The Ranger (Book 1)

by E. A. Whitehead

  “It’s about time you woke up,” Lauren said without looking up. “It’s well past midday.”

  “Why didn’t you wake me earlier?” Vincent asked as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes.

  “Don’t think I didn’t try,” Lauren laughed as she set her book down. “Even Master Auna couldn’t wake you, so we thought it was best to just let you sleep.”

  “So what’s the plan for today?” Vincent asked, noticing the tray of food on the table next to Lauren. He groggily stumbled over to it and started picking away at a loaf of bread.

  “I still need to contact one of our agents,” Lauren replied. “She should be able to tell us something about what’s going on with the Draylor.”

  “Where do we find this agent?”

  “We need to go to her home.”

  “But won’t it give her away, to have two Rangers show up at her home?” Vincent asked. “I know I’d be suspicious.”

  “Firstly,” Lauren explained, “we will be going in disguise. Secondly, this agent is not of the common folk, she’s a noble. It’s common for her to have foreign visitors.”

  “And what kind of disguises are we going to wear? It’s not like I can go around without my mask, I’d be found out,” Vincent pointed out between mouthfuls of food.

  “I shall be dressed as a visiting noble,” Lauren sighed. “You shall be dressed as my aide. It is customary here for the guards of the upper class to hide their faces, it sets them apart from their masters.”

  “I still don’t see how we’ll go unnoticed,” Vincent said as he finished the last of the bread and started tearing into some cheese and the pieces of fruit that remained. “I mean, two Rangers enter the abbey. Then a noble woman and her aide, whom no one saw enter, come out. If anyone was looking for us, it would be easy to find us.”

  “We’re not just going to walk out of here,” Lauren said, exasperated. “There is an inn close to the abbey. The owner is another agent of the Order. This abbey and the inn are connected. We shall emerge from the inn, not the abbey. A noble woman and her aide coming from the inn, there’s nothing suspicious about that.”

  Vincent grudgingly agreed. He was surprised at just how many contacts the Rangers had.

  When Vincent had finished arming, Lauren led him from the room. The corridor was deserted. She quickly guided him down a maze of passages that seemed to wind deeper and deeper into the earth. The final corridor ended at a ladder.

  “Up you go,” Lauren said with a smile.

  Vincent climbed the ladder. It led through a hole in the ground that was barely big enough for him to squeeze though. A wooden trap door covered the opening at the top. He cautiously opened it a crack. It seemed to open into a closet.

  He pushed the door fully open and climbed from the hole. Lauren was close behind. She opened the door to the little closet and confidently entered the room beyond. It was a bedroom. Two beds sat next to the wall with clothing laid out on each of them: an elegant blue gown on one, and a fine red shirt and pants on the other. A large tub of steaming water sat in the middle of the room.

  “Get dressed quickly,” Lauren ordered. “I need time to get ready. I can’t be a lady if I’m dirty.”

  Vincent pulled on the clothes set out for him. They were silk; they felt good. A strange undershirt had been left for him. It was also made of silk, but it was black and had a neck so high that it covered most of his face.

  “It suits you,” Lauren laughed as Vincent finished dressing. “You look like a true servant. Now go stand guard while I take a bath.” Vincent glared at her as she ushered him from the room and closed the door.

  Their room seemed to be off of a hallway on the main level of the inn. He could hear the murmur of the guests in the common room, just down the hall. Several people passed on their way to the stairs at the other end of the corridor, but few paid any notice to Vincent. He just glared at them as they passed; trying hard to imitate what he imagined a bodyguard would look like.

  After about an hour Lauren emerged from the room dressed in the blue gown. Vincent couldn’t believe what he saw. The dress accentuated the fine curves of her body, which were normally obscured by her armour and tunic, giving her an exquisitely feminine figure. Her brown hair, which usually hung in a tangled mass tied behind her head, had been brushed and now shone as it hung down her back. Her skin seemed to give a pale glow. She was beautiful.

