In Defence of the Crown (The Aielund Saga Book 2)

by Stephen L. Nowland

  “And stay there to guard them as well,” Aiden said, nodding. “Can you get us there?”

  “Outside this door we turn right and take the stairs,” the old knight detailed. “The chambers are on the next floor, not far from the staircase.”

  “It might lend us a little more credibility if you take the lead,” Aiden suggested. “Take this note of commission from the duke. If any guards try to stop you, his authority might be enough to get us through.” Sir William took the note, and then smoothed his moustache and tidied up his appearance.

  “It doesn’t matter how pretty you look,” Pacian remarked, “you’re not going to get rid of that smell.”

  “Mores’ the pity, I suppose,” Sir William muttered, setting aside his vanity and stepping out into the hallway beyond. There were gasps from the bureaucrats going about their tasks as Aiden and his companions emerged from the storage room and strode casually along the expensive carpet, which would most likely have to be thrown out after being subjected to the unpleasant substances being ground into it with each of their steps.

  “You shouldn’t be in here,” a middle-aged woman with tightly bound hair remarked, scandalized by their appearance. “How did you get in?” It would have been easy to ignore her, but a thought occurred to Aiden as they passed by.

  “It’s special government business, madam,” he bluffed. “Can you tell me if you’ve seen any suspicious-looking individuals moving through here in the last hour?”

  “Yes, and I’m looking right at them,” she huffed. “Where on earth have you been walking, you smell terrible.”

  “Never mind about that,” Aiden replied impatiently. “The people we seek are probably dressed in black robes, or similar attire. Are you sure you haven’t seen anyone fitting that description?”

  “No, not at all.”

  “Thank you for your time. I’d be very appreciative if you would be so kind as to escort the rest of the people here out of the building,” Aiden requested smoothly. “It’s by the order of the duke.” Sir William stepped up and showed her the letter from His Grace.

  “Are we in danger here?” she asked timidly.

  “Possibly,” Aiden replied, “but we need to get everyone clear just to be safe.” She nodded silently, the consternation clearly visible on her face. Satisfied, Aiden and the knight turned and hurried to catch up with the rest, who were moving up the staircase at the end of the carpeted hall.

  “Did you find any other doors in that little room? Aiden asked Ronan quietly, falling into step beside him.

  “Nope, just that one we came through,” he answered. “You’re wondering how a bunch of black-robed killers strolled past all these people, aren’t you.”

  “It’s like they just disappeared,” Aiden said, mystified.

  “Maybe they took the window?” Pacian offered helpfully. Aiden glanced at him, then looked to the walls and saw the darkened windows looking out over the frozen streets of Fairloch, and he realized that’s exactly what they’d done.

  “I don’t know how they’re climbing up the side of the building wearing armour, but that’s got to be it,” he declared. Giving up the pretext of civility, Aiden raced up the stairs intent on getting to the senate chambers before the assault started. When he reached the next floor, he was looking down a corridor at a set of large, polished double-doors with a guard standing to either side. They were lightly armed and armoured, and seemed to be ceremonial in nature.

  “Ladies and gentlemen, this is a closed session,” the guard on the left intoned as Aiden led the others rapidly down the hall toward them.

  “Does that door lock from the inside?” Aiden asked without stopping.

  “What?” the guard replied, caught off guard by the blunt question. Aiden reached the door and tried to turn the golden handles, but found that it was indeed locked. The sounds of voices arguing something of great importance could be heard through the door, so it appeared there was still time.

  “I need you to open this door,” Aiden ordered the guard who had spoken. “There is a plot against the senate, and these people with me are going to provide security while we move the senators to safety. We have the authority of the duke, and we intend to enter this chamber with or without your help.” Sir William handed over the letter of commission, which the guard glanced through briefly before giving it back, his expression changed from obstinance to uncertainty.

  “Is there an imminent threat we should be aware of?” the guard asked as he fumbled with a metal ring with a dozen keys upon it.

