The Dread King: Book One of The Larken Chronicles

by R. L. Poston

  After a moment’s hesitation, he responded. “I don’t have a choice, sir, and neither do you. If Algowinon is correct, I have to go. If he is not correct, we need to know that as well. There is no other choice except for me to go.”

  Some of the High Council disagreed, believing that there was danger in exposing Larken to what could be a repeat of his Bonding. Jaris reiterated his fear that Larken would be harmed, and the kingdom would lose its most powerful Talent at a time in which Talent was decreasing. Others spoke of their fear of some kind of subterfuge by the Elves. King Andreas spoke at this point, vouching for the long friendship between the two peoples. Finally, the Council agreed to send Larken to the Elven Council with the caveat that Gahen be allowed to witness the meld.

  No one was completely happy with the decision, but, as Larken had said, there was no better option. It was obvious that the problem of decreasing Talent mandated that they take every chance to understand what was happening, especially in light of the invasions of Norland and the Sarkan Mountains.

  At last, plans were made that seemed to be the best combination of all fears and wisdom. The Council, the king, the Warders, and the Healers would begin the necessary preparations for mounting a campaign to either help Norland repel the invaders or stop the invaders if they came to Shropanshire instead. Meanwhile Larken, Gahen, and a small troop would make a swift journey to the Elves. If all went well with the meld, they would join the larger force on its northern march to Norland.

  Grealand would also be advised and asked for assistance. Of the three kingdoms, Grealand was the most peaceful, depending on its relative isolation for its safety. The Seagrave Desert and the Sarkan Mountains protected Grealand to the east. High hills that fell precipitously to the sea protected much of Grealand’s west coast. Grealand’s few harbors in the south and northwest were easily defended because of the way the land rose steeply to the large, fertile plateau on which most of Grealand sat.

  To the north, both Shropanshire and Norland buffered Grealand from invaders. Grealand was generous with its agricultural products from its fertile soil, and had enjoyed amicable relations with its northern neighbors for several hundred years. Grealand would be expected to support the expedition with supplies, but not with many troops, since it had few. However, workmen, food, and other supplies should be coming quickly from Grealand in abundance.

  After the Council adjourned, the castle became a beehive of activity in spite of the late hour. Supplies had to be collected and stockpiled. Local troops had to be recalled from the field and readied for traveling. Other troops in far-flung regions had to be mobilized to have them meet Jaris’ army near Shropanshire’s northern border. Marching thousands of men across the kingdom necessitated planning that would take days to rough out. Supplies had to be moved along with the men and had to be ready at each point for consumption. Many wars were lost because supplies were not available to the army in the field. The logistics had to be planned in excruciating detail to be effective.

  Larken was largely uninvolved with the planning for the larger expedition since he would go with a smaller group to the Sarkan Mountains. With the able assistance of Sam, who was proving himself to be something of a logistics genius, Larken and Gahen quickly completed their plans.

  * * * * *

  Larken was subjected to a fresh round of questions about his link to the Dread King. Worse than the questions were the murmurings around him. If he did not already fear that he was the Dread King’s heir, he might have been able to ignore the questions and sideways glances. Although outwardly calm, inwardly he stayed tense and on edge.

  Larken’s mood grew darker as the hours sped by. Even Melona seemed out of sorts and moody in Larken's presence one evening as she sat with him over a late supper in one corner of the dining hall.

  “Larken, are you sure that you want to go?” asked Melona.

  Larken had sworn to himself that he would never invade Melona’s thoughts with his Talent. Even so, her question tempted him to do so because he couldn’t understand why Melona would have to ask that question. Melona knew that he did not want to go. Melona understood that there was really no choice. He was a Warder sworn to allegiance and obedience, and it was his Talent that obligated the trip. Out of his puzzlement he answered, “I don’t want to go at all, but I have to. You know that.”

  Melona sat looking down at her lap for a moment. Then rising and walking away, she said wearily, “You don’t understand. You never did.”

