by Nathan Roden
Lucien grabbed Oliver’s collar with both hands. He was so consumed by rage that his hands shook and spit flew from his mouth.
“This is treason! I will have you thrown into the dungeon!”
“And you would have every right, my King. But if that is to be my fate, I will go with a clear conscience.”
“What is that supposed to mean?”
“The dragon did not kill the queen’s handmaid. She is alive.”
“Liar!” Lucien growled. “I saw her body myself!”
“You saw a hundred burned bodies. And you saw one with a locket on top of it.”
“Why are you telling me this? What difference does it make?”
“Because you are in danger as well.”
“What?”
Oliver cleared his throat.
“The queen is carrying your heir—”
“If it is indeed a male child,” Lucien said.
“It is a male child. This is a certainty.”
“How can you—?”
“After the child is born—Sterling is going to kill you.”
Lucien stared into Oliver’s eyes. Neither flinched or looked away.
Lucien let go of Oliver’s collar.
“What game are you playing? And to who have you pledged your alliance? Have you allied against me?”
“This is no game, Your Grace. And I assure you—my only desire is what is best for the kingdom.”
“Wait here,” Lucien said.
“I’m coming with you.”
Fifty-three
Finn stood with his hand on the hilt of his sword.
“Do not worry, My Queen. And, My Lady,” he said. “I will post only my most trusted and faithful men to watch over the children.”
Robinette Lamont bent over and ran her hands through Ezekiel’s hair.
The little boy smiled up at her.
“So very precious!” she whispered, with a slight crack in her voice.
The three Brewer children were warm and dry, on cots laid out in a remote corner of the dungeon of Castle Islemar.
Finn, Lady Lamont, and Jaclyn stepped away.
“They cannot stay in here forever,” Robinette whispered. “With no place to run and play—or even to stand in the light of the sun!”
Jaclyn scowled.
“Sterling has inflicted this wicked creature on us. The dragon eludes him—so he turns on the children? Does this madness have no end?”
“Sterling has always feared magic,” Finn said. “And, although the giant is powerful, he is by no means invincible. He will always fear that there are others who might best him.”
Jaclyn balled her fists.
“If I could get word to Simon, I would ask him…”
“What would you ask him, Jaclyn?” Robinette asked. “The dragon has strength, and fire—but he is no match for this wizard’s magic. This wizard has killed many dragons. That’s why Sterling brought him here. You must not allow your desires to cloud the reality of what is.”
Jaclyn sat down. She buried her face in her hands.
“What good is it to be the queen?” she sobbed. “If I cannot help the innocent? Am I no more than an illusion? Am I no more than a portrait inside of a dress? If I cannot make the world a better place—what good do I do at all?”
Lady Lamont sat down and put her arms around her daughter.
“We stay alive, my queen,” Finn said. “We live, while your father gathers support for the rebellion. We live—to fight for one more day.”
Finn pulled the carriage beside the dungeon door. He waved and nodded to two ladies who passed by.
“Good day, ladies.”
“And a good day to you, Lieutenant. Are you driving Lady Lamont’s carriage? Please tell me that you have not been demoted!”
Finn laughed along with the two ladies.
“No, not yet! Actually, I am taking the Queen and Lady Lamont on a picnic.”
“Oh, that sound lovely!” the ladies swooned. “Where are you going?”
“That, is yet to be determined,” Finn lied.
He knew exactly where they were going—to the far side of the lake. It was a place that he knew well.
“Give the queen and My Lady our best, Good Sir.”
“I will,” Finn said.
When the ladies disappeared from view, Finn slipped between the doors and the carriage. He lifted the three children inside of the carriage and closed the doors.
And then he pulled to the front of the castle and picked up Jaclyn and Robinette Lamont.
Eight soldiers followed behind the carriage, on Finn’s orders. He told them to remain far behind, and once at the lake, they were to stay out of sight entirely.
The men did not understand, but, orders were orders.
Finn pulled the carriage to a stop.
“You have chosen the perfect place for a picnic, Captain!” Lady Lamont exclaimed. “I have not been to this side of the lake in ages!”
Jaclyn inhaled the fresh air and smiled. She closed her eyes and lifted her face to meet the warm midday sun.
“It is lovely here, Lieutenant Finn,” Jaclyn said. “Thank you so much. Let’s get those children out to meet this gorgeous day! It is simply dreadful that they have to hide in that cold, dark dungeon.”
Finn opened the carriage doors.
“Come out! Come out! Wherever you—!”
The children were gone.
And then, they were there.
“You could have told me that you can do that, Caleb,” Finn said.
“Aw, where’s the fun in that?” Caleb said.
Finn tousled Caleb’s hair.
“Run about and play, children,” Jaclyn said. “Mother and I will get everything ready.”
“I can do it,” Caleb said.
“That won’t be necessary, dear,” Robinette said.
Sara tugged at Jaclyn’s sleeve. Jaclyn bent over to listen.
“Caleb likes to do things. When people don’t let him do things, it makes him sad.”
