“It’s true, whether I’m naïve, innocent or whatever else you want to call it,” Liselle said in irritation. “Just because everyone else in the world thinks a certain way doesn’t mean they’re right.”
“Peace, I meant no insult.” There was worry in Emmaoen’s eyes. She clearly didn’t want to upset her new friend.
“I know.” Liselle waved off the concern. “I’m just getting a little tired of being called ‘innocent’. Anyway, we were talking about Tathan. He just goes around murdering people? I can’t see that.”
The duchess shook her head. “No, that’s not it. He tends to kill powerful people. In fact, many consider him a hero, especially the poor.”
That was new information and Liselle clung to it in hope. “What do you mean?”
“Your cousin likes to steal powerful things like his sword, Lightdrinker. It’s an ancient artifact of great power.”
“I wondered if the sword had a name,” Sir Danth said from the other side of the duchess. The road was wide and largely empty, so the ladies rode next to each other with the boys on the outside. “Lightdrinker is a good name for it.”
“Some call it Lifedrinker too. Nobody really knows much about it.” Emmaoen seemed to be enjoying the companionship and conversation. “Tathan stole it from a powerful wizard in the mountains of Deller. The wizard came after him and died by the blade. What isn’t often told is that soldiers of Deller investigated the tower and found hundreds of bodies. The wizard had been performing experiments on peasants and torturing them for fun.”
“Oh, that’s terrible!” Vevin exclaimed. He was bobbing his head in a horrified dance of sorts.
“There was a prince he killed in the Kingdom of Sooarth after that, probably one of the bounties Felina wants to collect. The prince had slaughtered and burned the citizens of three villages in the northern part of his own kingdom. He also had a crown with a rare emerald in it. Tathan of the Shadows stole the crown off his head with everyone looking and still managed to escape. Then he killed the prince the next day. He jumped off a roof, onto the back of the prince’s horse and then slit the prince’s throat and jumped to the next building.”
“That sounds gruesome,” Liselle replied.
“It is,” Emmaoen admitted. ”Tathan of the Shadows has a reputation for doing things in fantastic style, but most of the rumors about him are exaggerated. Many people think that Tathan single-handedly killed the Prince’s entire army too when he only killed a few of the officers.”
“Is that all?” Sir Danth asked wryly.
“Tathan told me about rogues’ guilds in one city and then spending time in Dralin.” Liselle was most curious about Dralin. It sounded dangerous and exciting.
“The details aren’t clear,” Emmaoen replied. “Some say he destroyed three rogues’ guilds, others say he was a victim of a guild war.” They moved to single file to let a wagon train pass. After it was clear, they spread out again and Emmaoen answered the other question. “The stories out of Dralin are almost as murky as the city itself. It’s known that he killed a few wizards, a hero of the country, and a high-ranking member of Altordan’s ruling council. There are rumors about him killing a captain of the guard, murdering a demigod, destroying a death cult and a number of other things.”
“Wow. That’s a lot.” Instead of helping matters, the tale confused Liselle. Her cousin seemed to do a lot of everything both good and bad.
“Like I said. Most of the tales about him are rumor. No one really knows who Tathan of the Shadows is except perhaps Tathan of the Shadows,” Emmaoen finished with a smile.
“I don’t think he’s evil,” Liselle said right away. She felt a need to defend her cousin. “I don’t know what he’s thinking most of the time.”
“I’m not judging him, Liselle. I’m just telling you what I know,” Emmaoen explained.
“I’m not upset with you,” Liselle said. “I just don’t know what to think about all of it.”
“We have time, dearest,” Vevin said. “Make up your mind later after you talk to him more.”
“That’s a good idea. I think I’ll do that,” Liselle answered with a nod. The rest of the day was filled with small talk. Most of the talking was done by the ladies, who exchanged tales of their childhoods. On occasion, the duchess would zap a spider that came too close to the road. Vevin would help her, finding it an enjoyable game. Even Sir Danth shifted to the side of the road and killed a couple. His horse was surprised when he disappeared and reappeared on top of its back. The horse chose not to say anything about it though. Liselle couldn’t bring herself to kill the spiders unnecessarily even to help her friend.
