When that day came the Senate House would be filled to capacity and become the heartbeat of not only Myrus, but of the entire Eluan Empire. Until then it was the house for Seres and his lover, Ellen Caning.
Seres entered his main chambers. The room was lavishly decorated with trinkets and art from across the Eluan Empire. They were from collections that Ellen had built up for years as Empress. A fire softly crackled in the parlor as Seres made his way through the room. Ellen was waiting for him out on the balcony. The bright blue sky could not compare to her beauty at that moment for Seres.
Before he said a word, Seres wrapped his arms around Ellen and embraced her with a deep passionate kiss. She was the reason he was there today. She was the strength that he needed to continue the fight and the passion he desired to challenge the Eluan rule.
“I have her,” Seres said looking into Ellen’s eyes once he was finally done greeting her.
Ellen’s eyes lit up. She knew just as well as Seres did the importance of grabbing Abigail. Her smile spread wider across her face. “Is it actually Abigail?”
“Yes,” said Seres. “It’s her. She’s going by Farrah now, but it’s her.”
Ellen shook her head at the thought of Abigail becoming a world leader. She was silently impressed. The young Prial servant that roamed the halls of the palace for all those years was actually a secret weapon. Ellen remembered seeing her every now and then with Nikali. The two were inseparable when they were much younger.
“What can she do?” Ellen asked. “Is it true that she can rival Nikali’s power?”
“I don’t know,” said Seres. “When we got to her she was near death. But she’s healing. Like nothing I’ve ever seen. She drew the life out of one of her friends and started to recover. I’ve seen healing in arcan users before, but nothing like this. She’s powerful. I think the stories are true.”
“If not then defeating Nikali will be near impossible,” said Ellen.
“We can challenge Nikali with or without Abigail,” assured Seres. “I tore through his army. Nikali is not a soldier or a commander. They have power, but they do not have skill. I would bet my men before any thousands of fools Nikali can round up. He will have to rebuild again. If we strike soon we can take the Capitol.”
“The Capitol is meaningless,” said Ellen. “We don’t need another broken city. We should stay in Myrus. Consolidate our power here.”
“The Capitol is still Eluan,” said Seres.
“People are losing faith in Eluan,” said Ellen. “But they are seeing strength in Myrus. Staying here is our statement that we are above them.”
“Nikali will rebuild,” said Seres.
“And so will we,” said Ellen. “Our men are trained soldiers. We can defend the city much easier than attacking the palace. The palace is a fortress. Nikali and the Royal Council can hole up in there for years if they wanted. It would be a fool’s errand to go on the offensive.
“We have the power, Francesco. All we need to do is show it. We need to start taking command of the towns around us. They will listen to us over Nikali’s crazed rulings. He will come at us, but he will be far from home and his men will be out in the open. You can pick them off one by one. When it’s all over we can walk into the Capitol Palace hand in hand if you want or we can change everything.”
“You make it sound like we don’t even need Abigail,” Seres chuckled. He loved it when Ellen spoke about their plans with such confidence. Her passion was contagious.
“We do for now,” said Ellen. “Tell me, does anybody else know its Abigail?”
“I doubt it,” said Seres. “All of my reports from the Capitol refer to her as Farrah. She is nothing but Aldrin’s granddaughter to them.”
“Nikali and Abigail were childhood friends,” said Ellen. “She can help us with her power, or we can use our knowledge as leverage. What do you think Nikali would do if he knew Abigail was at our mercy?”
“He could lose control,” said Seres.
“Precisely,” said Ellen. “Nikali is angry. He always has been. He barely has control of Eluan as we speak. If we push him over the edge his entire rule will come crashing down.
“Flaunt her in front of the people. Make her the face of Myrus. Show the people that there is nothing to be afraid of. Make your name synonymous with Farrah. Then when she dies, she will be a martyr for her cause. The Suraya will back you as their new leader as you avenge Abigail’s death, and Nikali will take it hard. Heric is down, and now Abigail is dead. He will not be able to continue.”
