Traitor to the King

by Clare SM Keating

  “Think carefully Caphoni… you know all too well how tricky the Hive Demons can be. It’s probably been sent out here as a scout or was to be a distraction to this attack – we can’t let it just be killed as if we didn’t expect it here. We need to surround it and form an ambush to kill it, the only way the connected mind of those things will be confused.” Anouk grunted to the bearded figure of the square-jawed army commander who grasped at his ears with concern over the situation. He knew of course that Anouk was right but the shock over the attack that had taken place was keeping him from coming up with a rational response. With a grunt Anouk rolled her eyes and then breathed a heavy sigh of annoyance. “Send out some of your archers, Kaloon and Ling can follow on ahead and lay out the trap, so no one is at risk of getting killed by the monster.”

  Caphoni gave a grunt of appreciation but swiftly he had been prevented from giving the order when Lutas lifted his hand and elected a party of his own. At his sudden interjection Caphoni and Anouk sneered at the figure’s suggestion and almost threatened him for speaking out of turn until he reminded them all the recent scouting magic Lord Zehna had trained some of his students for. Anouk still shook her head in mistrust of the thought but when Lutas stated he would take Kaloon and his old friend Ijah, she was forced to accept the decision and the arrangements were made. The lords then ordered all injured to head towards the hospital and then to report to Lord Gahlvrod to log their information of the situation before returning to duty. Anouk was then informed of her sister’s predicament and with a screech of anger she galloped off before even thinking of giving orders to her companions.

  For five days straight Damara stepped in and out of hallucinations, dreams and seeming memories of the long dead. Her wound had been cleaned up and was nearly closed but the poison from the Hive Demon still rocked her with fever as her body fought it down. As always Anouk shirked her household duties to Talon, ignored the wound on her side from Bulgas claws and maintained silent, unmoving vigil beside her sister. She had not been permitted to use her blood-based poison magic to form an antidote to the fever as it was believed all first demon encounters must be handled by the victim’s mind alone.

  The second Hive Demon had been killed by a trap of flaming arrows already, yet during the melee Kaloon had been killed. His body had been burnt in the fires so there was no proof to bring back to collaborate with the statement, which had angered Anouk. Her suspicions on Lutas had been growing and she had recalled Ijah’s previous loyalty to that master with irritation. No one else seemed concerned, there had been too much to fear already and council meetings continued to occur despite the notable absence of the king. Patrols were kept tight and the full guard was on parade, the Karayan had been more practical in the matter and doubled the Core on shift and encouraged the reserve to start re-training. Nothing happened within these few days, but a curfew was put in place and the lords begged for an audience with the king.

  Finally, on the fifth day, it came and with it the broken Anouk was able to leave her sister’s side. She was not keen on going but Molwesa harangued her personally and though both women sneered at each other they could not deny the brevity of the situation. With a grumble as she refused to cover herself at all and instead marched in with her hair and stomach on display, the nobles shrieked. Molwesa had rushed after her, practically pinned Anouk to the ground and made out that she had left whilst in the process of being treat. Molwesa dutifully began cleaning the bandages and apologised to them all on behalf of her niece.

  “Do not judge Lord Benaga on this dear friends, she has come straight from hospital at her sister’s side for the sake of this meeting alone. Please, ignore what will be covered up in due course with clean dressings.” Molwesa stated nervously in her soft, gentle voice that was almost like a whisper. The lords muttered for a time, but Anouk ensured her hair was tied back, head down and she remained silent as Molwesa treated the great lines in her flesh. For the elder nobles it should not have been a bother as they were all married and knew their limits; although every one of them were pulled into staring at the jagged edge of the great scar that split her torso.