***
A cold rain began falling that night and lasted for the next three days, making their journey an uncomfortable one, though they made good time. The fourth day dawned sunny and by late morning on the fifth, they were in Yema. In Kethril, unlike other kingdoms, the army provided all the protection in cities as well as protecting against threats to the country. Word spread quickly and soon they were sitting with the mayor of the city and a general who was visiting from a nearby garrison fort.
“The ship attacked a village called Homram on the eastern side of the kingdom last week, Duchess,” General Barrbro said as the others dug into their meals. “There is no pattern to the attacks. Homram didn’t have more than a few soldiers to protect it and they were of no use.” He shook his head in disgust. “We just can’t seem to do anything about it. The ship attacks at night, terrorizes the village and then goes to surrounding farms to steal the sheep.
Sir Danth was leaning back on the chair, balancing with his boot on the bottom of the table. “How do the sheep get on the ship? Does someone herd them or do the sheep just walk up the ramp?
“We don’t know. The ship never gets close to people. It waits for them to go put out the fires in the village. All anyone ever sees is the sails and a low wooden shape. They hear a ship’s bell and creaking. When it’s gone, the sheep are gone with it.
“Thank you for the information, General. We’ll be traveling east from here in the hopes of intercepting it. Yema looks to be well guarded,” Emmaoen told him.
“Always, Milady.” The general slammed a fist into his chest. Liselle giggled at the gesture, drawing frowns. She blushed and let it go without explanation.
With a good half-day’s sunlight remaining, they forged on. Liselle desperately wanted to find the ship and get Tathan out of jail.
Chapter 14
The suite the handmaidens led Anilyia to was wonderful. Carpets and tapestries showed wealth. The sitting room was furnished with well-crafted furniture and most of the seats were cushioned with pillows for added comfort. A bar on the right would contain wine and fine liquors and a fire crackled in the hearth. Four cloth-covered doorways led to bedrooms, an office area and bathing room.
Even with all the finery, it didn’t begin to compare to her personal suites back in Mayncal where she had an entire wing dedicated to her comfort. It marked her as one of the richest women in the world.
She was a bit piqued that Emmaoen hadn’t made mention of the fact that she was a duchess during their journey. It would have been nice to have another person of noble birth to talk to awhile. Instead, Emmaoen had acted just as eccentric as the rest of the people Anilyia had been dealing with.
The handmaidens fussed over her without being of any real use. One was dusting off a pillow while the other pecked at dust on Anilyia’s clothing. “Enough! Have you two silly birds ever taken care of a princess . . . or anyone of royal blood?” Anilyia demanded.
“Oh yes, Your Highness,” the one fussing over her said. “I once helped Princess Chirelle with her hair.”
“And you did a terrible job of it,” A high voice said from the doorway.
Anilyia turned. She kept her chin up and her eyes narrowed as though meeting a peasant. It was the best way to meet a princess from a lesser kingdom. The princess prepared herself for a battle of wills with eager anticipation.
&
nbsp; Two young women in exquisite gowns flowed into the room, holding their chins in the air similar to the manner in which Anilyia had hers. They were younger than Anilyia, one being about sixteen and the other who followed about fourteen or fifteen. One had blonde hair like their father and the other had chestnut locks. Each was pretty and took care of themselves as a proper princess should.
A gaggle of ladies-in-waiting, handmaidens and maidservants filled the room, waiting for any one of the princesses to give a command. No orders were forthcoming though. The three royals took position in a standoff. The two Kethril princesses stood next to each other.
Because they were in Kethril, the two held higher rank. But Mayncal was one of the most powerful kingdoms in the world and richer than Kethril. There were other factors such as age. Anilyia was older, but that was not an advantage because she was beyond the age where she should have been married. The Kethril princesses were the prime age for unmarried princesses.
