The Mysterious Soldier - Part I

by Tina Silvens

  Leido sat silent for a few seconds, not letting him out of his sight. The king’s calm annoyed him. He replied, “Bardan has the right to be king here, on one of the richest areas in the world, before you! Moreover, Bardan has to avenge his wronged mother! She was left all alone at hard times! Regarding this, I think Bardan has more to say to you personally, therefore I won’t go into detail. But aren’t you interested to find out how we managed to get you down so simply?”

  “Well, yes... but it’s just that your very own secret method constrains me from asking any more questions,” King Ardensis replied with a tired smile. He, like his son and his wife, suspected that it was some sort of special poison.

  Leido got a little angry, seeing the king’s boldness to be sarcastic towards him. Soris was happy his father was keeping the Bardanians occupied. The attention wasn’t on him anymore and, to his great joy, even Vittria had forgotten about him. This discussion was very important to them.

  Leido feigned to ignore the king’s challenge. He told him, “Oh well, what your father hadn’t known back then was that Macalina was—and still is—one of the greatest witches on the entirety of Avaidan. Thanks to her, Bardan has become so powerful as to conquer your kingdom effortlessly, especially on a continent that has no idea about witchcraft! Hahaha! One spell and you’re all down at our feet! Hahaha!”

  His laughter resonated clearly all over the place, followed by the rest of the group’s.

  The king, the queen, and Soris couldn’t understand, nor accept, what they’d heard. It sounded like a great absurdity said to fool them. Spells were only in the imaginary world, not at all in reality. They couldn’t actually expect them to believe such a big lie. Soris tried to guess a subtle meaning in that: Maybe that special poison is what they call spell...

  Chapter 15

  Selunia found the door to the main hall she was looking for. She verified through the nearby windows that she had arrived at the right place. All was good.

  She went to the door. The Bardanians’ laughter could be clearly heard. Now would be optimal to go inside, when they make noise and can’t hear me entering. Let’s hope the door won’t creak, she thought, grabbing the handle. From this moment on, her tension went on rising. She could swear that she felt her boiling blood circulating through her veins down to her arms.

  Holding her breath, she pressed the handle very slowly and cracked the door, then glanced inside to make sure her plan was correct. She had arrived where she’d meant to: about two meters to the left, the wall of the golden banister stairs was to be seen, while to the right and to the front, she had sight of the half room opposite where the Bardanians sat.

  She encountered a problem: one of them sat a bit away from the rest, toward the center of the place. He could notice her going out through the door and then moving to the stairs. Oh, damn! she cursed. Who told that guy to stay right in the middle?

  Just then, she heard the bored voice of the king: “Bardan, Bardan, and again Bardan. You keep mentioning and praising him. But where is he? I suppose he’s not in here right now. Or maybe... is it that one over there, who stands like that, away from the crowd?”

  Selunia was startled. It was as if the king had heard her thought: he’d pointed right to that Bardanian who stood in her way. He was one of those with purple skin and long arms; he had a miserable and placid face, not at all like that of a vengeful leader.

  The king’s words had an influence over him: feeling he was getting attention, to Selunia’s great joy, he came close to the rest. The problem was therefore solved.

  With heart pounding out of her chest, the girl clenched the bucket’s handle and pushed the door, which opened quietly, with the other hand. Her breath was cut short as she stepped into the strongly illuminated room, getting the feeling that she was doing something wrong, that she was dashing into a danger zone, like an inexperienced man out at sea. The air inside felt different than in the corridor. It was as if it had some other density, another composition; it gave her the creeps, like a haunted place. She was all wet with sweat and felt all her muscles contracting. Involuntarily, she kept her eyes wide open, watchful to see if something dangerous would appear near her. She knew she wasn’t allowed to make mistakes. It wasn’t only about her life now.

  Just one noise, and her plan would fail: she would go into direct fight with the Bardanians, whom she feared a little. She remembered that during her training with Elis, Ryan or other colleagues, she’d never been the winner. Perhaps the Bardanians weren’t as strong as them, but she couldn’t rely on that.

