Knight Quest

by Brad Clark

  “I am ready,” Conner answered with a sharp nod of his head.

  Her face cracked into a smile. “I was not asking a question,” she said. “I see in your eyes that you are not ready to fulfill your destiny.”

  A momentary sadness fell over him as his heart ached because he knew that he needed to focus on their quest and not on his love for Elissa. He knew there will be plenty of time for that when this war was over. Assuming that both of them survived.

  “I must attend to my father before we depart,” Princess Nikki said, quickly interrupting what might have become an awkward silence. “There is a servant outside the door that will guide you through the palace to where the two Elves are already waiting.”

  She started to leave, but then quickly turned back. “I am jealous of your Elissa, for she has found in you a good man. Someday, when the days of Sak’Hurai are behind me, I hope that I shall find the love that you have.”

  Conner said nothing as he watched her leave. He knew he could never put Elissa out of his mind, but he knew that he needed to focus on the task at hand and that was finding the Spear of Salvation. He quickly changed into the fresh clothes Princess Nikki had brought him, grabbed his swords, and left the room. The servant who was waiting outside jumped as he rushed through the door. After giving Conner a slight bow of greeting, the servant led him through the winding corridors of the palace.

  ***

  “Father? Are you awake?” Princess Nikki asked softly.

  King Loshin cleared his throat and sat up in his bed. “Come! Come in, my dear.”

  Princess Nikki pushed the door to the king’s sleeping chamber open wider and stepped through. The small bedchamber was just one of ten rooms in the king’s apartment. The chamber’s only window was covered with a sheer curtain that allowed some daylight in but kept it dark enough for the king to sleep at any time of the day.

  Princess Nikki walked towards the bed and stood over him.

  With a smile, he patted the bed. “Sit.”

  She did as asked and sat on the soft bed.

  “You must travel to lands that none have ever returned from.”

  She nodded her head. “I am ready.”

  The smile remained on his face. “I know you are. You are my daughter. You are Sak’Hurai, and I am very proud of you.”

  Princess Nikki could not help but smile, and she looked away, humbled and embarrassed. “I will not fail.”

  “Of course you will not!” King Loshin exclaimed. “But you will if you do not know the path of your journey.”

  Princess Nikki replied quickly, “We all know where the forbidden lands are.”

  “Do you? Until you have been there, you will not find it. Even I do not know for certain where the Valley of Ghosts can be found. I only have the words in a cryptic scroll to go by.” He cleared his throat and recited words from the scroll by memory. “Towards the majestic mountains of smoke, through the fields of green, and past winding streams of icy water you will travel. There, where the land weeps tears of sadness, you will find the birthplace of rivers. From there, the rivers begin their long, slow descent towards the oceans. But, past there, you will rise up to the valley of the land of the living dead.”

  Princess Nikki did not say anything as she waited for her father to clarify his words, but he did not. “I am not sure if I understand. The mountains of smoke are the Parian Mountains as it looks as if there is a layer of smoke covering them from a distance. But how does the land weep? What does that mean?”

  “I think when you get there, you will understand. Just remember my words, as they were spoken from my memory of scrolls that have long since been destroyed. You will be the first in generations to the make the trip to the Valley of Ghosts, and unlike previous journeys, you must return.”

  “We will return,” she replied confidently.

  King Loshin nodded his head solemnly. “The boy Conner seems a fine young man. But I am not sure about his companions. Traveling with Elves is not something that a good Hurai, much less a Sak’Hurai, should be doing.”

  Princess Nikki raised an eyebrow. “It was you that told me I must go with them.”

  King Loshin let out a long sigh “I may have been wrong. The Elvenkind cannot be trusted, and you will be outnumbered. Once they have the Spear, they will likely take it for themselves.”

  “I have never known an Elf, so I do not have the same prejudice towards them that you do. They are friends of Conner, who is a Hurai. That must count for something. And besides, I don’t think we have a choice.”

  King Loshin cleared his throat and pulled his thick blankets up tighter around his chest. “We always have a choice. It is what gives us our humanity. Our choice can be to disobey and suffer consequences, but we always have a choice.”

  “A choice between life and death is not a choice, father. Conner spent much of the night telling tales of their battles with the forces of the Deceiver. We will need all the help we can get.”

  “The One God provides all that they will need to survive. If it is His will.”

  Princess Nikki looked at her father for a long time, studying his face, thinking about his words. He was patient and allowed her to process her thoughts.

  “His will?” Princess Nikki finally asked. “What if it is His will that the Deceiver’s army should destroy all of humanity, including us?”

  King Loshin shrugged his shoulders. “It is His will, then. The power of the One God is greater than we can even imagine. Thus, His will is beyond our understanding. The universe is much larger than our little corner of it, and we may just be pawns in the plans of our Creator. We follow His will and his word, and he will reward our faithfulness.”

  She shook her head. With an even voice, she replied, “I do not accept that the One God would allow the world to be destroyed by the Deceiver.”

  A smile came across his face as he said, “Then you do not have enough faith.”

  Anger burned inside of her. She had devoted her life to serving the One God and to insinuate that she did not have enough faith was a slap in the face. “I have as much faith and trust in the One God as anyone! I have given my life and will give my life in service to Him.”