  “Shall we go then?” she asked. Even her voice was more elegant now. Vincent snapped himself out of it and they headed down the hall to the common room. It was full of travelers, a few of whom looked like they could have been nobles. Silence fell as Lauren entered the room. Every eye turned to her.

  “We’re supposed to go unnoticed like this?” Vincent whispered. Lauren opened her mouth to reply, but she was cut off by a voice from across the room.

  “Lady Merenda,” the voice came from the man behind the bar. “I’m so glad that you’re able to join us. You arrived so late last night that I didn’t want to disturb you, but how long will you be staying with us?” The sound of his voice seemed to break the spell, and a few of the men rushed from the room.

  “I intend to continue my journey at first light,” Lauren replied elegantly. “I trust that you can accommodate us for one more evening.”

  “We can always accommodate you, Lady Merenda,” the man said with a silly smile on his face.

  “I am grateful,” Lauren nodded to him. “I intend to visit with an old friend here in Spacco. I shall be gone for much of the day.”

  “Yes, of course my lady.” The man bowed as she left the inn.

  Lauren walked off haughtily. Vincent followed, making sure not to fall far behind. He continued to glare at the people they passed; but it wasn’t necessary. The people in the streets parted as they approached, staring in wonder.

  It took a lot of effort for Vincent to focus on his current mission, as he wanted to take in the sights of the city. Spacco was much bigger than Senno. The walls towered high above the buildings, some of which had more than three stories. The roads were all paved with large stones, and the buildings all had glass in the windows. Shops of all sizes lined the long wide streets.

  Several street vendors approached, with the hope of selling their wares, but Lauren brushed them aside. She held her head high, not turning to look at those she passed, yet Vincent could see her eyes, straining to peer to the side whenever they passed groups of children playing.

  She turned suddenly down a narrow side street and started running. Vincent could hardly keep up with her. She rushed through the alleys until she tripped and fell. She didn’t get up.

  “Are you alright?” Vincent asked, approaching her cautiously, he could see that she was crying. He put a hand on her shoulder, but she batted it aside.

  “I can’t do it,” she sobbed. “I just can’t do it.”

  “Do what?” Vincent had no idea what she was talking about.

  “This,” she said, sitting up and pointing at the dress. “The children mock me.”

  “No one is mocking you,” Vincent said in disbelief. “If anything, they envy you.”

  “It’s funny,” Lauren said softly, “because I envy them. All my life I just wanted to play with the other children. But the priests at the abbey in Gesta wouldn’t allow it. They intended for me to become a proper lady. It wasn’t appropriate for me to associate with such riffraff, they said. When Jason showed up to check on me, I begged him to take me away. I would have done anything to be free of the terrible solitude. I just wanted to play with the other children. I didn’t want to be alone.”

  Vincent sat next to her and put a comforting arm around her. He knew what it felt like to be alone, but he still couldn’t comprehend the extreme loneliness she must have felt. He had always had the other children in the orphanage; and Master Auna had always been there for him. Then, when he had joined the Academy, there had always been Thomas. Despite the loneliness he had felt, he had never been truly alone. He felt a great swell of compassion
for the broken figure crying beside him.

  “It’s alright,” Vincent whispered, trying to calm her, “you’re not alone anymore. I won’t leave you.” Vincent’s mind flashed again to the roughhewn chamber. They were two children, frightened, but not alone. They had each other. They sat there for some time as Lauren continued to cry softly while Vincent maintained a comforting arm around her.

  “The stone you wear,” Vincent said as Lauren was starting to compose herself again, “I’ve only ever seen one other like it.” Lauren looked at him, a mix of surprise and curiosity on her face. “On the night my parents died I hid in a chamber beneath my home. There was a young girl in there with me who had an identical stone.”

  “That was you?” Lauren asked in shock.

  “My father was The Guardian before he died,” Vincent continued softly. “I am destined to fill the same role. I will gladly do all I can for the Heir to the Throne of Pallà.”

  “How long have you known?” Lauren inquired softly, avoiding Vincent’s eyes.