“What about her power?” Seres asked.
“She is not the only one with power. While you’ve been gone recovering Abigail I’ve been thinking about something that will get us our own power.”
Seres could no longer hold himself back. He pressed Ellen up against the railing of the balcony. He kissed her hard and pressed his body into hers. He had to have her right then and there.
Chapter 48
The palace grounds were beginning to look just like the streets in the Talons. The filth and the poor that the Eluan Capitol tried to tuck away in its outskirts was front and center outside the building housing many of the most powerful people in the empire. Nikali’s proposal to repair the Capitol and the rest of the city continued in full force.
What few soldiers Quaet could round up were put on guard at the entrances to the palace. The entire city was near defenseless, but as long as the palace and those inside it were secure he was content.
It was becoming a nuisance every day the vagabonds and gypsies remained in their newest location. The nights were loud with people rarely sleeping. Fires lit up the night as the migrants lived it up in their homes.
Dust and debris filled the hallways of the emperor’s palace. Workers migrated from task to task either unaware or unconcerned with the mess and destruction they were making.
Quaet walked past a group of workers taking down the wall and framing of one of the rooms. The workers worked fast and did not bother to clear out the area. Several paintings hanging on the wall came crashing down along with the bricks and mortar. Quaet sighed. Those paintings were done by Emperor Arthur Caning himself over two hundred years ago. Now, they were mangled pieces of canvas lost in a pile of rubble.
Enough was enough. Nikali’s antics had gone too far. These workers and followers of Nikali’s were actively destroying the history of Eluan. If this continued then there would be nothing left of the past, and Eluan’s future would be in jeopardy.
Quaet rushed through the palace halls. He pushed aside anybody that was in his way. They soon would not matter.
He reached the room that housed the palace cats. Several of the cats were already roaming the hallways looking for vermin. Quaet shuffled through the room dodging the cat’s several attempts at affection on his legs. He looked through the swarm of fur until he found the right one. A pure black cat with yellow eyes shifted through the body of felines. Quaet grabbed the cat by its belly and carried it with him out of the room.
Quaet secured the doorway behind him. Then he looked down the hallway. No one was around. Quaet put the black cat down on the floor. The cat hissed at its dissatisfaction of the situation. He turned to look at Quaet and give him another hiss.
“Go!” Quaet yelled at the cat.
Startled by Quaet’s attitude the cat scurried off down the hallway, ready to do its duty of freeing the palace of invading vermin, and unwanted emperors.
Quaet nodded as the cat ran around the corner and began to make its way through the palace. The signal had been sent. Now, it was only a matter of time before the Suraya saw the cat and took action.
Every hallway the cat hustled through caught the attention of at least one person. Workers and secret revolutionaries saw the black blur of a signal streak across the hallway. Immediately, they quit what they were doing and they began to move in the direction of their orders. It was time to free the Empress.
Quaet did not want to get too close to the situation that was forming
outside of Marina’s quarters, but his excitement got the better of him. He wanted to see for himself Marina being freed. He made sure to keep his distance though as more men of the Suraya began to huddle at the entry way of her quarters. Quaet looked out from behind the corner of the hallway as the Suraya got to work.
The sound of pounding and striking against the stone walls echoed through the hallway and disturbed Marina inside of her room. She left her spot in the hole in the floor and rushed to the entry way of her quarters.
“What is going on?!” she yelled over the sound of demolition.
“Stay clear of the door!” ordered one of the members of the Suraya. “You will be freed, My Empress.”
Marina smiled with wide eyes. Quaet had come through for her. She bobbed her head in agreement with every bang against the wall. She watched as the dust went falling to the ground. Soon it would be the entire wall.
“Faster,” Quaet ordered under his breath.