  Leido, annoyed by the king’s impudence, said, “Obviously he’s not here! We’ve decided to capture you on our own to offer you to him as a present. Tomorrow, or the day after tomorrow, he’ll be here too. You should pray he’ll be late. On the day he comes, the three of you will be publicly executed! Haha! We’ll have a load of fun then!”

  Soris’ worries increased. So just the fact their master isn’t here kept them from killing us... These mad people seem to have everything in their control! I can’t figure out how they’ve managed to poison the entire palace. Oh, Waltario, where are you? Will we really end up like this?!

  Selunia gently pushed the door back into its place. She held her breath, fearing she’d make noise. For this reason she left the door ajar, just closed enough to seem shut. Then, grabbing the bucket’s handle with both hands for a firmer grasp, she slowly turned, and with much care went towards the stairs.

  She was glad the Bardanians kept on talking. Their voices covered the clothes’ rustle which, at least to her ears, sounded loud. The soldier costume hadn’t been to her liking from the very first, but now it was really getting on her nerves. She had the impression that it hindered her movements, making her coordination difficult, and that she was sweating a lot because of it, not because of her emotions. She couldn’t wait to reach the stairs, but it was as if it would take an eternity.

  The king refrained from saying anything more. He looked at every conqueror, one by one, how they commented maliciously about his family’s supposed future death.

  The queen was disgusted by all their savage manifestations. It was the first time an opponent had succeeded to reach inside the palace. She still couldn’t believe that what she was seeing was real. She went on again regretting she had become a queen in such kingdom. Since she’d come here, she hadn’t had much peace. Now she was sitting down on her knees in front of some barbarians who found pleasure in her and Soris’ executions. Would it really come down to that?

  Leido, with a finger lifted up in the air, resumed, “A single spell was necessary to get you down at our feet! Just one, and we defeated the best fighters of the famous Arid Kingdom!”

  “And that’s all thanks to me,” Vittria commented lowly, going back to her prize.

  Soris shrank. Though shameful for him, he was terrified of her. He couldn’t deny that. He’d never had to deal in captivity with such a sleazily-behaving woman. To him, her ostentatious advances were a direct infringement of his honor and self-esteem. He felt her hands on his shoulders again. He felt like calling back that Bardanian who had threatened him earlier with a knife. That one seemed more acceptable now.

  Selunia finally put the bucket down on the marble floor. She exhaled as silently as she could, pleased to have finished what seemed to her to be the hardest part. “From here on, there goes what I’m best at,” she said to herself while kneeling.

  She took off her soldier gloves, turned up the long sleeves of the costume, then immersed her hands into the bucket’s water. It was cold and dirty, but there was no time for pretention. Each minute was precious. She glanced again over the Bardanians’ position in the room. She intended to attack only a certain part of them.

  She concentrated on the crystal-gloves, which commenced to emit an unstable yellow light. Long energetic streams scattered in the liquid, like an ink. Gentle ripples slowly hit the wooden walls of the bucket. Five fine threads came out from the inhomogeneous mi
xture of turbid water and yellow energy, climbed to the brim, went over, slid down and touched the floor. From here, they sneaked between the marble tiles, then quietly went for the targeted group of Bardanians.

  It was as if the water was alive, as if it carried on at its own will, but everything was controlled, in fact, by Selunia’ eyes. The streams advanced smoothly like mercury, their energy dwindling on the way. Selunia didn’t want to catch someone’s eye with their light.

  At a step’s distance from the first enemy in the way, she stopped their going forward. She directed them in such a manner so as to surround that group, by unifying the narrow water streams. Safety first. I’ll attack only those who aren’t too close to the royal family. I’ll knock the others down with some other simple tricks when they come after me.

  She enclosed, with her vision, an imaginary square around the group of Bardanians. The energetic water followed her coordination. Selunia got her hands out of the empty bucket. The ends of ten streams, split from the prior five ones, were hanging by the tips of her fingers. She laid her hands on the floor.