  “Since Senno,” Vincent replied. “I saw the stone then and remembered.”

  “I’m surprised that it wasn’t Jason who told you. It has been a long guarded secret among the Pallàdrim: the Royal Family all bear the Token of Water. It was Sandora’s way of setting us apart. We always protected our own, especially those who were not of the ruling line, which is why the Freya were all water users. Only the Pallàdrim knew, so that they could keep us safe.

  “But then, I guess I’m not surprised that he didn’t tell you, Jason didn’t tell me the details of who you were,” Lauren said, still not looking at Vincent. “I don’t know how I would have made it through that night in the hole if you hadn’t been there with me.”

  “I will be there with you from now on,” Vincent said, gently turning Laurens face to look at him. “I will be there to support you so that you can hold your head high.”

  Lauren looked away again, a slight smile on her face. She seemed to be deep in thought. At length she raised her head and took a deep breath.

  “You’re right, Vincent, I have no right to rule if I can’t face my own people, or my own past for that matter. I must be strong; the return of the kingdom depends on it.”

  “That’s the spirit,” Vincent nodded. “A strong kingdom needs a strong ruler.”

  “But what if I’m not strong enough?” Lauren asked, doubt clouding her face once again.

  “Then I’ll be there to support you,” Vincent smiled.

  “You promise?”

  “Yeah,” Vincent replied, “I promise.”

  Lauren wiped the tears from her face and tried to smile. She looked a lot less like a lady sitting in the dirt with tears staining her face. Vincent helped her to her feet.

  “We need to get you cleaned up,” Vincent said with a smile. “We’ll never convince people that you’re a lady if you’re all covered in dirt.” Lauren laughed a little as she brushed the dust from her gown and pulled a handkerchief from her sleeve to wipe her eyes. Before long she was cleaned up and looked as lovely as she had before, with an added glow of confidence in her eyes.

  Lauren started off again with Vincent close behind. They followed a sporadic path through the city, walking up almost every busy street before finally arriving at a large, richly adorned house. Lauren stopped short of the door and motioned for Vincent.

  “A lady doesn’t knock on a door,” Lauren stated. Vincent looked at her and shook his head with a smile as he knocked on the door for her. The door swung open almost immediately revealing a boy in black livery.

  “How may I be of service?” the boy asked stiffly.

  “I seek your mistress,” Lauren replied coldly.

  “And whom should I say is calling?”

  “Tell her, Lady Merenda requests an audience,” Lauren purred.

  “Right away.” The boy showed them into the front hall before scurrying off into the house. He was gone only a few seconds when a large woman, dressed in a billowing pink dress and large amounts of gold jewelry rushed through the door to clasp Lauren’s hand.

  “Lady Merenda,” the woman cried, her voice dripping with the Eresian accent. “It has been far too long. I see you’ve taken on a new aide; he’s much better looking than your last one. Come in, come in.”

  The woman ushered them through the door and the boy shut it behind them. She guided them to a large parlor that was filled with richly upholstered furniture.

  “Arnold,” the woman called. The boy appeared at the door to the parlor. “See that I’m not disturbed.”

  “Yes, my lady,” Arnold said as he bowed from the room, closing the door as he went.

  “There,” the woman said, dropping into one of the larger chairs. “We can drop the pretenses. Have a seat, both of you.” They both sat, Vincent in a large tall backed arm chair, and Lauren on a heavily padded couch.

  “How is your father?” Lauren asked politely. “He is usually the first to come greet us. After all, he did work for us long before you did, Muriel.”

  “Oh, he’s doing very well,” Muriel said as she picked up a glass of wine from the stand next to her chair. She stared into the red liquid as she spoke. “He is off hunting today.”

  “I am glad to hear it,” Lauren said warmly. “The last I had heard, he was bed ridden. He must have had a wondrous recovery to be out hunting.”

  “Yes, well, he was always a very resilient man,” Muriel was shifting in her chair. “I assume there is some information that you want from me.”