A big factor was the fact that Anilyia was alone with no servants or friends. Her illegitimate lover was in jail and her companions were off on a quest to save him. The fact that Anilyia had been kidnapped and was still in the process of being rescued was another large strike against her.
The clothes were the worst part. Each of the Kethril princesses was perfect in their elegant gowns decorated with the finest embroidery whereas Anilyia was dirty and sweaty. Her hair was pulled back and greasy. The travel outfit she wore would be more appropriate on a country countess than on a princess.
The Kethril princesses had the advantage but for two things. Even in her disheveled state, Anilyia was beautiful . . . epically gorgeous. She outshined the others, though they were beautiful in their own right. Most importantly, she was the princess that all others measured against and found themselves wanting. When the Kethril princesses did not relent, Anilyia lowered her chin and stared them both in the eyes, a trick she had learned at an early age. Sometimes it was necessary to stare more than one person in the eyes at a time.
After all the time thinking about how nice it would be to be back in court where she could play politics and games of power, she now found herself mad at having to do so. The two little upstart princesses were challenging Anilyia’s position when all she wanted was to take a bath and figure out how to help Tathan escape.
Anilyia was going to take a day or two to relax and be pampered first though. The phrase, ‘known seducer of women’ had stuck in her ears. She still loved Tathan with all of her heart, but was very much afraid that she might just be another trophy in a long line of fools.
The servants looked like chickens with the way they twisted their heads back and forth to see who would win. The younger of the two princesses was wavering just a bit. Anilyia was going to win the contest of wills, but it was going to take a while and she didn’t want to deal with it, so she cheated.
Breaking into tears was a thing child princesses did. Doing so after reaching maturity was considered cheating, especially for the twenty-year-old child of a reigning king.
The Kethril princesses lost their composure when honest tears began rolling down Anilyia’s face. Many of the women surrounding them gasped in shock. Regardless of how remote Kethril might be, they knew exactly who Anilyia was. They also knew she had a reputation for toughness and a sharp mind. For her to cry was doubly unexpected.
The first tears pulled more out along with overwhelming emotions. Anilyia struggled to continue staring and holding her head high. Now that she had let the first tears flow, she didn’t want the rest to come. Resistance was futile and the dam broke. Strangled sobs began to choke their way past her throat. Her shoulders and legs shook from effort. Still, she held her head high.
The Kethril princesses began crying in empathy for Anilyia. Anything bad enough to make her break must be terrible. Then they rushed forward and wrapped their arms around her. For a moment longer, she tried to hold it together.
Anilyia had locked the events of the past year in the back of her mind. She had cried in fear a few times when with the companions, but a part of her was always on guard. Anilyia sank to the floor, bawling. The princesses sank with her.
“You poor thing! Oh how terrible it must have been!” the younger of the two said. Anilyia didn’t respond other than to break into a fresh round of sobbing. They knelt on the floor for a good ten minutes until her anguish was spent.
Looking up, she realized that the servants were still staring in silence. Many of them were wiping tears from their cheeks as well. One of them dashed forward and handed her a hanky. She extricated an arm and used it to wipe some of her tears. “I must look dreadful.”
When she moved her arm and spoke, the other two helped her onto a nearby couch, where they sat on either side of her. “Yes. You’re filthy and there are streaks of dirt and tears down your face,” the older acknowledged. Trust a princess to tell it like it was. “And I must tell you that I absolutely hate you for being so gorgeous in spite of it.” She lessened the impact with a smile. Anilyia laughed softly in response.
“I’m Chirelle, oldest daughter of King Turman Cranwer and fourth in line to the throne. This is my sister Millia, second daughter and fifth in line to the throne.” Chirelle’s voice was high-pitched, but powerful. She was elegant and self-assured in her movements.
Anilyia fell into the soft back of the couch. “Thank you for having me in your beautiful home.” More tears began flowing. She wondered where they got the nerve to come from. It was time to stop crying. “I’m Prin . . .”
