DAWN OF THE PHOENIX

by A. J. STRICKLER

  K’xarr spoke, still staring at the door. “I know what I said and I believe it, even Kian can’t fight his way out of a company of Church knights. Besides, Endra and the queen both thought the wizard did something to him before he brought them back to Turill. He’s dead, Cromwell, and Rhys as well. It’s a damn shame, they were good men.”

  “Then why in the hell did you send Endra after him?” Cromwell asked.

  “Would you rather she stay here and die with us? If she is away from here, she will have a chance to survive. By the time she gives up looking for the half-elf, the war will be over.”

  Cromwell gave K’xarr a friendly shove. “Kian is not the only one getting soft.” K’xarr grinned but said nothing.

  The Toran took a big drink from his tankard. “It’s a good thing she’s leaving. I would have hated to see that beautiful wench die.”

  “Aye, my friend, me too,” K’xarr said softly.

  Cain was sweating, even though the day was cool. The weather was breaking even in the north. If it stayed like this, the snow would be gone in another week. Spring would come early this year and the young king would be glad to see it. He was tired of being cold.

  Talorn walked towards him. His general’s armor was splashed with Abberdonian blood and he carried his great helm under his arm. “Majesty, the Abberdonians are in retreat, what’s left of them anyway. The siege is over.”

  Cain wiped the blood from his own sword and placed it back in its scabbard. He had fought well today. Talorn had been right, jousting was nothing like war.

  The self-proclaimed king kicked the partly melted snow from his boots. He hated getting his feet wet, it made him that much colder. “Why do you think Griffyn and Donovan left? They took almost all their men and headed south.”

  Talorn shook the sweat from his famed blonde hair. “The only answer I can think of, Majesty, is your sister is giving Havalon a hard way to go and he needed the men. They left this token force to hold us as long as it could. I would say there is a big battle coming if Havalon has summoned his sons. He plans to attack the capital in force. ”

  Cain nodded his agreement. “How many do we number now, Talorn?”

  The Commander of the Bandaran army shook his head. “Just under eight thousand men, Majesty. Not enough to take Havalon on. We should wait until he attacks Turill. I hate the idea, but he will be weakest then. If we have any chance at all, that would be the time. Raygan will be safe enough, Havalon wouldn’t dare harm her. He knows he would have to answer to the Church for killing a princess of the realm.”

  “What if Raygan defeats Havalon Talorn, what then? I will look like a failure and she will be the savior of the realm.”

  Talorn’s jaw tightened. He hated when Cain talked like that. It was clear he had no interest in his sister’s safety. “Majesty, I am talking about saving the kingdom, not politics. There is no way she can win. I don’t know how many her army numbers, but if what Father told me is true, she can’t have enough left to keep the Abberdonians out.”

  Cain stroked his neatly trimmed beard. “What about the sorceresses your father said she was using?”

  Talorn ran his hand through his long blonde hair and shook his head. “Havalon and the Abberdonians are too strong. Magic can’t stop them. Even if she is using these witches, it will avail her of nothing. No one has the power to stop an army.”

  Cain walked over and began to stroke the warhorse’s neck. “I hope you’re right, Talorn. Gather the men and we will take our time heading back south. Send a few riders to find out what is happening in Turill, we need the information.”

  Talorn saluted his king and walked away. Cain hoped his general was right. He could not live with Raygan as the Hero Queen of Bandara. The truth was he could not live with her as queen at all.

  He turned to find William Blackthorn looking at him, hands on hips, smile on his face. “Do you need something, Duke Blackthorn?”

  The older man walked closer to the king, his cape billowing behind him as the breeze picked up. “I just wanted to congratulate you on another victory, Majesty.”

  “It was not much of a fight, the Abberdonians left only a handful of men and they were definitely not their best troops.”

  “A victory is still a victory, Majesty. May I ask, is there any word from Turill?”