  For the younger members of the council, or at least the unwed few, it was an unexpected display of flesh that made them anxious of their own desires. None seemed to be as affected as Yeruell, who conveyed the matter swiftly with the king as he questioned the odd atmosphere about them. The Karayan appeared unmoved and was masked as always so no one could see the twitching of his mouth. When everyone was settled the discussion and concern over the collapse of the tunnel was made and a fight nearly broke out. Many nobles wanted it left covered but a few individuals demanded it be restored; the sudden chaos of foolish arguments encouraged grunts of frustration before the conversation was interrupted by the king’s own voice.

  “Silence, please….” Though stated calmly the words of the king grasped the mind and shook the individual to the core. Silence reigned as each noble dropped onto their bellies in abject apology, humiliated that they should only hear such a sacred sound because they were arguing. Rocking in his throne the king slowly pulled himself upward onto his feet and stepped within the veil again, only to rip it aside with a growl. The lord’s trembled to look away as he hissed at them for attention. “I have been unfair to you all… I should have spoken of my weakening before, but it was clear how greatly my powers are diminished. Recall that the life of the stones is the blood of my ancestor, the longevity they produce limited by the number of stones. I have been ill for nearly ten years and finally must request your aid and stop lying to you all and my people.”

  The words were strained as if they hurt the king to speak, but awe and sorrow fell upon the faces of the nobles as they were encouraged to look up. For the first time every noble was being permitted to see the face of King Otzell and their bodies quaked in surprise. His thin grey skin sat delicately upon the long bones of his crooked fingers covered in liver spots of a gold shade. His head was rounded, bald and his ears had dropped and folded over themselves with a lack of cartilage. His nose had been sharp once but now was swallowed into his face as the muscles seemed to be devoured. The teeth were bare nubs upon the ice-white gum, his lips dusted and cracked but his eyes were fluid gold, large and swirled with his power. It was humbling to see so ancient a being but then Lord Yeruell rushed to him and covered his fragile skin from the light of the fires swiftly to stop it harming him.

  “Oh Sire… what do you wish of us? What can we do to secure your life and our safety?” Lord Gahlvrod whimpered, mentally telling himself he could not record the ill look of the king for history’s sake. His questions were echoed by the other lords and yet Lutas remained silent, awed and trembling as if he had seen the future. Molwesa finished dressing the silent Anouk and noted the Karayan had barely opened his eyes to observe. Neither of them were as fascinated by this situation as the others and that concerned Molwesa, if only because they should have been staring in awe.

  “The answer is simple…” Lord Sheran, keeper of the sacred stones, grunted in place of the king. His expression was harsh and they all looked to him with discontent for his announcement and the distraction it caused them all. Eyes fell upon the deep voiced, barrel chested but short figure in his blue robes spangled in white stars and small crystals. His statement was easy to accept although none were truly pleased by it, if only because the obvious manner of the decision put them all at risk. “The lost ten stones must be recovered within the next circle of the moon. If we wish to hold out against an Archdemon, which must be out there controlling this, then we need at least one before the coming of the Firagon Bloom when Nabuto will be covered from sight for three whole days.”

  The words made another cluster of the lords panic and mumble over what could happen within that time. It may be five years before the moon was next sitting in the circle of the Tower’s glass roof, but they had a mere month or so before the poisoned trees on the mountain released their sun blocking spores. Although an attack in that bloom was an annual even
t, with their protection damaged it would indeed be an ideal time for an Archdemon to stake its claim upon their world. But no one had seen a stone since the time of Anouk’s grandfather and most of them were deemed lost within the depths of the Giroff Mountains!

  No one knew where any of the stones were located… except for one.

  “The only stone we can guarantee is in the ancient Dragon’s Cavern in the peak of Mount Robosh. No one can scale that mountain and even if they could, they cannot enter without blood from the ancient king!” Lord Caphoni scoffed in surprise and frustration at the thought of going in search of the stones. In his mind his army was well prepared and capable to fight an army from Orcreich, although the recent incidents suggested otherwise. His words caused renewed agitation as no one would be willing to take blood from the king and the only other descendants, the Benaga Household, consisted of female members only. Though no one had ever tested whether female blood would be different, the lords had a distinct feeling that female blood was inferior to male and therefore could not be heroic enough to be recognised for such a task, not that Anouk was complaining.