  Even she herself couldn’t see the entire water formation, but she was sure it was placed correctly. The square had been made in the order she had looked at her enemies. When the threads had got into a closed shape, the light in her palms diminished, giving a sign that everything was ready to attack. She gave a sigh of relief. She had almost forgotten to breathe because of the way-too-attentive concentration on the water threads. She felt the sweat falling on her forehead. “Now, I just need to feed the water web with energy, to make sure it will stagger them well...” She inhaled deeply and focused even more on her gloves. They lit up, and forwarded the current through the liquid streams.

  The Bardanians suspected nothing. Part of them were paying attention to Leido’s oratory, while the other part watched, upset, how Vittria caressed Soris. From time to time, one of them couldn’t keep to himself any longer and made some remark to disturb her. Soris was thankful for that.

  Suddenly, the main door of the room was slammed to the wall, startling everyone. Inside, a brother of theirs came running—it was the first Bardanian Selunia had met outside. Damn! I thought they’d all remained in! she exclaimed, terrified, in her mind, sticking close with a shoulder by the stairs’ wall. She hoped not to be seen while she kept her hands on the ground.

  The newcomer shouted: “A soldier is missing from the yard! A soldier’s missing! I’ve counted them all before, and now one is missing!”

  The Bardanians turned to him, alerted. One asked, “You sure?”

  “Very sure! One right from the front of the palace is missing!”

  Selunia became numb from fright. A cold shiver went up and down her spine, as if she had already been caught. Oh, no! That pest! she cursed. There’s no time! I have to attack!

  A long-awaited hope was born inside the royal family members’ souls. The three of them had the same thought: Waltario! It must be him!

  Vittria turned in place. With her vigilant eyes she marked the wet stain on the floor. “What’s this?” she asked, indicating with her staff.

  Selunia tightly shut her eyes. Now! Be as it may!

  She quickly dragged one hand over the other, towards her, drawing an “X” with the water streams that sat by her fingers like sticky threads. In an instant, the water that surrounded the Bardanians split up into a number of lines, forming a crystal-clear web under their feet. She rapidly lifted her hands over her head, then hit the floor’s marble.

  With a cascade sound, the water under the enemies spectacularly burst in the air in spurts, like a multitude of artesian wells. Those induced electric shocks in everything they grasped onto. The Bardanians were taken by surprise by this attack. They barely had the chance to gape at those water streams that got them unexpectedly, before losing consciousness. Their pain and the bright electrifying show didn’t last longer than five seconds.

  The water, which had stretched into crystal beads, fell on the floor like a short rain, followed by the echoing tumbles of the attacked bodies. Vittria, Leido, and the rest of the witnesses were left with gaping faces for a few moments. Who could have been capable of something like that? Soris, the king, and the queen Ardensis, although they couldn’t account for such a miraculous attack, were firmly convinced that Waltario orchestrated this move.

  Selunia was now more tense than ever. She was squarely confronting the remaining enemies. But was she prepared enough to defeat them?

  Chapter 16

  Outside, at about two hundred meters’ distance from the royal court, General Waltario, along with a few soldiers, was rushing his way back in a military car. They’d had many breakdowns to repair at the surveillance tower. The general had a feeling that something wasn’t going well at the palace. Only now had he started to suspect a trap. Maybe someone had tried to keep him away from the royal place. He warned his loyal soldiers to be prepared for anything when they arrived at their destination. He started to regret that he hadn’t left earlier.

  The car stopped a few meters before the court. He waited for the guards to open the iron gates. Inside, behind the large headlights, not a single move was to be seen. The soldiers went on alert. It was very strange and suspect that no one came to verify their identity so as to grant them permission. The driver wanted to blow the horn, but Waltario stopped him. He beckoned him to keep quiet. Maybe the enemy was waiting for that: a sign of their arrival.

