Gods Above and Below

by Loren K. Jones

  The elderly scholar nodded. “That is one extraordinary incident. What of the rest of your life? Are you certain they had nothing to do with your rise to prominence?”

  “Only they know what they do, Master Zel’Tammal, but their influence is evident in many ways. I have seen and felt evil. I have felt the touch of the Evilest One and survived. If He had wanted me, He could have brushed aside the protection of my armor and taken me against my will. But He only tried to seduce me into His service through dreams of glory. Dreams of power. Dreams of ruling a world that worshiped Him and the Gods Below.”

  “Tell him what you felt in Aniston,” Prince Killian whispered.

  Stavin bowed slightly, then spoke to the scholar again. “In Aniston, I felt each of the Gods Above. Arandar’s embrace made me feel like I was safe in my father’s arms. Sahrana’s touch was like my mother’s hand on my fevered brow. Alankarah felt like my kindly old uncle. Mariniva, oh, she felt so much like my wife that--never mind. And Ordendershandaram felt like my old master, Master Scribe Kel’Zorgan.”

  “And the Gods Below?”

  Stavin’s expression hardened. “I could feel them, their regard, but not like the Gods Above. Pain, Terror, Sorrow, Anger, and Chaos were there, but I was shielded. I suppose Arandar was responsible for that.”

  “What conclusions have you drawn as to how the Gods actually do influence us?”

  Stavin bowed his head slightly. “As your theory states, we are all influenced by all ten of the Gods. It is the God or group of Gods that influence us the most that makes us who and what we are. Whichever God we most closely relate to determines our life. A man who likes hurting others is influenced by the Evilest One. A man who nurtures his fellows is influenced by Alankarah.”

  “A moment,” the scholar said as he raised one finger. “You mention the Gods Above by name, while you only refer to the Gods Below by their attributes. Why is that?”

  Stavin answered immediately. “Because Arandar does not like me or anyone near me speaking those names.” He spent a moment telling the story of mentioning the evilest one by name in Aniston. “You know the old saying: Don’t draw the Evil Ones’ attention. I believe that to be an absolutely real warning, with real consequences.”

  The old scholar shifted in his chair and sat forward to gaze intently into Stavin’s eyes. “You think simply speaking their names can really draw their attention?”

  Stavin bowed his head as he answered. “Yes, that is what I believe to be true. Even just mentioning the Gods Above and the Gods Below probably draws them as well, though not as strongly.”

  Master Zel’Tammal sighed and sat back. “If you are correct, Prince Stavin, then I have drawn their attention almost every day for half my life. The Gods Below were the original focus of my research, and I lectured on the subject extensively.”

  Stavin nodded. “And you did it here, near their main temples. I have no doubt that the Gods Below took note of you and your research.”

  Prince Killian caught Stavin’s attention and said, “I think we should go.” He cast a worried look at his master. “This is not good news to either of us.”

  Stavin bowed his head to the prince. “Do you need any help?”

  Prince Killian shook his head. “No, but I’d like to have this book copied.”

  Stavin nodded. “You can keep that one. I have a second copy almost finished.” At the prince’s surprised look he chuckled. “Scribe’s habit. When I can’t sleep, I write.”

  Master Zel’Tammal chuckled as he levered himself to his feet. “Your early training has served you well, Prince Stavin. I thank you for your information and your book. I think I’ll assign my apprentices to make copies for the other branches of the university. Nothing embeds knowledge in a young mind quite like passing it from eye to finger.” He bowed, then let Prince Killian help him out of the room.

  Karvik came to the doorway and just stood there with his arms crossed. Stavin shook his head as he finished his wine.

  “You were listening?”

  “Of course.”

  “That man has spent his life deeply involved with all ten Gods. I have to wonder if the Gods Below are responsible for his affliction.”

  Karvik nodded as he stepped into the room. “I think he’s wondering the same thing, and so is Prince Killian.”

  Stavin nodded again as he headed toward the door. “How far behind our original itinerary are we?”