“We know who you are,” The younger said gently with a hand on Anilyia’s knee. “You need a bath. I’m certain our handmaidens haven’t been staring at us like timid little mice, but instead have been preparing a nice hot bath with vanilla oils. That’s my favorite scent, what’s yours?”
The subtle chastisement didn’t pass the notice of said handmaidens. In an instant, the room was a flurry of activity. They could hear water being poured in one of the rooms, while an older servant brought glasses of wine. Dresses appeared out of nowhere to change into after the bath and two ladies-in-waiting grabbed Anilyia’s hands, pulling her up to strip the dirty travel clothes.
“I like vanilla, but almond is my favorite.” It was wonderful to be taken care of after so many weeks of doing everything herself. She was rushed into the luxurious bathroom where a marble pool large enough to fit six people took up a corner. Anilyia saw that one of the older maidservants was sticking her hand in tubs and heating the water magically. The pool was almost full and steam rose from it. She sighed in pleasure just at the thought of getting in.
Numerous glass bottles filled with scent were on a shelf nearby. Millia pointed at them and told one of the women, “Almond and vanilla, they’ll make a nice combination. Before she goes in the bath, wash the worst of the dirt off outside the tub.”
“Excellent idea,” Chirelle agreed. Anilyia was led to an open space in the other corner with a drain in the marble tiled floor. The woman heating water briefly dipped her hand into another tub of water. Anilyia saw a rune-stone in her hand that held the magic to do the heating. It was a common magical item among wealthier houses. Two of the stronger women stood on a bench near the drain and poured the water over Anilyia’s head while three others surrounded her and began scrubbing with soap. Being a princess was splendid.
When the women were done scrubbing, Anilyia was led into the bath where the other two were already lounging with glasses of wine. A glass was put in Anilyia’s hand as well and she sighed in pleasure as the water surrounded her body.
“Your beauty has not been exaggerated,” Chirelle said. “Even with all the dirt, you put us to shame.” Anilyia glanced sharply at her. The statement conceded rank, but could be used to catch her off guard. Chirelle looked her in the eyes. “Peace. You need friends right now, not competitors. Let’s just skip all the posturing. You’re Princess Anilyia of Mayncal, the most beautiful and richest princess in the world. Perhaps we’re just a couple of provincial bumpkins in
your eyes, but we have the bath, wine and servants, so I figure it evens out at the moment,” she said with a wink.
Anilyia burst into laughter. “Yes, you have me there. This is oh so lovely and you’ve been wonderful to me. Thank you,” she told them sincerely. “You’re both beautiful and I don’t think of either of you as bumpkins. Perhaps I would have a year ago, but things are different now.” A handmaiden had her sit up so she could massage Anilyia’s neck and shoulders. “Ohh, that’s nice.” She didn’t realize how tense she had become. Tathan had given her massages on occasion, but they usually led to other things before any knots could be worked out.
“The news of your kidnapping reached us even this far away. It must have been terrible,” Millia said, obviously wanting details.
“I can’t imagine,” Chirelle agreed. “And to be rescued by Tathan of the Shadows and they said a dragon too.” She took a sip of her wine and frowned. “If you don’t tell us this story, I swear I’ll throw you over the castle walls to the ocean below, rank be damned.”
Anilyia laughed again and the princesses joined in. Everyone else stared in shock at the complete disregard for propriety. Anilyia contemplated how much to tell them before saying anything. As she told her story, handmaidens worked on getting her back to looking like a real princess. She especially enjoyed the manicure.
“I was kidnapped by a group of men at night while walking through the palace gardens. They murdered my personal guards and my best friend.” Anilyia stopped for a moment while vainly trying to hold back the tears welling in her eyes. It had been a while since thinking about that.
“I’m sorry,” Chirelle leaned forward and put a hand on her arm.
“I haven’t talked about the actual kidnapping with anyone.” One of the handmaidens wiped Anilyia’s nose for her. “The desert men that took me were deadly and efficient. I didn’t get a chance to scream because one covered my mouth with a cloth while the others killed. There was something in the cloth that made me lose consciousness.”
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