“Very well, Caleb. Prepare us a picnic, good Sir. The basket is—”
“Yes, my queen. I know where everything is.”
Robinette put her hand to her mouth to keep from laughing.
“Well, of course, you do,” Jaclyn said, making a face at her mother. “How silly of me.”
Caleb raised his hand toward the carriage. The basket rose and hovered over a perfect patch of grass near the water. The lid opened, and the contents flew out in a blinding rush. Two blankets snapped open and floated to the ground. The other contents distributed themselves in a perfect arrangement.
Finn laughed and clapped his hands. Jaclyn and Robinette joined in, and then Sara and Zeke.
Caleb smiled and looked a little embarrassed.
“That was tremendous!” Finn said.
“Amazing!” Robinette added.
“Very, very nice, Caleb!” Jaclyn said. “Did the Lady teach you that?”
“No,” Caleb said. His smile faded.
“This was a simple thing. The Lady taught me other things—some of which are not so simple.”
“Can you show us?” Jaclyn asked.
Caleb turned away.
“Perhaps later.”
His smile returned.
“After we have enjoyed this exquisite meal. I smell roasted chicken!”
They finished eating. Sara and Zeke ran toward the lake shore, chasing butterflies.
“What did the Lady show you, Caleb?” Jaclyn asked.
“The Lady said that the time would come, when I would have to protect myself. When I would have to protect all three of us. The Lady was always honest with me. If she was not, I would have known it. She said that there was magic she could teach me that she could not do herself.”
“That sounds…dangerous, Caleb,” Robinette said.
“I cannot lie, My Lady. It is dangerous, indeed.”
Jaclyn glanced at Finn. He shrugged.
“Sara!” Caleb called. “Come here, pl
ease.”
Sara took Zeke’s hand, and they walked toward Caleb.
Caleb reached out and hugged his sister and brother. He kissed them on their foreheads.
“I will need for you to take Zeke and go to the happy village.”
Sara nodded.
Caleb raised his head and opened his mouth. He made a high-pitched noise that seemed to fade to silence, although his mouth remained open.
Flocks of birds left the trees and flew north. Rabbits scurried across the field in the same direction.
Jaclyn leaned toward Sara and whispered.
“What is he doing?”
“He’s telling the animals to go away—for just a little while.”
“Why?”
Sara smiled.
“You’ll see.”
Caleb closed his mouth.
“Zeke, go and visit the happy village with Sara.”
Sara sat on a blanket, with her legs crossed in front of her. Zeke walked to her, turned around, and sat down in her lap.
He looked up at Jaclyn and waved.
“Bye-bye!”
Jaclyn waved back.
“Caleb, what are you doing?”
Sara placed her hands on the sides of Zeke’s head.
The children became as still as stone. Their eyes rolled up in the backs of their heads.
“Sara!” Jaclyn screamed. “Caleb! What is happening?”
Finn leaped to his feet and drew his sword. He did not know what else to do.
“Do not worry, My Queen,” Caleb said softly. “They’ve gone to a safe place.”
“What safe place?!” Robinette exclaimed.
“A place that protects their eyes and ears,” Caleb said.
“As well as their minds.”
“Did you do that?” Jaclyn asked.
Caleb smiled.
“No. Sara did.”
“Sara?” Robinette exclaimed. “She has magic, as well?”
“Oh, yes,” Caleb said. “She has considerable skills for her age. I hope to teach her when she is a little older as the Lady taught me.”
Jaclyn was a bit faint. She wobbled on her feet. Finn caught her by the arm.
“What are you about to do, Caleb?” Jaclyn asked.
“You wished to see what the Lady taught me. Have you changed your mind?”
“No.”
“Be ready to close your eyes,” Caleb said. “And you should cover your ears.”
Finn covered his ears and stepped in front of Jaclyn and Robinette.
“Caleb, perhaps we should discuss this first—”
Caleb was no longer listening.
He raised his right hand in front of him. An orb of light appeared. He lifted his hand toward the sky, and a beam of light rose high into the clouds. Caleb stood still as if in a trance. He closed his eyes and his face showed no expression.
Suddenly, his face changed. Rage, power, and retribution became personified.
Caleb swung his hands toward the woods.
THOOM!
Bolts of lightning shot down, exploding dozens of trees that had bordered the lake for a hundred years. The air was filled with the rain of splintered timber. The impact left a crater of twenty-feet at its center.
“Great Vehallion’s ghost!” Finn cried out.
“By the gods, Caleb!” Robinette said when she was finally able to speak.
Jaclyn looked on in shock until a voice whispered in the back of her mind.
We are in danger.
The soldier in charge of the guard detachment drove his horse toward the noise.
Finn ran toward him, waving his arms.
“It is nothing! No cause for concern! Back to your stations!”
Caleb stepped across the blanket and touched Sara on the shoulder. Her eyes became normal as did Zeke’s.
“The fire,” Finn said. “The fire is spreading—and we have no way to stop it.”
“Do not worry, My Lord,” Caleb said.
