The Black Morass

by Gerald Lambert

  "Hey!" Zen cried indignantly, and Taya shushed him.

  "I hope you haven't been this loud and rambunctious with our patient. If I was as bad off as he is and it was this loud in here I'd still think I was being attacked."

  "Now, Taya." Shalla said soothingly, more joking than anything. "We aren't that bad. And he's actually seemed to be more relaxed when we are joking."

  "Speaking of, how is he?" Taya asked as she walked to the bedside and sat down on the edge, holding out her hand to touch his forehead. He was sweating and very warm, but

  sleeping soundly.

  "He seems to be doing alright. I changed the bandage on his head, and redid the poultice on his arm." Shalla said, getting up and walking over to her. She pointed out a jar on the

  bedside table. "I found a salve that should counteract the drug, but I don't know how effective it will be since it's been in his body for so long. Hopefully it will help. I snatched it

  from the infirmary after hounding one of the healers for almost an hour. Apparently it helps draw infection out of animal bites and stings."

  "That's interesting."

  "That's what I thought. They had a bunch of jars, so I don't think anyone will miss this one."

  "Thank you, Shalla. You're amazing."

  Shalla raised her eyebrows and grinned. "And you're tired. I also saw to it that Izaak has a clean bedroom right down the hall, and he's already approved of it."

  "It was great!" The young boy bounced up off the floor, beaming at Taya. "I've never ever had my own room! This one makes up for it though."

  "I'm glad you think so." Shalla said before anyone else could reply to him. "And now it's time to get you over there and ready for bed, you dirty street tramp."

  Izaak looked down at himself and shrugged. "I'm not that dirty." He said coolly, and both Shalla and Mari laughed.

  "You're still dirty, kiddo." Mari said, standing up and pushing him towards the door. "And we prefer that you're clean when you go to bed. Goodnight, Taya. We'll be back in the morning."

  "Thank you, Mari. I hope he wasn't too much trouble."

  Mari grinned wickedly and shot a glance at Zen, who was still on the couch. "Oh, not really, but it's apparent that we have a little double on our hands."

  "What are you looking at me for?" Zen asked suspiciously, and Shalla merely shook her head at him.

  "Maybe one day you'll see, Zen. Goodnight, all." Shalla turned and followed Mari and Izaak, and they could hear his indignant protests as they walked off down the hall.

  "Alright you two, I think we are good here for now." Taya said to Zen and Raneck. "I know where to find you if I need you."

  "Yes, you do. Come on, Murtagh, you can leave too."

  Murtagh frowned at Zen, more surprised than anything. "Oh I can, can I? I don't think I've been released by the right person, though. Your rope is only so tight, Zen."

  Raneck snickered, and Zen stared at him incredulously. Murtagh looked over at Taya who was smiling and shaking her head.

  "Do you want me to go?"

  "What an absolutely ridiculous question." Taya replied. "But, you know I'm exhausted so I guess you can go."

  "Alright. Rest well, Taya. Come on Zen, Raneck, we've been dismissed."

  Raneck stood with Kyra and he kissed her slightly on the cheek, and then followed Murtagh and Zen out. This left Taya and Kyra alone with their sleeping patient, and Taya watched

  her friend as she straightened the couch pillows and other little things around the room. Her expression was stiff, and the feeling radiating off of her was annoyed. Taya shook her

  head in wonder and asked bluntly,

  "What in the world is bothering you, Kyra?" She already knew the answer, but with Murtagh's question earlier, she thought it was time that light as shed on the mystery. Kyra sat

  down, and then stood back up and went to the window.

  "Murtagh bothers me."

  "Ahh. Why?"

  "Hasn't anyone ever told you that the apple doesn't fall far from the tree?" Kyra turned to her, her eyes narrowed.

  "Perhaps, but Murtagh is not an apple, so what does that have to do with you not liking him?"

  "I didn't say I didn't like him."

  "No, you despise him. Answer my question, Kyra."

  Kyra winced at her tone of voice, but she didn't back down.

