "When I returned to Master Khatama's camp, it was clear that there was tension between Boris and Mustar. I could not help thinking that the point of contention was me and what Mustar had told me."
"Do you have any idea what he plans to do with the mages that he is gathering?" asked Jenneva.
"None whatsoever," Fredrik shook his head. "After that day, there was no discussion about Alutar ever again. The subject was purposely avoided."
"What does all this matter?" scowled Niki. "It is clear to me that King Arik must be stopped. Why do we have to talk about it?"
"And how would you propose to stop him, Niki?" retorted Alex. "If you are thinking in any way of harming the king, you had better be prepared to kill me, because I will protect the king with my life."
"Nobody is talking about harming the king," Fredrik declared quickly. "I think we need to reason this out among ourselves."
"Maybe we could steal the Sword of Heavens?" suggested Niki. "That would stop him without hurting anyone."
"I think we should logically deduce the correct path before making such rash judgments," Jenneva shook her head.
"Boris is not against King Arik," declared Tanya. "He would not have sent the elixir for him if he was."
"Agreed," nodded Jenneva. "Fredrik, why did he not allow you and Niki to continue on with him? Why push you aside when he obviously thought a great deal of both of you?"
"An excellent question," frowned Fredrik. "We wanted to go with him, but he was adamant about it. I got the feeling that whatever he was going to do, none of us would ever see him again."
&n
bsp; "And he needed powerful mages by his side," added Alex. "Word did come that Kroto the dwarf has disappeared. I think we can safely assume who has joined with the Mage."
"That does point to a confrontation with Alutar," sighed Jenneva, "but how? If Alutar is present in the Darkness, how can the Mage battle him?"
"He would have to go to where the Darkness is," posed Fredrik, "but that does not clarify why he did not want us, unless we are not powerful enough for the task."
"Even if he thought that you were not powerful," Tanya shook her head, "that would not be reason enough to reject you. Your presence would not diminish the power of the other six."
"Because Fredrik is required to kill Sarac," declared Alex. "If the Mage's plan will result in the death of those who accompany him, he could not afford to have Fredrik along."
"But that supposes that he expects us to complete the Ancient Prophecy," argued Fredrik. "That makes no sense at all."
"Doesn't it?" mused Jenneva. "Tanya is correct. Your presence would not diminish the power of the others. The only reason to exclude you is as Alex has stated. Master Khatama fully expects Arik to continue with the quest."
"Not only continue with it," nodded Tanya, "but he expects Arik to be successful."
"But then why tell me to have the king stop?" asked Fredrik.
"The Mage never did ask you to relay that message," declared Alex. "Mustar did."
"Do you think Mustar is working at odds with the Mage?" questioned Fredrik.
"Not necessarily," answered Jenneva. "Mustar may have misunderstood what their mission was. The few times that I have met Mustar, he has always thought a great deal of himself. It would not surprise me if Mustar decided to take things into his own hands by talking to you."
"That would explain the tension that you said existed when you got back," added Tanya. "The Mage may not have appreciated what Mustar had done."
"Then why not send me back with the correct message?" asked Fredrik.
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