Caleb lifted his hand once again, this time in the direction of the lake. The lake’s surface began to ripple. A swell of water rose into the air, becoming a water spout that reached over a hundred feet into the air. Caleb moved his hand, and the spout moved over the raging fire.
The fire was extinguished in a matter of seconds.
“We have to go, lieutenant,” Jaclyn said. “Quickly.”
They loaded the carriage and made their way nervously back to Islemar. They saw only merchants on the road.
The children were safely in their beds, in the dark recesses of the dungeon.
Robinette Lamont poured herself a glass of wine with shaking hands.
“It appears that we have averted disaster, once again. Who could have dreamed that that sweet boy was capable of such destruction?”
Jaclyn fell clumsily into a chair. She blew out a long breath. She rested her hand on her swollen belly. Her child tossed and turned.
“We can only pray that whoever heard that thought it was thunder.”
“Yes,” Robinette said. “Thunder—from a clear, blue sky.”
Fifty-four
The horses reared when the explosion sounded.
“By the gods! Are you all right, My King?”
Oliver jumped down from his mount. Lucien pulled himself to his feet, having landed hard on his backside.
“Yes, yes. I am fine. What the bloody hell was that noise?”
“Does Islemar have cannons?” Oliver asked.
“They have at least two,” Lucien said. “But they keep those at the harbor. That noise came from the west.”
“I pray that it’s not Sterling’s monster,” Oliver said.
Lucien scowled.
“What are you not telling me, squire? You profess to know what happened on the day the dragon escaped my dungeon. Some say that my brother has gone completely mad—that he will stop at nothing to see my child does not live to take the throne.”
“That is a lie,” Oliver snapped.
“There are few people I trust,” Lucien said. “But I am not sure where your loyalties lie.”
“My loyalty is to—”
Oliver stopped and turned his head to look down the road behind them.
“Do you hear—? Quickly. Someone is coming. We need to hide.”
They moved into the woods and tied up their horses. They crept to where they would have a view of the road.
“Oh, no. This is not good,” Oliver said.
The giant wizard, Dathien, rode hard toward the village of Islemar.
“What do we do now?” Oliver asked.
Lucien squeezed his head in his hands. He bent over.
“What’s wrong?” Oliver asked. He grabbed Lucien’s arm and helped him to sit down.
“I’m…I’m all right. A little dizzy, is all.”
“Did you see Sterling?” Lucien asked.
“No.”
“The monster has either come for me or for this…this magic child you speak of. Either way, we cannot just follow him into the village in broad daylight. We have no business there.”
“Do we stay here?”
“We wait until dusk,” Lucien said. He pressed his palms against the sides of his head. “And then we continue to near the village gates. We’ll camp in the woods where we can see the road.”
“But…the queen is there! And her father is not—!”
“Her father is—then where is he?” Lucien asked. “How is it that you know so much about the affairs of Islemar, squire? Who are you in league with?”
“You have no reason to doubt my loyalty, my king,” Oliver said. “I have sworn an oath to the crown. And that oath is my life.”
“The throne of Morgenwraithe has been usurped before,” Lucien said. “By men who knelt and swore their loyalty to the king.”
“I am not speaking of my oath on the day I was sworn into your guard,” Oliver said.
“I swore an oath to the queen.”
Fifty-Five
Sterling woke up angry and in pain.
His head throbbed. The bright morning sun hit his face and shone directly into his bloodshot eyes. He cursed loudly for his servants. Three of them ran into the room, tripping over each other to attend to his needs. Sterling cursed even more. He had been too drunk the night before to draw his curtains, or do anything other than fall onto his bed.
Sterling snatched his clean clothes out of the hands of a trembling old man. He clumsily began to get undressed. He almost fell attempting to remove a boot. All three nervous servants held their breath and prepared to have to catch Sterling before he hit the floor.
It was not the first time.
“Get…get away from me!” Sterling snapped. “Go! Go find something useful to do! And send Lucien in here, immediately!”
The servants were happy to comply. The least fortunate of them was forced to return minutes later with bad news.
“The King is not here. He rode away early…with his squire.”
Sterling swore and looked around for something to break, or to throw. He settled for one of his boots.
“Send in Captain Raynard!”
Raynard tapped at Sterling’s door and walked in. He squinted, pulled the curtains closed, and massaged his temples.
“Why is it the more you drink, the brighter the next morning’s sun?” Raynard said.
“Have you seen Lucien?” Sterling asked.
“No,” Raynard sneered. “The cat is away—perhaps the little mouse is at play.”
“The queen is away as well?” Sterling said. “Does no one feel the need to provide this village with an authority figure?”
“She accompanied her mother home to Islemar,” Raynard said. “With Lucien’s blessing.”
Raynard dropped into a chair.
“The king has gone off for more bow practice, I presume.”
“The boy has become less…predictable,” Sterling said. “Dathien and his god-forsaken towers have kept us out of the village for too long. Maybe the king intends to stop being the frightened little boy whom we have come to expect.”