  “What about that one that was dropped in the water? Surely we can dredge it up or hire swimmers to fetch it?” Lord Kelvis questioned but all he could see was shaking heads at the retelling of previous endeavours to pull the stone from the deep gashes within the river’s underground channels. From what had been noted in the past from that incident, the stone had most likely been washed away in the torrent of the river and dragged out to the Glimmering Sea in the east. The thought of it being lost in the ocean was upsetting and many more theories were produced on other stone locations. But no one could think of something clear and instead the meeting ended with the need to send out birds to their allies in preparation for a war. The foreigners would need to be evacuated and the Deep Elves would be led by Molwesa’s junior Saravona to the Sacred Sanctuary down secret routes along the river. The harvests and Dreggs would be abandoned, but this was the nature of the attack they expected and something common in Virenheim’s history.

  As each lord stood up to leave, four remained sitting in the presence of the king as Molwesa ushered the Karayan out to view any of his wounds from battle that she could not before. He did not accept her attention or intentions and to her frustration he simply stormed off in search of the library. In his mind the only way to be of use would be to recognise what the stones looked like and whether, in his travelling, he might have seen one. Only Anouk, Yeruell, Chroniison and Vasagar were left to listen to the last thoughts of the king, though the watchers and their commander Numart remained inside.

  “My dear ones, times are changing and if the stones are not found then I will perish. I thought it best only to speak when the others have left. You are my kith and kin… though the blood that links us is ancient or no longer there.” The king stated gently and all looked to him with concern and compassion, save Anouk. A year ago, she might have been filled with concern but right now her mind was only upon her sister, even if her allegiance meant the king should be above Damara. The king continued though with a soft sigh as he sank back into his chair. “At this rate Lord Benaga is next in line to the throne. If she does become queen then Lord Vasagar, you must marry her to ensure my blood and my protégé sit upon the throne. Then, Damara must be married to Lord Chroniison, and any child produced of either marriage must pair to unite the most ancient of noble families. Is that understood?”

  Although any other lords might feel honoured by the words of their king, all present looked aghast. Each had their own reason for the upset but the most obvious was because of the intended incest within cousins, which was forbidden under Otzell’s own laws! For lord Vasagar it was the idea of giving up his bachelor lifestyle, for Yeruell giving up Anouk, for Chroniison marrying the daughter of his adopted sister and for Anouk… everything! Her face was a hideous scowl and her teeth ground together harshly; she knew her position could not be spoken for, but she could speak for Damara’s sake.

  “Not in the days of Nabuto’s light!” Anouk barked suddenly, making the others jump in surprise. Otzell shifted in his throne to look toward her and though everyone present could have launched out and beaten her to within an inch of her life, the king smiled. Anouk knew the danger she was in and as she locked eyes with the king she understood the message of her distaste, for Damara’s part, was sent across. But though the king smiled she also realised the danger from the others and shook her head roughly. “The strength of the king is greatest in the hour of need… my master you are not going to die. We will make sure that no one will replace you but an heir you have in future.”

  “A bold thought, Benaga… but it is true that if the stones return my body will become younger and… perhaps… this is a sign from Nabuto and dare I say it, Hathorna, to choose a queen. Life is not eternal, and I am gracious for your concern… dearest child.” The king stated and suddenly all concern and anger for Anouk’s outburst was cast aside. They could understand then that her loyalty to the king was as powerful as ever and that she could not accept any idea of loosing him. Everyone breathed a sigh and agreed to the king’s thoughts on choosing a bride as well as Anouk’s belief that their king would survive all the troubles to come their way, but Anouk remained unhappy.

  Somehow, she sensed that by invoking the goddess of love and lust, the king had just opened the door to suggestions regarding Damara’s future once again.