  "He's Morzan's son. That's enough for me to distrust him."

  "And I'm Galbatorix's daughter. Your excuse is pathetic."

  Kyra stepped back, staring at her. "You're different."

  "I am not. I'm Murtagh's best friend. I don't like the memory of his father, who is dead and my father is very much alive, but that's Morzan, not Murtagh. I'm Taya, not Galbatorix.

  You don't have to like him, but you can at least be civil to him."

  "Every time I look at him or hear his voice I think of Morzan. That is what is different about you two."

  There has got to be more than this! Taya thought to herself angrily, but say calmly,

  "Kyra, what did Morzan do to you? To make you despise his son so much?"

  Her friend tensed, and said softly,

  "He killed my father."

  Oh dear.

  "That was Morzan, not Murtagh, Kyra! You're blaming his son for something he didn't do. He didn't choose his father, just like I didn't choose mine. Are we so different, really?

  Murtagh is not bad person, but you're making him seem like one. He's one of the best people I know, and I am not just saying that. You must understand that what you are thinking

  is wrong, and holding a grudge against someone's child is wrong. You know that. You should know that only too well. What about Raneck?"

  "What… about him?"

  "Weren't your father and his father mortal enemies? Didn't you not like him at first because your father had taught you to despise his father, and so despise his family? How did you

  work around that? I remember when you nearly strangled him when you found out who he was. Now you two are considering getting married? I'm not saying you should do that

  drastic of an attitude change towards Murtagh, but do you see what I mean?"

  "I… can't…"

  "He's not a bad person, Kyra. You're seeing and hearing someone who cannot hurt you anymore. Just think about it."

  "And when I think of my father?"

  "You think of your father. And when you see Murtagh, you see Murtagh."

  Kyra hesitated, and then nodded. "I'll think about it."

  "Good." Taya said. She stood and walked over to Kyra and hugged her. "That's all I'm asking right now… except one more thing."

  "What?" Kyra questioned suspiciously.

  "That you go and get some sleep. I can manage here by myself, and you look as tired as I feel."

  "If you insist…"

  "I do. Strongly. In fact I will walk you to the door to make sure you actually leave."

  "Alright, alright, alright! I'm going. Goodnight."

  "Goodnight, Kyra." Taya said as Kyra shut the door behind her, and then Taya fell onto her couch and closed her eyes, finally allowing her body to relax.

  "Well, that was interesting." She said to herself quietly. "I hope that helped…" She was just about to fall asleep when a pitiful moan escaped her patient, and she practically flew to

  the bedside and felt his forehead again. His fever had risen, and she was suddenly worried about the salve Shalla had put on his arm. What if it actually made his condition worse?

  He was twitching feebly, and she hoped he wouldn't hurt himself even more.

  She forced herself to calm down, and placed a cool rag on his forehead.

  "You're going to make it through this." She said softly. "You've come this far already and I am not going to let you give up now, especially not with all the effort I've put into you. I

  am going to figure out why this happened to you, and who you are, and I want to hear your version of it. So, you get better. And relax because you're safe, no one can harm your />
  here. Rest and heal."

  To her surprise he sighed deeply, and lay still. Taya sighed too, and stood up.

  "Good man. Now, goodnight." She went back to the couch, but this time grabbed a blanket and a pillow and made herself comfortable. She was asleep within minutes of her head

  hitting the pillow.

  Where a memory had been, there was only blackness. Somewhere in the distance someone laughed and there was intense heat around her. Taya looked around, fear rising inside

  of her, and then she jumped when a silky voice said from behind her,

  'How does it feel, Princess? To see things from your life again, replaying in your mind as if they were happening right now? Watching as one of your dearest friends suffers

  unimaginable pain for failing to do his King's will? And what is it like to be at deaths very door, by the hand of the man you love? Tell me.'

  Taya whipped around at the alltoo familiar voice and she choked back a scream as Morzan advanced towards her, except this Morzan in her mind was mutilated, scarred and

  horrifying. As he would have been after Brom had killed him on the battlefield.