  “Keep your eyes peeled, and when we go through here, secure the door and let nobody enter,” Aiden advised as the guard finally located the right key and unlocked the door. The sound of a man speaking instantly became clear as the doors opened to reveal a huge chamber with vaulted ceilings, and a number of large, comfortable chairs arrayed around a huge oak table in the centre. Two dozen middle-aged men, as well as some of far more advanced years occupied the seats, save for one that was empty.

  Aiden and his companions walked cautiously into the room, taking in the spacious, opulent surroundings and listening to the voice of the man who was speaking before the senate. Across the room, Aiden spied Criosa seated at a special chair that appeared to be reserved for the King, wearing a regal blue dress and surrounded by her six royal guardsmen.

  As the doors slammed shut behind them, the man who had been speaking went silent, and the entire body of senators turned to see who had entered. Criosa was making her way towards him, accompanied by her personal guards who didn’t let her stray more than a few yards without protection.

  “You are not permitted within these walls during a closed session, sirs,” the foremost senator scolded him.

  “Speaker of the house, distinguished senators - please forgive our intrusion,” Sir William offered in an effort to placate the man. “We have come across evidence that -”

  “Hush!” the speaker hissed, walking over to them to speak in a lowered voice. “After three days of debate, we are finally about to reach an agreement and end this debacle. Whatever you have to say can wait a few more minutes. Now, be silent or I shall have you removed.”

  He didn’t wait for an answer, but instead turned and walked back to the assembly, apparently expecting them to follow his orders without question. Aiden was about to protest when Criosa rushed up to him and caught his attention.

  “Aiden, what are you doing here?” she whispered as the speaker went back to addressing the senators.

  “This place is about to come under attack from the assassins, or those associated with them,” he whispered back. “I think they’re in the building already so I want to get all of these people to safety.”

  “Just let him quash this bill first, then you can carry them out of here for all I care,” she advised.

  “Which one is Augustus Johnson?”

  “The man to the right of the speaker,” Criosa said, pointing him out. “What is your interest in him?”

  “Just curious,” Aiden shrugged, unwilling to bring the princess in on this decidedly unofficial investigation. “What is so important about this debate? In case I wasn’t clear your lives are in danger.”

  “I have my guards, and you’re all no strangers to a fight, correct?” she countered. “If something does happen, I’m sure you can deal with it.”

  “We have no way of guaranteeing the safety of everyone -”

  “Oh, I have to say my piece now, excuse me,” Criosa interrupted him, walking over to stand beside the awaiting House Speaker.

  “Criosa has it right, we should just grab them and drag them out of here, kicking and screaming,” Pacian muttered.

  “They have to come willingly, or we’ll be fighting them every step we take,” Sir William cautioned. “Not the best position to start a battle from.” The assembled senators stopped whispering amongst themselves and turned their attention to the princess, who stood next to the speaker and began to address them.

  “It has been brought to my att
ention that this bill has drawn interest from more than a few of your number,” she began regally. “I find this more disturbing than I care to admit. Even now my father, your King, fights for the safety and security of our great land, beset though he is on all sides by those that would see him fail. I can understand this desire from our enemies in Tulsone, but not here in his own home.”

  “If his supply lines are cut, he and the men with him will surely perish, and yet that is what you propose to do by closing the treasury. You will be responsible for his death as surely as those who will eventually put a sword through his body.” Criosa became emotional as she spoke and wiped away tears from her eyes. The senate as a whole didn’t seem to be moved by this, although Aiden spotted one or two of the old men lower their eyes in shame.

  “So I implore you, my Lords, to consider well the implications of this bill,” she continued, once more in control of herself. “Whatever you might think of this war, he is still our King, and it is our duty to support him in all things. Thank you for your time.”

  “Why would they want to cut funding?” Aiden asked Sir William under his breath. Criosa stepped away from the assembly as they whispered amongst themselves.