  There was comfort to be gained in being back at home in her own bed, although the fuss being made for her sake was something Damara could not stand. Even if her sister often remained cold and standoffish whenever Damara did something wrong or got sick, on this occasion she was as attentive as she had been at the death of their parents. Anouk had barely left Damara alone to sleep at night and even moved into the bedroom with her to ease off the affect of bad dreams. It was not a good sign and made Damara worry about her interaction with the demon, but her wound was fully healed and all that was left was the slow recovery of her energy. Use of magic was not permitted for at least a month in case the hive demon might have left a link on her, so Damara was not permitted to go to the academy or even to leave the household! Just stepping out of her bed caused great alarm for Anouk although Talon and Karani would shoo her away to deal with her needs and give her a bit of breathing room.

  Still, the curious dreams and visions had not left Damara’s mind and each night she endured another seeming memory about a situation with the stones. She could not identify the reason why the demon’s touch would cause such things, but her conviction that she was learning the location of the sacred stones was becoming stronger. With news starting to spread of the approaching danger and Anouk’s own anxious manner before she went out on another patrol, Damara was becoming certain. She knew that somewhere not too far away in the Pitch Forests was another stone waiting to be picked up and she alone could find it! But, when she told her sister of this thought Damara was startled by the response she received.

  “No one can go into the Pitch Forest in case they ignite an early spore release. The kingdom is making its plans to evacuate the civilians and right now you should be thinking of what you need to take with you when it happens. You won’t have graduated the academy by this time so there is no way you or Karani will be permitted to fight and I will make sure of this… understand?” The words were bitter and aggressive, as if Anouk was upset and in truth she was. Unable to tell her sister the suggestions of the king she wanted Damara to get as far away from the city as possible before something else happened. Now that a little knick of a scar sat on her baby sister’s shoulder to remind her of the danger of demons, Anouk felt as weak as any parent fearing for the safety of their loved ones.

  Damara had been sitting up in her bed reading over the book that talked about the sacred stones and their uses. It was a very old book but had been re-printed continuously to keep the information fresh and to keep the memories alive. The greatest aspect of this book was that it contained the detailed drawings
of each stone as well as the letters on it, which when spoken together would kill the one saying it but produce an immense power. Damara knew that the words only worked when all twelve stones were together, but the image had shown her that what visions were coming to her of the stones in her sleep, they were real. Each of the stones in the dream matched the stones in the book giving her more credence although it was obvious no one was going to listen to her thoughts on the matter.

  “But it’s the closest one next to the Dragon’s Cave… plus it’s not that far away, it’s at the furthest boundary of the swamp and…” The moment she said swamp Damara almost bit herself in frustration. Karani and Talon were sitting in the room too and they had been helping Anouk with the inventory list since the possibility of departure had been made clear. If they were to be evacuated, then Anouk had to remain and fight so the care of these two young women was given to Talon. When they heard the word swamp they crouched slightly, pulling their bodies tight as they prepared for the barrage of anger Anouk was about to spit over her sister as she stopped writing down the titles of the books and spun on her heel to speak.

  “Where the Mud Lurch, Boodoo, Gefafood, Yeravati, Loskad and Marsh Goblins all live and swarm in their thousands! Even if you avoid Boodoo infection, mud Lurch attack, the stings of the Yeravati insects, the hidden jaws of the Gefafood or the Loskad beasts don’t carry you off to eat your eyeballs, just how would you deal with goblins? Not only that but what makes you think the stone could still be there when those creatures know what the stones look like, hey?” Anouk snapped in a patronising manner that made Damara feel like she’d been squashed down into the mud. She could not answer that question at all, only by stating that no other people had been given the stones or been said to have used them or touched them before. She assumed herself that they must have some magic property to defend themselves against lesser evils, but there were legends that if all were gathered and given to a fallen god, that being would no longer be fallen but could return to the surface!