  “We should have left for home three days ago. The wagons slowed us down, and so did staying in Orvalavad so long.”

  Stavin shook his head. “We have to leave, but we can’t just go. I’ll ask Alred’s permission tonight, but I wouldn’t bet on leaving before three days from now.”

  Chapter 26

  STAVIN WAITED UNTIL AFTER THE EVENING meal to approach King Alred. “I beg your pardon, Your Majesty, but my I have a moment of your time?”

  King Alred looked at him and said, “Of course, Stavin. You seem pensive.”

  Stavin bowed his head slightly. “Yes, Your Majesty. I know we’ve only been here six days, but I request permission to leave. I’m anxious to get home.”

  King Alred smiled as his eyes softened. “Very well, Stavin. Ask again in court tomorrow morning and we’ll see you on your way.” The king grinned and winked. “But be prepared to be fussed over. Tana and the kids have something planned for you.” Stavin didn’t roll his eyes or sigh, but a trickle of dread ran down his spine: Alred looked highly amused about something.

  Stavin walked into the court room the next morning and barely managed to not run away. The entire court was filled with people except for a lane three people wide down the center of the room.

  A herald banged his staff on the floor three times and announced, “May it please the court, I am honored to announce the Blessed of Arandar the Bright, his Royal Highness, Dragonblessed Senior Warmaster Prince Stavin Markan Karvan Do’Kalin Ne’Aniston Zel’Andral, heir to Coravia, heir to Evandia, former King of Coravia, Minister of Trade for Evandia.”

  The entire court, every Chosen lord and lady who could squeeze into the room, stood and then went to their knees. Stavin was shocked to see the entire royal family kneeling together on the dais.

  Stavin mastered his reaction and bowed deeply. “I thank you all for this honor. Now please rise and return to your seats. I am not worthy of this.”

  The people stood and then took their seats. Once the room had settled, Stavin started forward with Karvik and Varik just behind his shoulders. The rest of his guards had posted themselves outside the doors.

  Stavin marched all the way to the foot of the dais and bowed deeply. “Your Majesties, having completed my mission in your beautiful kingdom, I request permission to leave Rey and Reynadia in order to return home.”

  The king and queen stood and walked hand-in-hand to the edge of the dais. “Stavin Zel’Andral,” the queen began, “you have proven yourself to be everything the stories say you are and so very much more. It has been our honor and pleasure to host you during your stay.”

  The king took over from his wife. “Prince Stavin, in the short time you have been in Rey you have delivered us from a peril we could hardly comprehend. We know the honors you have received for your actions in Evandia and Coravia. Now we are going to add to them.” He looked to the side and Crown Princess Alankira stepped forward.

  She smiled before she spoke, and then winked. “Cousin Stavin, after careful consideration, the royal family has chosen a suitable reward for your actions. You already hold military rank higher than we could bestow upon you. You are personally richer than our treasury, and we know you value many things above gold. You are already the scion of two royal families, and that’s enough for anyone.” She paused as a ripple of laughter swept the room.

  “The only suitable reward we could come up with is this: you, Stavin Ne’Aniston Zel’Andral, are hereby named the Hero of Reynadia. Any and all that Reynadia has is yours for the asking.”

  Stavin bowed deeply before answering.
“Cousin Kira, the only thing I desire is to go home to my wife and children.”

  The entire royal family came forward and stood together. The king said, “Stavin, you have our permission to return home, but remember that Reynadia is forever in your debt. Return whenever you can, and whenever you wish.”

  Stavin bowed again before saying, “Thank you, King Alred.” Then he took three steps backward and bowed again before turning to walk back down the aisle. There was a disturbance and the entire room was filled with the sound of people cheering.

  Karvik shouted, “I thought you wanted to leave quietly!” Stavin turned and glared at him in silence, but his expression made it obvious what he was thinking.

  * * *

  Stavin led his men out of Rey on the Glimmer two days later amid all the pomp and ceremony due a legendary hero. He rode slightly ahead of Karvik and Varik so he could be seen by everyone. And it seemed that just about everyone in Rey had turned out to see him off, no matter how spur-of-the-moment their decision to leave had been.