  “I think we are about to find out,” the knight answered ominously as Augustus stood. Unlike the others, he was wearing an ornate breastplate, though he did not appear to be armed. His receding hairline framed heavy-set features that betrayed no emotion as he took in the faces of the men around him.

  “The floor recognizes Senator Johnson,” the Speaker intoned.

  “My esteemed Senators,” Johnson began. “I thank Her Highness for speaking to us this evening, and I understand that this has been a difficult debate so I will keep my remarks brief. I must impress upon you all that it is not our duty to serve the King, but the Kingdom itself.” The senator was quite the showman, using subtle inflections and hand gestures to drive his point home.

  “The people of this land count upon us to manage the realm in a responsible manner, and sending the Crown into bankruptcy to finance a war that has no purpose other than for His Majesty to bask in the glory of victory, over a foe that was not our enemy until we attacked them is selfish and wrong. Not only are we continuing to finance this travesty, trade deals with reputable Tulsonite merchants have been torn up, and the revenue loss is quite considerable for the entire Kingdom. Less revenue is less tax, and the combined effect of this is to drive us deeply into debt.”

  “I just noticed there are a lot of windows in this room,” Ronan whispered to Aiden, who glanced around and saw that he was right. They were closed for now, but that could change at any moment.

  “You might want to head over there and make sure they’re sealed,” Aiden advised quietly, gripping the hilt of his sword in consternation. While the senator railed against the Crown’s spending, their enemies were doubtless moving into position.

  “We have been discussing and debating this issue for days,” Augustus continued. “Let us put it to a vote and end this debate once and for all. Mister Speaker, if you would be so kind?” Aiden saw that Criosa was trying to appear calm, but her hands were clasped tightly together.

  “All those in favour of discontinuing funding for the war effort, raise your hands,” the speaker requested. “All those opposed?” the speaker asked, and more than half of the senators raised their hands - a clear majority. “The nays have it, the bill is defeated.”

  Criosa actually jumped a little with excitement before restraining herself and smoothing her dress once more. The senate erupted into discussion, and Aiden looked at Augustus expecting to see bitter disappointment on his face. What he saw instead was more akin to calm resolve, which sent a chill up the young man’s spine.

  “I am truly sorry you could not be made to see reason,” he spoke, loudly enough to be heard over the din. The senators hushed and gave him their attention, also sensing that something was about to happen. “Clearly you are no longer working in the best interests of the people, so I am force to disband you, permanently.”

  “You do not have the authority, sir!” the princess replied in shock. “Only the King may dismiss a member of the Senate, and not even he would dare disband the entire body at once. You are out of line.”

  “I wasn’t asking your permission, Highness,” Augustus corrected her, his voice quiet and purposeful. “In fact, I am going to achieve this through… other methods,” he added, turning and walking towards an antechamber on the right side of the room. A startled shout from one of the senators brought Aiden’s attention to the other side of the room, where nearly a dozen black-robed men had appeared, seemingly out of nowhere. His heart leaping into his dry throat, Aiden drew his sword and summoned his shield, ready to face what was to come.

  Chapter Twenty

  The instant Aiden laid eyes upon the robed assassins, the room went completely dark. The thought that he had been struck down somehow or rendered blind flashed through his mind, until the screams of terror from the nearby senators echoed around the room. The darkness began to lift as Nellise began to counter it with whispered prayers of light. A subtle radiance from her crystal increased in strength with each passing moment.

  Valennia roared out a battle cry that almost deafened everyone standing nearby, accompanied by the sound of her visor being slammed shut as she charged towards their robed enemies, who could only be seen as vague, shifting shadows moving around at the edge of the light. With her piercing cry, hell broke loose in the chamber as the terrified senators moved away from the oncoming enemy.

  “Get her out of here!” Aiden shouted at the captain of Criosa’s personal guard, who had formed a tight phalanx around the princess with their shields. At Aiden’s request, they immediately started moving her towards the large doors. Upon opening them however, the captain was instantly run-through with a vicious, scythe-like weapon from the other side.