  To that remark, Larken had no answer. He couldn’t even begin to think of what Melona meant. He remained sitting, completely lost for an explanation of what had just happened.

  Gahen came into the hall and, seeing Larken, made a beeline for his table. “I’ve been looking for you. All the plans are done. Now it’s time for the traditional Warder farewell party before our trip tomorrow.” Catching a glance of Larken’s face, he sat down next to him. “You look as upset as Melona just did when I passed her. You two been fighting?”

  “I don’t know, Gahen. I honestly don’t know what we were doing,” Larken said. “Melona said that I don’t understand, and I honestly don’t even know what I’m supposed to understand.”

  “Uh-oh,” said Gahen. “The last time I heard someone say that, he was married in less than a month. Kid, you’re in real trouble now.”

  Larken could only stare openmouthed at Gahen. The prospect of marriage had not occurred to him at all. Larken’s confusion only fed Gahen’s sense of humor. “Come on, kid,” said Gahen grinning at Larken’s discomfort, “there’s nothing you can do about it. The key has already turned in that lock.”

  Gahen led Larken to one of the pubs down in the city of Sarkis. Larken had never drunk much ale or beer because he didn’t like the dizziness that it brought on. At the farewell party, however, Gahen poured more ale for him each time Larken drank halfway to the bottom of his tankard. After the first two tankards, Larken’s confusion over Melona’s remarks began to fade. He soon found most of his other cares fading as well. By the early hours of the morning, Larken had only three cares left. The first was to try to walk straight enough to get to his bed. The second was that he couldn't remember any of the punchlines to Gahen’s jokes. The third was who was going to wake him in the morning.

  Chapter 13: The Elven Fellowship

  It was a small mounted party that set out with Larken and Gahen before dawn for the Sarkan Mountains. Gahen had been given command of the party, and Larken was pleased to have him in charge. Two junior Warders, Daniel and Joseph, were in charge of the squad of cavalry assigned to them, but the party did not include any Healers in deference to Algowinon and Eleas, who accompanied them, leaving Elerdan to accompany the army to Norland. The Healers had, however, given Gahen a half dozen of their pigeons to be used for communication. Still, Larken was disappointed that neither Melona nor Taz had shown up to wish them farewell. He was still worried about Melona’s irritation with him the night before. On top of that worry, he felt guilty from his late-night partying with Gahen, although he couldn’t understand why he should feel guilty. He had fulfilled all his duties, and there really was a tradition of having a party before a long trip.

  Seeing that Larken was morose, Gahen at first kidded him, thinking that Larken just had a hangover. Soon, however, Gahen sensed that something other than physical malaise was affecting Larken.

  “What’s wrong, buddy?” Gahen asked. “It’s not just a hangover, is it?”

  “I don’t know, Gahen. I just don’t understand why Melona was so upset with me last night. She didn’t even come to see us off this morning. I know I was irritable, but Melona is used to that. What did I do wrong?”

  They rode side by side in silence for a few minutes before Gahen answered. “Larken, I’ve kidded you a lot because that’s my way. But you and Melona have something special that few couples do. The only problem is that you’re not making the right signals to Melona.”

  “What do you mean? What kind of signals should I be making?”<
br />
  “Well, think of it this way: what is the purpose of love?”

  “The purpose of love? I don’t understand. What do you mean the purpose of love? It’s just something that happens,” said Larken.

  “Wrong, kid,” said Gahen. “Everything has a purpose if you look hard enough to find it. One of the great secrets of understanding things is to find their purposes. So, what’s the purpose of love?”

  “Well, I guess it’s to make people stay together and get married.”

  “Right, kid. You’re not so dumb after all. And let me guess. Melona’s been sending you signals that she’s in love with you, but you haven’t sent any signals that you want to make it permanent. Right?"