  “Of course, my dear,” King Loshin replied with a smile still on his face. His words were soft and comforting as if he were talking to a child. “You have served him well, and I am proud of you. There are many mysteries of the world that we do not know, nor will we ever know. If the One God is so powerful, how could He even let the Deceiver come into the world? Why did the war even start? Why do any wars start? Why is there death? Why did your mother die so young, leaving me a lonely man?”

  Princess Nikki’s heart suddenly leaped, and she could not breathe. She had not thought about her mother for a long time and never considered how her absence might have affected her father. For a moment, she could see the pain on his face, but as quickly as it came, it left. His eyes sparkled bright, and his smile remained on his face, hiding any hurt that was being pushed away. Her eyes fell to the bed, unable to look into his any longer.

  “Yes, we all struggle with faith. We all have questions. Even me.”

  “I will not accept the One God allowing this world to be covered in the darkness of the Deceiver.”

  “Nor do I.”

  Her eyes snapped up to look into his eyes as she was now confused. “What? But what you said?”

  “My faith is in the One God,” King Loshin said. He pulled his arm from under the blanket and reached out towards her. She moved closer so that he could put his hand on hers. “I have trust in you. You have trained hard and well for this moment. I have no doubt there is no one else in the world that is more suited to saving this world than you. If it is the will of the One God, then you will find the Spear of Salvation and defeat the Deceiver. But know this, the reach of the Deceiver is beyond what we can imagine. Just as the One God can put bridges in our path, the Deceiver can put obstacles. The bridges before us might be traps, so we must be careful.”

&
nbsp; “You think the Elves are traps? Do you really believe that they are our enemy?”

  “I am not on your journey, so I cannot answer that question. Only you can answer it. I can only give advice, and it is to be wary of the Elves. All creatures of this world came from the One God, but some have drifted farther than others. They claim to believe in the One God, but so does the Deceiver. Belief does not mean anything. It is faith that counts.” He let out a long sigh. “Magic has been absent from this world for many, many generations. You know that, right?”

  Princess Nikki nodded. “Yes, of course, but their magic will help us.”

  “Will it? Magic is something that was taken from the world for a reason. The power that it gives to mankind is too great, which is why the One God took it away. We cannot let it come back into the world again.”

  “Even if it can help us fight the Deceiver?”

  “To rely on upon magic means that we rely on evil to destroy evil. The One God has given us the strength and ability to defeat the Deceiver. We must rely on good to destroy evil.”

  “But magic is not evil, is it?”

  “Magic is a tool that the evil use. If we remove the tool, then it cannot be used. The Deceiver is using the power of magic, as do Elves, as do Human mages. As the chosen of the One God’s people, we must take it upon ourselves to remove all magic from this world. If we do so, then the Deceiver will have no power, and then he will be defeated.”

  “How can we remove all magic from the world? Isn’t it something the One God gave to his creation?”

  “What He gives, He can take away. In the end, the only way to end this war is to remove all magic from this world.”

  “Why did you not speak of this with Conner? Should he not know?”

  Slowly, the king shook his head. “He cannot know. He is friendly to the Elves and if they were to know that you wish to remove magic from the world, how do you think they would react? They would either try and kill you, or they would go out on their own. You must stay with them and watch over them. Then, when the time comes, you will do what you have to do.”

  “Kill them?” Princess Nikki asked. “In cold blood? I am not a killer.”

  “To protect the world, you will do what you have to do. We all do what we need to do. You must be prepared to do what it takes to rid the world of the evil of magic. And, if necessary, rid the world of all those who could use magic. If there is none to use magic, then magic will be gone. In the meantime, though, you will use the Elves to help you find the Spear of the Salvation.” He pulled his arm back and covered himself back up with the blanket. After letting out a yawn, he asked, “You remember the legends of the Spear?”

  Nikki nodded her head.

  “You must trust that the legends are true. The Elves cannot use the Spear. You must make sure they never touch it. Only you.” King Loshin let out another long yawn. “I am weary and must rest. Be safe on your journey and always keep your faith at the forefront of your decisions.”

  King Loshin closed his eyes, and after two breaths he was fast asleep.

  Princess Nikki stood, her mind spinning at what her father was asking of her. It did not fully surprise her that the king had essentially told her that she should kill the Elves. They were indeed the enemy, but it also occurred to her that she had never really known why. The laws of the Hurai had always considered Elves to be the enemy, and they were forbidden to be in any Hurai lands. It was just a law that everyone accepted and followed. Now that her father had explained more as to why they should be the enemy, she at least understood why there was such a law. But still, the thought of eradicating magic did not sit well with her. She knew little of magic or its full power, but as Conner described, without Glaerion’s help, the Deceiver would already have conquered the world.

  She was Sak’Hurai and committed to serving the One God, the Hurai, and all of humanity. If the world could only be saved by getting rid of all magic and that meant killing all those that could cast magic, then she would do so.

  ***

  Glaerion and Ryshak were waiting patiently in a small courtyard just off the back of the palace. It was surrounded by tall flowering bushes that provided privacy and tranquility. Conner walked out of the palace through an open archway. The servant who guided him to the courtyard silently disappeared.