  Criosa screamed and tried to fall back as more of the blades appeared out of the darkness beyond, cutting down two more of her personal guards in the blink of an eye. One of the scythes stabbed out at the princess, but struck the armoured body of a royal guard who bravely pushed her out of the way and took the blow in her stead, falling to the ground bloodied and unmoving.

  All of this had happened in mere seconds since the doors had opened, and the suddenness had taken Aiden by surprise. Sir William, standing next to him, leaped forward and slammed the full weight of his body against one of the doors, Aiden taking his lead from the old knight by performing the same manoeuvre on the other door. Their enemies on the other side were shoved backward for a moment, but then regrouped and started to push the doors open again.

  The two men heaved with all their strength, but Aiden could feel his boots skidding across the carpet as the superior numbers of their opponents were slowly pushing the doors open. A scythe-like blade suddenly poked through the gap stabbing blindly in the hope of hitting someone.

  Aiden was considering pulling back from the door and fighting the robed assailants, when it suddenly started closing again, as if several stout men had come to their aid. Without taking the time to find out why, Aiden and the knight redoubled their efforts until the doors slammed shut. Maggie rushed over and put the lock back into place. Turning to see who had helped them, Aiden saw Sayana standing there, palms outstretched towards the door and the faint light of her glowing tattoos shining out from under her shirt.

  Cries of help from across the room caught their attention, and it quickly became obvious that Valennia, Ronan and Pacian were outnumbered by the robed warriors, many of whom had simply rushed past and struck directly at the nearest Senators, three of whom lay dead on the plush carpet.

  Sayana stretched out an arm and a trail of fire shot across the floor, all the way to the opposite wall. The line of fire swelled, billowing upwards to create a wall of flames that caught two of the assassins in its wake.

  “Help them!” Criosa ordered her personal guards, who reluctantly left her side and moved to assist Valennia. The sound
of weapons hammering against the double doors brought Aiden back to their current predicament. Thinking quickly, he grabbed the nearest chair and threw it against the door, repeating this until furniture was piled high against it.

  Sir William lowered his visor and drew his sword, and then rushed to the aid of Ronan who was surrounded by their enemies. The aura of darkness which had engulfed them vanished completely as Aiden hurried after the old knight, noticing that Nellise was practically glowing with light as she stood behind the safety of the flames.

  There was one robed warrior who had not rushed forward into the fight, and it was this man that Aiden suspected was responsible for the darkness. Holister had mentioned these men were part of some cult, and they clearly had access to dark powers as a result of their twisted devotion.

  Aiden decided they needed to take him out of the fight as quickly as possible, and he pointed Sir William in that direction.

  Valennia was their rallying point in the fight, for the akoran warrior towered over the black robed figures surrounding her. With Ronan and Pacian keeping them busy with swift, darting attacks, Val was unleashing her full fury on the cultists, swinging her great axe back and forth with abandon.

  The royal guards were bearing the brunt of the cultist’s savage weapons, with two of them having fallen already. Ronan took advantage of the chaos, his swords stabbing at their preoccupied enemies. The melee was furious, and while the sailor had the advantage of his opponent for a moment, another robed warrior brought his blade across in a slashing strike to Ronan’s side.

  It was a deep cut, and the sailor couldn’t recover from it fast enough to avoid the handle of the weapon coming up in a reverse motion, striking him in the face and dropping him to the ground, unconscious. The assassin raised his weapon with the point down, intending to finish Ronan off in one strike when Valennia slammed into him, shoulder first, knocking him against the wall.

  Before the cultist could recover, she struck him in the head with the weighty haft of her axe, and then brought the sharp end around to take his head off in one swing. Sensing an attack from her flank, Valennia tried to dodge out of the way but wasn’t quite fast enough as a blade cut into her arm.