The door began to loosen on its hinges. It would be down in no time. Quaet’s smile grew larger. On the other side of the door Marina’s eyes began to light up. Her freedom was near.
“What are you doing?” were the words that disrupted the escape.
Suddenly, the hallway grew dimmer. The torches that hung on the walls illuminated into a dark red flame.
Quaet curled up around the corner. Nobody had seen him yet, he told himself.
Emperor Nikali swayed with every step he took. Quaet had not even seen him come into the hallway. Nikali’s head hung low, and his hair was pushed forward to cover much of his face. His faithful fury arck was by his side. The familiar sound of its nose sniffing the air thundered to everyone’s attention.
“We are here to free Empress Marina,” said one of the members of the Suraya.
“Marina is a prisoner,” said Nikali. His voice roared with disgust.
“Marina is our savior,” said the man.
“I know the truth though,” said Nikali. “The delightful truth to the sorrows of our empire, and it all begins with her. Taste a tear. Drop a sock.”
“You are nothing but a liar, and a mad man,” said the Suraya representative.
“Marina is a traitor,” said Nikali. “And so are all of you.”
Quaet remained quiet. He dared not interfere in any way. If the Suraya were successful then great, but if they failed he still had to be able to salvage his own life.
“We are not traitors,” said the man. “It’s you that has betrayed Eluan.”
“She wants to destroy Eluan!” Nikali shouted. “What kind of fool are you that you do not see that?”
“I am not the fool, Nikali,” said the man.
Nikali chuckled. His body rocked back and forth on the balls of his feet. Then he began to arch backward. His face leaned back as far as it would go and he looked straight up to the ceiling.
“So many turns!” Nikali shouted as he began to spin around in circles.
“Free her!” the man shouted his orders to the rest of the Suraya. Quickly, the other revolutionaries near the doorway got back to work on breaking Marina’s door off the hinges.
“Marina planned to have me killed,” said Nikali. “She planned to kill us all. There will be no releasing her.”
“You’re a liar,” said the man.
“I don’t care,” said Nikali. “I will execute Marina for her crimes against the throne.”
“We will not stand for this,” said the man. “You are sick and a drunk. You are not fit to rule Eluan.”
“Then sit down,” said Nikali. A burst of arcan swept across the men of the Suraya’s legs. The men collapsed to the floor with little chance to catch their fall.
Several people made a run for it. They wanted nothing to do with a direct conflict with Nikali. Nikali paid them no mind as they ran past him down the hallway.
Quaet watched as several of the Suraya made their retreat. He cursed their names under his breath. They were going to surely fail if they fled now. They had to stand their ground. At least for the moment to buy him some time. There was another way, the thought occurred to Quaet. Marina was working on her own escape. How far had she gotten? As long as Nikali was there the main entrance was futile for Marina. Quaet would have to move quickly.
Down the hallway Nikali stared down the men of the Suraya. The dedicated freedom fighter got back to his feet. He was going to stand up to the tyrant, Nikali.
“I should have you hanged beside Marina,” said Nikali. “You should not disobey your emperor.”
Despite their common height, Nikali towered over the Eluan rebel. There was nowhere to run for the man. Nikali’s stare burned into him. His gamble of Marina’s freedom was not paying off.
Then the torches in the hallway returned to their normal state. The fires quieted down and the atmosphere began to feel a bit lighter.
Nikali took a step back. He looked all around him several times as if he was suddenly lost. The man took a couple of steps back from the crazed emperor.
Nikali wrestled against the air. Everything had gone dull for him. There was no more tingle in his spine. His world was spinning against his own thoughts. A vision consumed his head. The Louson army was once again marching on Eluan. Suddenly, Nikali was at the mercy of the remaining members of the Suraya. Something wasn’t right.
Nikali shot his hand out and slammed it against the stone wall. Pain coursed through his arm and gave Nikali a shot of life. He struck the wall several more times. His hand busted open, leaving blooding prints against the wall.