  “There is,” Lauren said calmly. “If you wish to get right down to it, there are a few things that we need to know. First, we’ve heard that the Empire is trying to enlist Knights of Sandora into its army. Do you know anything of this?”

  “Of course I do,” Muriel said, sounding almost offended. “Everyone knows about that. They come out to the square in front of the abbey at least once a week and make their offer: if the Knights join with them, they will be made officers immediately.”

  “But why such a hard push to get Knights? They’ve never done anything like this before,” Lauren mused.

  “They say that it has something to do with the Magi,” Muriel said, lowering her voice. “But that is all I know.”

  “Very well,” Lauren nodded “The second question is: what have you heard about the Draylor?”

  “The Draylor,” Muriel repeated, becoming increasingly uncomfortable, “why should I have heard something about them?”

  “Perhaps because they haven’t come to the city to trade in the past few weeks,” Lauren said, sounding irritated. “Perhaps because it is their trade that brings the wealth of your family. I would think that that would be something you would notice.”

  “It is not uncommon for them to disappear from time to time,” Muriel said defensively. “They do as they wish.”

  “They rarely disappear for more than a few days, a week at most.” Lauren had a sharp edge to her voice. “It has been more than a century since they took an extended leave from visiting the outside world. There is something going on with them and I know that you know all about it.”

  “Come now,” Muriel laughed, “you give me too much credit. My information networks are extensive, but I don’t pretend to know what is going on in the mind of those dragons. However, I have heard that they had a disagreement with the mayor recently. They could still be upset about that. I wouldn’t worry too much.”

  “Be that as it may, I know…” Lauren was interrupted as the door gave a distinct creak. They all looked to the door.

  “Arnold,” Muriel shouted, “I told you I was not to be disturbed!” She jumped to her feet, sending the gold chains around her neck flying, and ran to the door to slam it as Arnold scurried away. “My apologies,” she said as she turned to return to her chair. Lauren was slowly rising to her feet, seemingly transfixed by the various chains. “I don’t think I can be of any service here,” Muriel said apologetically.

  “No, I think not,” Lauren agreed, drawing a dagge
r from her belt and pointing at Muriel as she advanced toward her.

  “What is the meaning of this?” Muriel asked in shock. “I know that the information I gave may not have been what you wanted to hear, but that doesn’t justify attacking me.”

  Muriel gave a terrified shriek as Lauren slashed at her, cutting one of the chains around her neck, but leaving her unharmed. A small pendent fell to the floor as Muriel tried to run, but she was quickly cornered by Vincent. Vincent had no idea what was going on, but trusted that Lauren had a good reason for attacking her informant. Lauren bent and picked up the pendant, which was made in the form of a howling wolf head.

  “I think you know a lot more than you’re letting on, especially about the Magi” Lauren said coldly, approaching Muriel with the pendant in hand. She slapped Muriel hard across the face.

  “Please don’t kill me,” Muriel begged. “The Magi made me do it. They took my father. They told me if I didn’t turn you over to them, that they would kill him.”

  “What do you mean, turn us over to them?” Vincent growled.

  “I sent for them,” Muriel whimpered. “As soon as you got here I sent word to them. Arnold was giving me a signal that they would be arriving soon.”

  Both Vincent and Lauren backed away from the cowering woman.

  “We need to get out of here,” Lauren said quickly, walking for the door.

  “It’s too late,” Muriel called. “They’ll be on the street already.”

  “We’ll need to use the servant’s door,” Lauren said hurrying over to the far side of the room and pushed on the wall. To Vincent’s surprise, the wall swung inward, revealing a small door. Lauren crossed the room and struck Muriel once more, knocking her unconscious. Vincent allowed her to fall unceremoniously to the floor before following Lauren into the small passage and closing the door behind them. The passage was low and narrow, but they ran regardless. The passage ended in the kitchen, which was deserted. The alley door stood open. They ran for it, bursting from the house and running down the alley. They could hear shouts from inside the house, and the sound of breaking glass, but they ran on.