  “Are we ready?” Conner asked.

  Glaerion walked up to Conner and said softly, “Princess Nikki refused to tell us where we are going. I think she is holding something back from us.”

  “We are going across the water to the mainland. There is a village there where we will pick up some horses to continue our journey towards some far off mountains.”

  “Why didn’t she just say so when we asked her?” Ryshak asked from across the courtyard. He was sitting on a small bench. “I do not like being left in the dark. When she returns, we must demand that she tell us everything. If we are going to quest together, then there should be no secrets. Nothing held back.”

  Conner looked at Ryshak warily and said, “I do not think demanding something from her will get you very far. I think she still has some apprehensions about you two. She was pretty open with me, though. Maybe when she gets here, she will tell us more.”

  As if she were waiting for the right moment, Princess Nikki walked confidently through the palace doors and towards them. Her swords were strapped to her back. In her arms were leather satchels. She handed one to each of them.

  “There are provisions in these,” she said. “It will give us a few days without having to scavenge for our own food.”

  “Is your father not sending us off?” Conner asked.

  “I just left his chambers. He is resting and is too worn out to send us off. Truthfully, I think he is just nervous, and he is fragile in his old age.”

  “Is he dying?”

  “Fragile for a Hurai is still stronger than most. He is grouchy and ill-tempered, but he is certainly not dying. He will reign for many more years. We are already getting a late start, so we should get moving. We’ll have just enough time to cross to the mainland and get to the Hurai village before nightfall.”

  “What’s in this village?” Ryshak asked with a harsh tone, trying to pry specific information out of her.

  “Horses,” she snapped before she could catch herself. She would need to work hard to hold her tongue with the Elves, especially Ryshak. They knew she trusted them and if she continued to show that she did, then they would never let her get close and comfortable with her. It pained her to think about traveling with them, much less trying to befriend them. However, before she could turn on them, she would first need to make sure they trusted her. With a calmer tone, she added, “It’s going to be a journey for many days, and it will go much faster if we ride.”

  “Then where?”

  “North.”

  Ryshak pressed his question. “But where?”

  “Have you ever been in this country before?” she snapped again. She really couldn’t help herself and continued with an angry tone, “If I described the path we are taking will it really matter? We’re going north, and that’s all that matters.”

  “No, that’s not all that matters,” Ryshak said. “If we are going to be traveling together, then we all need to know where we are going.”

  “What happens if we get split up?” Conner asked with as pleasant a tone as he could muster. He wanted to keep the tension between Princess Nikki and Ryshak from blowing up. He had gotten used to the short temper of Elves, but clearly, Princess Nikki was not going to deal with the Elves with as much patience as he did. Princess Nikki gave him a look of irritation for getting involved in the argument. “Look, it’s going to be a long and dangerous journey. We need to stop being short with one another and start acting as if we are in this together. If we get in a fight, we will need to trust one another.”

  “It is going to be more than just dangerous,” Princess Nikki said. “We are heading to lands that are forbidden for any Hurai to journey to. We have a name for
it that translates into Commoner as the Valley of Ghosts. It is a valley within a mountain range that is a long way north of the Hurai village. It is in this valley that we will find the Spear.” She looked from one to the other and then added, “It is a place that none has ever returned from.”

  “If it is forbidden, how could you know that none have ever returned?” Ryshak asked.

  Princess Nikki glared at Ryshak and replied, “It is because none have ever returned that it is forbidden!”

  “What else is in this valley?” Conner asked. “Are we going to only face this invincible creature?”

  “No one knows what is in this valley. Like I said, none have ever returned, but its name probably gives it away.”

  “Ghosts?”

  Ryshak puffed out his chest and said, “There is not a creature on this earth that would put a fright in me.”

  Princess Nikki’s jaw clenched tight. “You will see for yourself that there are things far greater than you and I that we should be afraid of. Sak’Hurai are not taught to be fearless, for that is foolish. We are taught to control our fears and not let it control us. I have no fear of this place because I choose not to let my fear control me. But the thought of entering the Valley of Ghosts does cause me pause. Not out of fear, but out of wisdom.”

  Ryshak countered with a snide tone. “Maybe no Hurai has ever returned from this place because they did not have Elves to protect them.”

  Conner quickly cut in before the argument grew out of control. “Glaerion, can your Elven magic not help protect us?”

  If the arguing didn’t stop, it could quickly escalate beyond what he could control. They needed to be a party that trusts one another and not be adversaries. Conner recognized the deep-seeded feelings of the Elves, as he had witnessed it directly with Glaerion, but he also knew that they were capable of overcoming their biases towards Humans.

  Glaerion seemed to recognize the deteriorating situation as well and quickly responded. “Without knowing what is in this valley, it is impossible to say. Certainly, whatever it is cannot be a part of the Deceiver’s army, for he has only recently come to this world. Although we have lived in this world for many thousands of years, we have also been gone from it for many thousands of years. Who knows what other creatures abound in the world. I will make sure I have prepared myself with spells that will help us. There will be no reason for any of us to fear what is in this valley.”