  'Leave me alone, you! You can't be here!' She yelled at him, backtracking.

  'You can't run from me, Taya. I'm a part of the poison running through your veins, a very effective measure by your father. I'm here to help you remember why you're here, and to

  help make your death that much more painful. You're trapped in your mind as your friends, your puny little friends, try to save you, but they will all die in the end. Just as your

  precious friends in the castle have and will.'

  'No! They aren't dead! And they will not die, I won't let that happen. I can't. This is my mind; I don't want you in it.'

  'Yes, they are dead, as you are dead to them. All except one… but his fate is sealed, and his life is once again your father's. The one who would give more than his life to save you,

  to find you? The one who you push away all the time? Here, I'll show you something.'

  'No!' But a new image flashed before her eyes, of 6 men lying dead on the ground… all the men she cared about, the ones who cared the most for her, her faithful bodyguards…

  except one was missing.

  Then suddenly before her what had been darkness turned into a garden. She found herself standing by a fountain, with blooming rose bushes lining the gravel walk. Before her,

  beneath a tree and among tall, lush grass stood a man, and at his feet was a still figure. Taya's heart seemed to catch in her throat and her hand went to her mouth to stifle her

  outcry. The figure on the ground was a woman. She had crumpled to the ground on her side, her brilliant red hair a tangled mess on her shoulder and the ground. She was wearing

  a white gown, and the gown was colored red with blood on her back. Not far from her head was a silver circlet that had been dislodged from her head when she'd fallen

  The man above her was turned away from Taya, and in one of his hands he held a dagger, and she could see the jewels on its hilt. He was tall, with black hair, and was dressed in

  a kingly fashion with a gold crown on his head.

  "Mother…" Taya whispered in horror, and jumped when a voice spoke from beside her.

  "Yes, you are correct. That is your mother, and your father. This was how it was when she died." Morzan said from beside her, and his different colored eyes burned with glee as he

  spoke, as he knew what he said broke her heart.

  Taya's legs gave out then and she fell to her knee's, staring at the scene before her in shock. She choked and several tears streamed from her eyes.

  "Aww, so the hardedged princess can cry after all. How… pitiful, really." He paused, waiting to see if she'd say anything. When she didn't, he continued matteroffactly. "She

  deserved it, you know, the little traitor. I don't know why she thought she could hide her treachery from the king. It does not pay well to be a spy… and he spared her no favors just

  because she was his queen. She was rather worthless."

  "Shut UP!" Taya yelled, looking up and glaring at him through blurry eyes. "Why… are you doing this to me? And don't you DARE say my mother was worthless! He only found out

  because of you!"

  "And he molded me, so it was really him. I'll say whatever I wish, there's nothing you can do about it. And I am doing nothing to you. I am just the bystander. Of course I'll gladly

  tell you how he did this once you've died and joined me. The more scenes you see, the closer you are to deaths door."

  Taya lunged to her feet, her hands clenched into fists at her sides. She slammed her foot into the ground as she growled in his face, "I will NOT die, you worthless… DEAD coward. I

  know why Galbatorix is doing this to me. He knows that I despise him with every fiber in my body. Now I have even more reason too, since I know he killed my mother. He wants

  to see me suffer…. But then why not just kill me quickly and see it for himself? Why wait? Why give me the chance to fight back?"

  Morzan laughed incredulously. "Fight back? You certainly are delusional, little princess. There is no way to fight back. But you're lucky that I am here, because I know the purpose of

  his poison, of your slow death sentence."

  "Purpose?" She yelled. "What purpose?"

  Morzan raised an eyebrow and considered something, and then he decided to oblige her.

  "So your little friends can watch you suffer and be completely helpless, unable to do anything at all to save you, and of course for you to suffer beyond their puny imaginations for what you have done."

  Taya narrowed her eyes as cold shivers raced up and down her spine, thinking of Raya and Sasha traveling across Alagaesia without knowing if she would survive. An overwhelming

  urge to punch Morzan suddenly came over her, and she barely managed to stop herself from wiping the smirk off his face. After all, he was dead and merely a part of the drug, so

  it really wouldn't do any good.