  “I guess so. I guess I’m not ready to do that yet. There’s too much going on, and I don’t know how all this about me is going to come out.”

  “And you probably never will. There will always be something going on with you. That’s the Warder way, but that’s not the point. The purpose of love is to make you so miserable without each other that you’ll do anything, including getting married, to stay together. Melona knows that, but you haven’t figured it out yet. So, you’re sending the wrong signals. You’re saying that you’re in love, but not that much in love.”

  “Is that what she meant? That I was going off on this trip and leaving her? But we’re not going away by choice, and it’s not forever. I’ll be back,” protested Larken.

  “I didn’t say that it was logical, kid. That’s what makes it so much fun. What you’ve got to figure out is when you’re going to make the commitment. And it ain’t ‘if’, but ‘when.’ I’ve got a bet riding on the time.”

  Larken looked at Gahen sharply at that remark, but Gahen laughed and cantered off before Larken could question him further. Larken kept turning their conversation over in his head for the next half hour, but he finally decided to file it away for future consideration since he couldn’t come to a good conclusion just yet. If he knew who he was, who his father was, maybe things would be different. He had a power locked in him that could destroy both him and those around him. He didn’t think it was right to make commitments that he couldn’t fulfill. Maybe after the Elven Council, he would know more. Maybe then he could sort it all out.

  Larken, the other Warders, and the cavalry rode horses selected for endurance, so they didn’t need many breaks. They had worried about whether the unmounted Elves would be able to keep up, but the Elves surprised them by loping easily along with them. When they stopped at midmorning, Larken explained to Joseph and Daniel that the Elves’ light bones allowed them to be faster and have more stamina than a human, but that those same bones would break easier than a human’s. Larken also explained their sensitivity to sunlight. Elves could stand the sun for short periods, but prolonged exposure to the sun caused problems with their skin.

  “My aunt is like that,” volunteered Joseph. “She turns red as a cardinal if she stays out in the sun at all. And she has these patches on her face and hands that the Healers had to cut out. They said that they were because of the sunlight. But she’s got pure white hair and pink eyes just like the albino deer that we find every now and then.”

  “Well, that’s kind of how the Elves are,” said Larken. “They have blond hair, and their skin is almost white. That’s why, after today, we’ll be traveling mostly at night and in the early morning. We’ll have to get used to sleeping during the day.”

  The comparison to his aunt stirred Joseph’s curiosity. Joseph was not at all hesitant to ask questions directly of the Elves, who gracefully answered his questions. Even Larken learned some things that he had not thought to ask previously.

  The two weeks that it took to journey to the Sarkan Mountains were pleasant ones. The journey would have been much shorter, but every time they stopped at a village, they were beseeched to settle disputes or take messages back to Sarkis. They could have pressed on, refusing the villages’ requests, but King Andreas had instructed them to give the appearance that there was no immediate danger to the villages. The Elves faded into the forest as they approached the villages and returned to the company when the Warders left the villages. Since the villages were generous almost to a fault and the Elves were excellent hunters, the company ate almost as well as they would have back at the castle.

  Larken kept up his practice of both Warder and Elven skills during the rest times. His skill with a bow and arrows, now that he was Bonded, was exceptional. The first time that he practiced with a bow, the Warders and cavalrymen were fascinated by his abilities. For some reason that he couldn’t identify, Larken was very hesitant to explain the Elven sight that he used to guide the arrows. Without knowing why, he felt that secret should remain with the Elves and told the others that it was Talent that guided his bow without going into specifics. Afterwards, Eleas approached him to thank him for his silence.

  “I really don’t know why I felt that it should be a secret,” explained Larken. “I just had the feeling that it was something that I shouldn’t mention.”

  “You were correct,” replied Elias. “Elves are regarded as strange, but not threatening. It is best for us that others do not know of all of our abilities. Powerful neighbors are soon regarded as enemies.”

  “I suppose so,” said Larken. “It’s getting harder, however, to keep track of what I’m supposed to keep secret from whom.”