  The noise was far too loud to allow even a shouted conversation. That suited Stavin just fine. Karvik was being tiresome about the whole risking his life business.

  Stavin shook his head as he went over it again in his mind. Yes, he’d risked his life, but that had been beyond his control. True, if he’d refused to go along with King Alred’s plan it never would have happened, but they hadn’t known that at the time. And if he’d refused, his mission to Reynadia would have failed and Ravashanal would hold dominion over the entire kingdom.

  He was waving to the crowd without really thinking about it. He’d ride waving with one hand for five steps and then switch hands. The multitude of voices mixed so all he heard was the roar of the crowd, so he was just waving to everyone.

  He could still feel all ten Gods watching him far more acutely than at any time except when he was facing Servallan. They all seemed to find him significant now, and that was an uncomfortable feeling. It was like being selected for special attention by the Warmaster: it wasn’t necessarily bad, but it wasn’t necessarily good either.

  In front, beside, and behind Stavin and his men, rode two hundred Reynadian Royal Guards in full dress kit. They were tasked with keeping everyone away from Stavin, and it was a real challenge at some points. A few people, mostly teenage girls, managed to slip between their horses, but none of them got closer than three paces from Stavin without being intercepted. Those individuals were pushed back to the side, but the guards had orders not to be harsh about it.

  It took their procession nine spans to reach the edge of the city and the road west toward Kavadia. When they finally had clear road ahead of them, Stavin picked up the pace to a gallop.

  Karvik and Varik moved up to bracket Stavin. Karvik looked at him and asked, “What are we going to do now? Major Zel’Jalavan said minstrels and bards are traveling in every direction spreading the tale of your victory over Ravashanal.”

  Stavin’s armor visibly brightened in the sunlight. “Arandar still doesn’t like anyone saying their names, Kar. And it’s not a good idea to rub her nose in it. I might be protected by Arandar, but you aren’t.”

  Karvik scowled at his best friend for a moment, then shook his head. “I’m just saying what the songs are saying.”

  “And you know how I feel about minstrels, Kar,” Stavin growled in a hoarse whisper. “Bards are just as bad, even if they are more talented.”

  “And better paid,” Varik added.

  Stavin looked at his brother-in-law and sighed. “You’re not helping, Var.”

  “Depends who I’m trying to help, Stave,” Varik replied with a grin.

  Stavin shook his head again, then looked up the road. “Alred said it was fifteen days to the Kavadian border. I hope we can avoid any more delays. I’m actually in a hurry to get home now.”

  Karvik looked at him sideways and asked, “Oh?”

  “I want to really go home, Kar. I want to go to Kavinston.”

  Karvik and Varik exchanged glances. “We’re already a hand of days behind schedule, Stave,” Karvik reminded him.

  “I know,” Stavin sighed in reply. “But we can make it to Aravad, and I’ll send a message from there to Twin Bridges. I was going to send it from here, but I couldn’t get out of the palace to do it without being mobbed.”

  Varik looked at Karvik and grinned. “Being a hero is so tiresome.”

  Stavin shook his head and sighed deeply. “Shut up, Var.”

  Karvik laughed at Varik’s expression. “Now you know what I’ve been going through since our last year in the academy.”

  Varik laughed. “And what Shari has to put up with.”

  “Oh, no, not Shari,” Stavin corrected. “I only said that to your sister once. It took a full moon of apologizing to get her to allow me back into my bed.”

  The sound of laughter drifted up from behind them and Stavin shook his head. “I’m never going to hear the end of this.”

  Chapter 27

  THE FIRST TOWN THEY ENCOUNTERED WAS a small farming community. Being so close to the capital allowed it to have an open, wall-less layout. Stavin grinned as first one, then two, then a hand of people saw and recognized him. Those few became a hundred in moments, and Stavin braced himself for the cheering.

  The crowd remained deathly silent.

  Karvik muttered, “I don’t like this.”