  “Not much, mostly just what we have heard from you. I have sent men to find out what the state of affairs are in Turill.” Cain could see the old man knew something he didn’t and the duke couldn’t wait to share it. “Was there something else, Duke Blackthorn?”

  “I have news, Majesty. My men that stayed behind in Turill are waiting for us just to the south of here under the command of one of my best men, Captain Greyson Kyle. They number eight thousand. There were a few losses getting out of Turill, but Captain Kyle got out with the majority of the force intact.”

  The king could not hide his surprise. “How did that happen? I was told they were fighting for my sister in Turill.”

  The duke looked smug, Cain hated that look. “I sent word for them to head north and join with us at the first opportunity. When your sister sent them out to do battle with the Abberdonians, they simply rode away.”

  Though the news of more troops was heartening, Cain felt a touch of shame. His sister had been betrayed by Duke Blackthorn and his soldiers, Bandaran soldiers. “So they committed treason to come and help us,” he said softly.

  “Treason? It’s your sister that has committed treason, Majesty. It is her that stole your throne, let’s not forget that,” the duke said hotly.

  “It is just unseemly for Bandaran soldiers to act in that fashion.”

  Blackthorn stepped closer to the king. “Majesty, let me speak bluntly, your sister has stolen your throne and the Church has declared her the rightful ruler of Bandara. From what I have heard, she has no intention of handing the kingdom back to you, no matter what happens.”

  “When I return, I shall simply take the crown from her. She will have no choice. I am the true heir.”

  “She has been blessed by the Church as the rightful ruler of Bandara. Lyfair put the crown on her himself. You can’t just take it from her now.”

  Cain was shocked, he had not heard any of this this. “How do you know that?”

  “I have spies in Turill, the same as you, my king. To get your throne back now and avoid civil war, your sister will have to die. Hopefully Havalon will take care of that for us, but if not, we will have to see to it ourselves.”

  Cain said nothing. He was still shocked that the Church had taken the throne from him and given it to Raygan.

  The duke went on, “My son does not need to know any of this. He loves the girl and would never stand for any harm to come to her, but you know as well as I that there can be no other way now, unless you plan on serving her?”

  Cain shook his head, no words would come. She had taken his throne. Raygan had wronged him again, and now she had manipulated the Church into helping her do it. “I understand what must be done, Duke Blackthorn. When the city is ours, we will kill my sister, if that is what must be done to get back what she has stolen.”

  The duke nodded and walked away.

  William felt he had done very well in convincing the king that his sister had to die. Then after the little queen was dead, the king himself would have an unfortunate accident and Talorn would become regent, his grandchild would be the rightful ruler of Bandara, and he would rule through them. It wasn’t over yet, there were a few more problems, but they might yet work themselves out. The Blackthorn family would get what it had always deserved: Bandara.

  The duke was very pleased with himself and he felt the need to celebrate. Maybe they would stop at a village or town on the track back to Turill. Perhaps he could find a sweet peasant girl to spend a few minutes with. It wasn’t likely, but there was always a chance.

  Lord Justice Milara walked into the pavilion and dismissed the guards that were watching the monster. He was no fool. When he was charged with this
mission, he and the Holy Father both knew they were dealing with a magically altered half-breed. This Bishop Lyfair had reported that the creature was incredibly dangerous and from what they had seen, that was an understatement. What they hadn’t known was the creature had the blood of the Beast flowing through its veins.

  That revelation changed everything. The Church knew there were others with the blood and perhaps the half-breed could tell him where they were. The Holy Father had declared that God wanted the children of the Beast found and destroyed. Any having the cursed blood had to die. If he could get more names from the half-breed, it would be very beneficial for him when he returned to Asqutania and met with the pope. He missed the capital city of Tyro. He was never much for travel and the food was deplorable on the road, but these pagans were dangerous and needed to be cleansed from the world.