  “That is why Elves do not talk much,” replied Eleas.

  Larken could have sworn that a trace of a smile played on Eleas’ face. However, he couldn’t be sure.

  Gahen took an active part in assisting Larken to sharpen his Warder skills. Taking advantage of a Warders’ reduced need of rest, Gahen drilled Larken continually between midmorning and midafternoon while the rest of the party rested. Although Larken was stronger than Gahen in Talent, Gahen was often able to use his experience and skills to defeat Larken in mock battles. Larken was pleased to have this time with Gahen. He felt comfortable exposing his inexperience and lack of control to Gahen because Gahen had known him from his first introduction to Talent. Gahen drilled Larken on exercises that developed fine control and discrimination, explaining that many Warders depended too much on the raw power of Talent. Gahen had seen many Warders hurt because they forgot that Talent without control was dangerous. By the time they had reached the foot of the Sarkan Mountains, Larken had significantly advanced his fighting skills and felt more complete in his Warder abilities than he had when he had left Sarkis.

  He was continuing to increase in strength—both in Talent and physically. When he questioned Gahen about this, Gahen explained that it took years for a Warder to achieve his top physical strength. “I guess the body needs time to adjust to its new level of use,” Gahen was explaining as they rode together one evening.

  “How long did it take you?” asked Larken.

  “Probably about thirty years,” answered Gahen.

  “Thirty years!” exclaimed Larken. “Are you serious?”

  “Yep. But many times during those years, I felt that I had peaked. Then something would happen, and I would find that I could do something that I couldn’t before. Looking back, I can see the whole pattern. Even now, with my level of Talent decreasing like most folks, I feel that my skill is still increasing. It’s not constant, anymore, but every now and then, I find that I can do something that I couldn’t before. That’s what makes this so interesting.”

  The Elves also took advantage of their time with Larken to sharpen his sensing abilities. They did most of their teaching while Larken rode with them apart from the rest of the group. Larken could already sense other living things, but the Elves challenged him to develop the ability to tell what kind of living things were around them. At first, Larken could not make much sense out of their demands, but slowly he began to be able to sense more and more detail about the lives he was sensing. He soon was able to tell the quick and fast essence of a bird from the slow and steady essence of a reptile.

  “Someday, you will be able to recogn
ize individuals from their light,” explained Eleas.

  “I don’t see how,” said Larken. “Everybody looks the same to me. I can barely tell a horse from a person.”

  “It will come if you keep practicing,” said Eleas. “It may take years, but it will come.”

  As they approached the Sarkan Mountains, their road gradually became narrower and less traveled. Soon, they intercepted the Traveler’s Road, which ran along the western edge of the Sarkan Mountains. Larken had heard many stories of the Traveler’s Road. In the stories, the road was portrayed as a main thoroughfare heavily guarded by a large contingent of Warders. He was surprised, therefore, to find that, when they came to the village of Wayland at the intersection of their path and the Traveler’s Road, there were only six Warders stationed there. The Traveler’s Road itself was a broad hard-packed road of rock and clay that showed signs of heavy travel, and Larken expressed his concern to Gahen that only six Warders were stationed at Wayland. Gahen explained that a large fort had guarded the site in times past, but it had not been rebuilt after it had been destroyed in the Dread War. The Seagrave Desert and the Sarkan Mountains now guarded the site to the east, and the kingdoms of Norland and Grealand guarded the northern and southern legs of the Traveler’s Road.

  The weather had been rather hot and hazy during their approach to Wayland. The morning after they arrived, however, dawned bright and clear, heralding the crisp days of autumn and giving Larken his first clear look at the Sarkan Mountains. Larken had seen paintings of the mountains but found himself unprepared for their majesty up close. From the top of the Wayland watchtower, Larken could see where the forest gave way to the naked granite and jumbled rocks that still lay in the shadow of the eastern sun.