  All soldiers, followed by the general, got out of the car. It was a disturbing silence. Two soldiers approached the gates to inspect the state in the yard. They saw their comrades lying on the floor or leaned against the fence like dead men. They urgently waved at the general, then made to go in. Barely had they put their hands on the gates’ bars than they fell to the ground, as if slashed by an invisible force. Waltario and the rest stiffened from fear. The two had been crushed without a sound. There was no doubt now: the palace had been attacked for real. But why wasn’t anybody coming out to meet them?

  A few soldiers mustered their courage and went after the two to check on them. But as they got too close to the gate, they ended up the same way.

  Shortly after, the general was left only with three soldiers. He couldn’t risk sending anybody else. The three waited, troubled, for a command. He kept silent. He watched the palace, astonished. He couldn’t believe what was happening. He was conscious it was something that exceeded his and the army’s abilities. His amazement wasn’t related only to what he was witnessing at that moment, but also to a recent event. Inerishia... Inerishia was right! he exclaimed to himself, thinking about the unexpected visit he’d had a few days before.

  It had happened in an afternoon. He was in his studio, trying as usual to put in order the objects from one of his working desks, when he suddenly heard the door slowly opening. Mysterious steps went lazily down the interior stair. Turning to see who had entered in that quiet and suspicious manner, he saw a medium-height person dressed in a long, hooded ruby robe. At first, he couldn’t tell if it was a man or a woman. Only the lips were left to be seen. They carried a subtle smile and a bright coral color. The general recognized them immediately.

  The woman broke the silence with a relaxed voice. “Glad to see you again, Waltario. It’s been a while since we last talked...”

  Overwhelmed with surprise by her unannounced visit, the general dropped a small box from his hands. It fell on the table with the sharp rattle of some small metallic objects from inside it.

  “Inerishia... It’s you, Inerishia, right?” he managed to ask her, with a wary expression on his face.

  The woman smiled as she came closer to his desk. “Yes. It’s me, General. Do please forgive my sneaking inside like this. I suppose you understand that I wouldn’t have done this unless I had a good reason,” she said with a meaningful smile.

  Waltario averted his eyes for a little while, looking like someone caught guilty. He could guess the reason she’d come to him. He knew that the discuss
ion would carry on to a point where he wouldn’t be able to give any answer.

  Inerishia searched through a few things on the table, bored, then said, “I had to come to check if you were alive. I almost got into a panic. I sent you so many letters, and you still haven’t taken action. Your surprised face is telling me that you did receive my letters...”

  Waltario sighed. When he pulled himself together, he stared at her. Inerishia said, amused, “Don’t look at me that way. For your information, I wear this hood so you can’t see me, and not otherwise. I can see you through it clearly. I wear it so as to not surprise you that after so many years I remain the same, whereas you, it’s plain to see you’ve aged a little... Oh well, that’s how we from the Castle are. We manage to live a lot longer than you—but, of course, it’s not easy to reach this state. Anyway, may I know why you haven’t brought my daughter here yet?”

  Waltario shuddered, startled. He knew she would ask him that, but he didn’t expect her to put that question so quickly, so straightforwardly. He sat silent for some moments. Inerishia crossed her arms. She waited for his reply.

  She repeated sternly, “Why haven’t you brought my daughter here by now?”

  “...It was dangerous. You know we went through war...” he mumbled, unsure.

  Inerishia nervously chuckled then said, “You want to say that it was actually dangerous for your kingdom to bring her here, not for my daughter, don’t you?”

  “...No...”

  “Hmm, I know you too well. You only care about this palace, and that’s all. It’s not surprising your wife divorced you in such a hurry.”

  Inerishia kept silent for about a whole minute. Waltario, feeling this silence pressuring him, lifted his eyes to her and asked, “What is it?”

  “Nothing. I’m just happy that my husband isn’t like you,” she replied, relaxed.

  They both laughed. He knew that when she started to praise her husband, it meant she was in a good mood. Still, he was surprised to remark that, after so many years, she was still living with the idea that there was no other man in the world better than hers. In each person she would find a flaw that her husband didn’t have.