  The only name the Church had was Endra Korlest and her three evil spawn. She had been a prisoner of the Church at one time, but she had murdered the priest who captured her and escaped. This warrior woman had eluded capture so far. Last reports said she was somewhere in Warmark. The Hand would find her sooner or later, of that he had no doubt. When they did, she would burn in the holy flames of God along with her devil children.

  The Church knew others existed in hiding throughout the world, and this creature might know some of their locations. If he did, Milara would compel him to confess their whereabouts. Then he would dispatch the monster in the name of God.

  The destruction of the Beast’s children was the pope’s passion. All the agents of the Church had been ordered to search for information on these fiends. Milara was not sure why the pope felt these accursed people were so in need of destroying, but he followed the pope’s orders without question. The pope spoke for God, after all. He would do his best to eradicate them all. It was what God wanted.

  The scourging had been brutal. In many places, strips of flesh hung from the half-breed, the wounds black with its evil. The face of the monstrosity was almost unrecognizable now. Commander Deverall’s knights had beaten it with their gauntleted fists after they had seen its true nature.

  Milara reach out and pulled the half-breed’s head up by his long black hair. “Wake up, child of the dark. I want you to answer my questions. If you do, your death will be quick and merciful. If not...” Milara grabbed a hot brand from the brazier and laid the hot iron to the half-breed’s chest, leaving it there until the skin crackled from the heat.

  The monster didn’t cry out, but Milara could see the tears streaming from the corners of his eyes and the black blood seep from its mouth as the creature bit its lip to keep from crying out. He could see scars all over the thing's body, perhaps it had been tortured before. Getting the information from it may be more difficult than he thought.

  “Do you understand what I want now, monster? Give me what I need and I will end this.”

  It didn’t answer. Milara tried again, this time burning its back, and still the half-breed would not speak or cry out.

  “You will answer me, you vile wretch. My questions are God’s questions. Now tell me if you know of others that have the black blood, tell me their names and where they are, and your pain will end.”

  The half-breed slowly raised his head, looking as if he wished to speak. Milara smiled and said a quick prayer thanking God for his success. “Come now, tell me about the others like you,” the lord justice said gently.

  Lord Justice Milara squatted down so he was eye to eye with the creature. It was broken and there was no need to fear it now. “Tell me what you know and I will show you mercy.”

  The monster pushed with its feet swinging, its body forward. Milara had no time to move as the half-breed’s fangs sank into the lord justice’s shoulder. Milara screamed as the beast twisted its head and tore out a large chunk of his flesh.

  Guards ran into the pavilion upon hearing the lord justice’s scream. They beat the monster until it did not move. “You shall pay for that dearly,” Milara howled with rage.

  He grabbed a hot brand from the brazier and slapped it between the half-breed’s legs. This time it wailed in pain. “You will suffer a thousand times more than that before you die, you loathsome fiend.” He turned to the guards. “Get me to a healer now.”

  Two of the knights escorted the lord justice out and two remained to watch the unconscious monster swing slowly back and forth from its chains.

  Kian knew he was going to die. It didn’t matter. He was in so much pain, death would be a relief. His body was nothing but wounds and burns, death could not be much worse. Whatever they did, he would never tell them about his friends or Endra and the children, even Tavantis couldn’t have made him do that. He would shut out the pain like he had done before. He didn’t know how he could do it, but since Tavantis had toyed with his mind, it just seemed to come easy for him. He knew his mind had been damaged during his transformation, controlling his pain may just have been another side effect of his brother’s manipulations.

  His only regret would be not getting to tell Endra and her children goodbye. He had foolishly thought he was going to make them his family and they were going to live out their days together. That would never happen now; it had just been a dream anyway. The animal that lived inside him would never have allowed him to live in peace. Kian did believe K’xarr and Cromwell would keep her and the children safe. That at least gave him some comfort.

  Milara came into the pavilion, followed by two knights with a man in between them. They threw the man on the ground in front of him. Rhys raised his head and looked at Kian. “By the gods, Kian, what have they done to you?”