“I will kill you all,” said Nikali. He charged forward toward the leader of the Suraya. His right hand was limp by his side. Blood trickled to the floor.
Nikali knelt down. He grabbed the man by the collar. Blood quickly stained his clothing. Then Nikali rubbed his broken hand against the man’s cheek. They stared each other in the eye. Every second Nikali got closer and closer to the man’s face. Eventually Nikali’s head was pressed up against the man’s forehead.
“Who are you?” mumbled Nikali. “Marina took her shot. She failed. Her time is over. I will mock her entire life. I will see to it that everything she cares for is destroyed.”
Nikali’s hands wrapped around the man’s throat. He began to choke the life out of the traitor. The man fought back as hard as he could. His arms wailed against Nikali, but with little strength. The Suraya member was exhausted and in pain. His heart was pumping desperately in his chest. The man’s body began to demand relief. He needed air.
Then like slamming into a horse, Nikali was thrown off of his victim. The other members of the Suraya finally rushed into the fight. They surrounded the man and formed a blockade against Nikali.
“This is over!” another member declared. Members of the Suraya brought out their knives. They were ready to strike against Nikali but the fury arck jumped in between the two sides.
The leathery creature was in attack position. It growled several times at the threatening revolution. The monster’s tail swept from side to side. The Suraya inched forward and the fury arck jutted out with a warning attack. Its jaws snapped followed by another low lingering growl.
Behind the door in Marina’s room began to emerge more sounds of a ruckus. Nikali’s face went from enraged to curious. He looked back at the door that was now behind him. The entrance to Marina’s quarters had not been opened yet.
“Kill him,” ordered the leader of the Suraya.
Nikali smiled at the approaching men. “Where do you think you are? The pride follows. The tide roars.”
A roar of yelling and hollering boomed through the hallway. The rebel group turned away from Nikali to see what was coming. Workers from the construction project were charging forward with tools in their hands. Each one had the crazed eyes of an arcan user.
“This is my home!” shouted Nikali. “These are my people!”
The Suraya were forced to turn their focus away from Nikali and defend themselves against Nikali’s followers.
“Protect your emper
or!” screamed Nikali. “Protect Charos!”
“Retreat,” ordered the leader of the Suraya.
The rebels huddled together. Then they plowed through the workers that tried to fight them tooth and nail. Bodies began to fall left and right along the walls of the hallway, but the Suraya were no match for the numbers that Nikali’s followers had. More bodies poured into the hallway by the second. The Suraya had no chance of escape. One by one they fell. Each time Nikali’s smile grew a little larger.
With the threat neutralized Nikali had the chance to catch his breath for the moment. There was no reason for his power to fluctuate like it did. For a second he was vulnerable. That should not have happened.
Nikali sat up against his faithful fury arck. His powers were waning again. He could feel the spark of life in the bottom of his spine, but it would diminish just as quickly. Eventually, he felt nothing again. His power was gone. His head felt cracked open. His mouth was dry. He still thought he could feel the power reaching out of him, but there was nothing.
“Bust down that door,” Nikali ordered from his followers.
His servants did as they were told. They began to knock away at the thick wooden door. Chips of wood went flying into the air. Nikali never got to his feet. He sat in his rage watching as they got closer and closer into Marina’s chambers.
Eventually, a hole was made. Nikali’s heart raced. He didn’t need powers to finally exact his revenge against the Arraws. Alexus had tried to kill him. Nikali knew there was a conspiracy, but he never did anything about it. He always kept Marina at bay. He never knew why. He never thought about it. She was never in his thoughts. Why was she never a target? What had she done to him?
The hole was big enough for somebody to slip through. Nikali did not hesitate. He got to his feet and pushed his men aside.
Nikali slithered into the room. It was quiet. Every step Nikali made creaked open the silence. Marina was nowhere to be found in the entry way.
Eluan Falls: A Whisper of Fate Page 22