  Stavin nodded, but remained silent as they rode into town. The only sound was the clopping of their horses’ hooves on the cobblestones of the road. They finally reached the center of town and found the town square full of people.

  A group of richly dressed people stood in front of the crowd. One man stepped forward but remained stiffly erect rather than bowing.

  “Who are you supposed to be?” he asked as his chin rose slightly.

  Stavin replied, “I am Prince Stavin Zel’Andral of Evandia,” in a neutral tone.

  The man’s chin rose even more before he replied, “The Blessed of Arandar passed through here two days ago.”

  “No, he didn’t!” Karvik shouted. “Prince Stavin is before you now, you ill-mannered lout.”

  “Kar,” Stavin cautioned, “let it go. It doesn’t matter.”

  “Someone is posing as you again, Stave! How can you say it doesn’t matter?”

  “Because it doesn’t.”

  Someone shouted, “Prove you’re the real Blessed of Arandar!”

  Karvik grasped the hilt of his sword and said, “I’ll--”

  “No, Kar,” Stavin said as he held his hand out to touch Karvik’s. “We’ll continue on our way.”

  “You’re not going to stay and force us to serve you?” the apparent leader asked as he looked up at Stavin.

  Stavin shook his head minimally. “No. That’s not my way, nor Arandar’s.”

  “Stave, be careful,” Varik cautioned.

  The leader focused on Varik and asked, “If he is the Blessed of Arandar, and a prince, who are you to address him by his bare name?”

  Varik shrugged. “His brother-in-law.”

  The man took a step back and shifted his attention to Karvik. “And you?”

  Karvik bowed in the saddle. “Major Karvik Kel’Carin of the Evandian Royal Guard, Warleader Third of Kel’Kavin, leader of Prince Stavin’s escort.”

  One of the people behind the leader said, “I know that name from the early stories about Stavin Kel’Aniston.”

  “As do I,” a woman said as she walked forward. Looking up at Stavin she asked, “Do you have your vest?” as a smile tugged at the corners of her mouth.

  Stavin simply reached to the side and pulled his vest out of his saddlebag. Nodding to the woman he said, “Introduce yourself,” as he put it on.

  The woman took off the light jacket she was wearing and displayed her own vest. “Master Trader Marshan Fel’Servat. I own the general mercantile here in Corsat.”

  Stavin nodded. “I am pleased to meet you, Master Trader Marshan. We are in need of supplies for the road. Cu
red meats, grain for ourselves and our horses, bread, and, of course, beans.”

  “Of course,” Karvik muttered.

  Stavin looked at him and grinned. “Do you want something else, Kar?”

  “Cheese, kava beans, and how about some preserved fruit spread? It doesn’t last long around some people.” There was some subdued laughter from behind them as Stavin shook his head.

  Stavin looked at Trader Marshan and nodded. “Better add his items as well.”

  The man who had first confronted them stepped forward to glare up at Stavin. “You expect all of that for free, don’t you?”

  Stavin shook his head and said, “No, I expect to bargain for it, but I’ll pay silver and gold. Who are you, anyway?”

  Trader Marshan said, “Mayor Vandan Fel’Greval. The man claiming to be you was--rude to all of us, but especially to the mayor.”

  “He made me kneel and let him use me as a stool, and then he raped my daughter!”

  Stavin looked at him, then bowed his head. “If we encounter him, I will kill him. This I swear as a prince of Evandia.”

  “But you’re the Blessed of Arandar! Can’t you just kill him from here?”

  Stavin shook his head. “No. I am still just a man with a man’s limitations. However, we are traveling the same road. If I catch him I will exercise my authority as a prince to order his execution for raping your daughter. This I can and will do.”

  “But what of him pretending to be you?” another man asked.

  “Punishing him for that is not in my power. I will, however, lodge a complaint with his Majesty’s sheriffs. They can deal with the others with him.” Stavin turned back to the mayor. “But for raping your daughter he shall die.” The mayor bowed and backed away while the people of the town milled about.

  Stavin leaned toward Karvik and whispered, “We’re not staying. I want to continue on until dark.”