  "If that be the case," She snapped back, "why don't you leave me to suffer in peace? You're doing nothing here… and let me make something clear. I will never join you, even if I

  die. I will not give in to this poison, or to Galbatorix. There is still a race to run!"

  "If you think you can somehow defeat him, you are sillier than I thought." Morzan scoffed. "He cannot be defeated. That is the truth."

  "And when have you ever told the truth?" Taya snapped again, flexing her hands. "You could never tell the truth, Morzan. Your whole existence is a lie."

  "Then so is yours."

  Taya's fist clenched and she struck out, catching him in the face. To her glee her hand collided solidly, and he jumped back with a howl. And then he disappeared, and she stepped

  back as a brilliant white light appeared and then she was thrown into her earlier memory, only it had skipped ahead to the day after the next, the day the guests were supposed to

  arrive in Uru'baen.

  "So, let me get this straight." Zen Drayson said slowly. Taya rolled her eyes at him and crossed her arms, but she was grinning ear to ear. She was facing Zen, Weston, Xackzan

  and Murtagh in the hallway by her bedroom, and she had just made a proposal to them. They were all relaxed, and in good moods, so she had a feeling no matter what Zen said,

  they would agree.

  "You are giving us, or the three bodyguards, a day off, and then asking us to use that day off to technically guard you as we go to the lake outside of Uru'baen, ride around, and

  then come back in time to confuse the noble guests of Galbatorix, with the possibility of a huge storm coming and us getting drenched, and then giving us the option to take this

  precious day off and go into town and leave you all by yourself?"

  "That's how I thought it sounded." Weston chimed in, looking sideways at Zen. "I think you should"

  "Oh shut up." Zen scoffed, "I wasn't finished yet." He turned back to
Taya and asked incredulously, "What kind of options are those?"

  "Your options, Zen." Murtagh answered, and Weston tried to keep a straight face. Xackzan shook his head, and said,

  "I think I like Taya's proposal."

  "I never said I didn't." Zen snapped.

  "I think he sort of did." Murtagh drawled, and then he looked up at Xackzan. "I think I do too, Xack. What do you think, Weston? I'm game."

  "So am I. Let's go before we lose any more light."

  Taya and the three of them turned and started walking away, and Zen asked frantically,

  "Wait, what about me?"

  They all stopped, and Taya said slowly, "I thought you wanted to use your precious day off and go into town?"

  Zen narrowed his eyes and said pointedly, "And leave you by yourself? What, are you kidding? There is no way I'm leaving you with these three either." He glared pointedly at

  Murtagh as he fell in beside them, and Murtagh just grinned.

  They stopped by the kitchens to pick up a picnic lunch, and were helped by Shalla. She couldn't ask Taya anything for fear someone would wonder, so Taya answered her unspoken

  question as they packed her saddlebags.

  "He's fine today. The salve seems to be working. He gave me a scare last night because his fever went up, but it came back down early this morning. I don't think he's out of the

  woods by a long shot, but there's hope. If you have time, come by this evening. Izaak would love to see you. Mari's been sticking it out with him."

  Shalla smiled at her. "I think I will. You might be tied up for a while today, though. I heard a rumor in the kitchens that there's going to be some sort of private dinner for the

  arriving guests?"

  Taya groaned. "I wish he would have told me. Gah, that's annoying! Thanks for being informed, Shalla, you are amazing!"

  Shalla rolled her eyes and put the last item in the bag and buckled it up. "I'm glad I can make your life just a tad less hectic. Have fun today." She looked at the three waiting men

  and raised an eyebrow, pointedly looking at Zen. The blond haired bodyguard raised an eyebrow back, and Taya laughed.

  "Thanks, Shalla. See you later." Taya led the way out and to the stables, and once there everyone split directions to their horses. Taya paused to pet Adnarim, her mysterious