  Milara kicked Rhys in the stomach hard, knocking the wind from him. “No one can outrun God, my good healer.” The lord justice glared at Kian. “Since torture does not seem to inspire you to divulge the information, I thought perhaps listening to your friend burn in the holy flames of God will. You have until tonight, then I will burn this heretic at the stake and you will watch him die, monster.”

  Rufio Rabinus Tullus was a man of duty, but he didn’t like this one. He rode along in silence. All of his friends were gone. He felt like he should be back in Turill with K’xarr and Cromwell. He knew what his fate would have been if he had stayed in the city, but he didn’t care. Leaving anything unfinished ate at him like a sickness.

  He thought of Vandarus. The young Bandaran had proved his courage outside the walls of Turill and died like a man, a hero even. He missed his friend. Rufio had seen many men die. Death was something that rode along at every soldier’s back. He had accepted his friend’s fate. He just would have liked to have the Bandaran here now. Vandarus always made him feel capable and confident by asking Rufio for his opinion all the time. He had no one to reassure him now. He wasn’t like K’xarr. He couldn’t just decide on a course of action and plunge headlong into it, everyone else be damned. He had to weigh things very carefully and then act. Rufio was a pure soldier and he needed orders to follow.

  He felt very alone now. K’xarr had left a great deal of responsibility on his shoulders, and he had no one to share his concerns with. Being accountable for military men was one thing, a bunch of royals was another. He would just have to try and do his best, he owed the Camiran that.

  His thoughts were interrupted as the queen rode up on one side of him and the one-eyed girl came up on the other. The blonde girl’s patch disturbed him a little, it just didn’t look right on Isabella’s sweet face.

  “How much farther, Captain?” the queen asked.

  “Seven or eight more days, Majesty. We can use the roads. This trip will be an easy one. No need to worry.”

  “Oh, I was not worried at all, Captain. I have every confidence in your abilities.”

  The Dragitan looked at the lovely young queen. Motherhood agreed with her; her dark hair almost gleamed in the sun. He didn’t want to get into a conversation with the queen, sometimes you could get more than you bargained for, but he had to ask. “Majesty, may I ask you a question?”

 
“Of course you may, Captain, speak freely.”

  Rufio cleared his throat. “I thought we would have to take you kicking and screaming from the city and your garden. I thought you would never leave it without a squabble. Havalon will soon have Turill and may put it to the torch, he will loot it at best, yet you left without so much as a word of protest. I just wanted to know why?”

  The queen smiled, her eyes welling up with tears. Rufio felt like an ass now, he should have kept his mouth shut. After a moment, she answered. “I’m heartsick thinking about the city my family helped build and the garden my father and I cherished, most of all I think of the people who were counting on me to protect them. I failed them all, Captain. I know that even if somehow I return to the Phoenix Throne, the truth will always be I didn’t protect my city and its people from the Abberdonian invaders. If I ever have the chance, I will see to it that this never happens again.”

  “Do you blame K’xarr, Majesty? After all, he was your General.” Rufio asked hesitantly.

  The queen smiled sadly. “No, Captain, I don’t. K’xarr is not responsible. It is not his city, it is my city, and the failure falls to me. I’m sure he would argue that point if he were here, but the fault is mine alone. I am queen. You must understand something, Captain. I haven’t lost Bandara. I never can. I have learned something in the last year. Bandara lives in me and my son, just like it lived in my father and his father before him, and no one can take it away from us. Bandara is my family and we are it, Captain, so it can never truly be lost.” The queen paused for a moment. “I hope that I have answered your question, Captain.”

  The queen galloped ahead. Rufio could see she wanted to be alone. He would not mind serving the young woman. Now he too saw the strength in the young queen that K’xarr had spoken of. He was almost glad K’xarr had ordered him to escort the Phoenix Queen to her new throne, she just might be worth the trouble.

  “She is very sad, no matter what she says,” Isabella said.