A Soldier's Honor: The Scepter of Maris: Book One

by Barnes, James R.

  Tobias had to reach out to a nearby chair to steady himself. Crazy did not sufficiently describe the state of the King's mind. Could the man really be so far gone that he thought his people would willingly fight side by side with those monsters? Tobias' moral compass was ambiguous at most times, but even he would not willingly ally himself with the Orcs. And he had never lost anyone he cared about to them. Most of the people in the northern part of the kingdom could claim that they had. Orcs used Goblins as foot soldiers, and Goblins ate people. They ate them. The King was insane.

  "Yes, I know. I struggled with the decision myself, but in the end I had to do what was right for the kingdom."

  Tobias found himself walking back down the hallway in a daze, and clutching the set of orders that would start the kingdom's march into oblivion. He could vaguely remember the last few minutes of the meeting; mostly that he forced himself to say all of the right things to get out of that room as quickly as possible. He did not know what he was going to do to get out of this with his skin intact; he only knew that it was past time for him to leave. Glancing down at the parchment in his clutched fist, he began to make his own plans. Plans that would carry him far from this madness.

  CHAPTER TWENTY SEVEN

  A Workable Plan

  It was three days later when firm plans were finalized. After many meetings to discuss strategies when dealing with the Orcs and being called in several times to clarify a point or answer a new question that came up, Roderick called another meeting to hand out orders. It was a refreshed Meric that took his seat next to Alyssa and waited on the rest to arrive so the meeting could start. The three days had been an enjoyable time for the former commander, spent mostly in the company of the Lady next to him, with his friends as they toured the palace and city, or with Melanie as she continued to heal emotionally. He, Alyssa, and the little girl spent many hours together walking the halls of the keep or in one of their rooms. He was a little worried that Melanie was becoming so attached to the two of them, since he knew he would be leaving soon and assumed Alyssa could also be sent out on some mission. He did not want the girl to think she was being left alone, and though she had truly become fast friends with the princesses, it could still feel as if she were being abandoned by himself and Alyssa. She appeared to be trying to adopt them as replacement parents and he did not know how to stop her without hurting her. They would need to send someone that could look into whether or not she had any living relatives that could take her in. These thoughts and the knowledge that he was going to miss Alyssa's company were the only worries he had for three days. It was nice to be able to just relax, mainly because he knew he would soon be on the road again.

  Alyssa's hand on his arm chased these heavy burdens away for now and her questioning look, punctuated by a raised eyebrow, prompted him to answer.

  "I am fine. Just a lot to think about."

  She smiled suggestively and replied, "well, you did show me a rather enjoyable cure for that. Too bad we have to sit through this meeting or I would return the favor."

  It was an effort not to laugh and as she had likely planned, his mood was brightened considerably. He had surprised himself when he kissed her the other night, since he had not really wanted to get too close to the woman that he might not get to see again after leaving Dallena. He had only been fooling himself though, and could not find even the slightest bit of regret. Not at this time, anyway. Once he was miles away and only had the memories of their time together, he knew he would be kicking himself. They had gotten along well from the beginning and the more time they spent together only reinforced the deepening feelings, first as friends, then something more. The fact that he was a commoner did not appear to bother her in the slightest, but her family might have other thoughts on that matter. Where it would lead now was anyone's guess, and he was not going to let what little time they had left go to waste thinking about things that could not be changed anyway. He returned her smile and then looked to the man standing at the head of the table.

  The Lord Marshall cleared his throat to get everyone's attention and then began the meeting. He spent some time on a short summary of what they knew and needed to know, and then he started giving out orders.

  "We have decided that since the Orcs want this scepter, it would be in our best interest to find it first. Whether it will be used as a negotiating tool or as a weapon of defense against our enemies can be decided once we have it in hand. To that end; Meric, I would like for you, Brody, and Alyssa to undertake a mission to return to your Dwarven friend with the goal of getting him to disclose the whereabouts of the relic as well as any information we might need to know when retrieving it. I realize that this is not going to be easy. The trip will be hazardous and convincing the Dwarf to help might just be impossible, but we must make the attempt. At the same time, we will have people here searching through our archives to see if they can uncover any clues, and we will be sending William to Parna so he can search the library there. He has been friends with the man in charge there for many years and should be safe enough as a simple scholar doing research. We will also be shoring up our defenses as quietly as we can to keep panic to a minimum. I have already dispatched some scouts up north and will be sending more to make sure we are not taken unawares. The quartermaster has already been instructed to fulfill any requests you have beyond his standard provision allotment. Have a list of supplies and personnel as well as any additional requests you might have ready for me by this evening. I will expect you to be ready to leave by mid-day tomorrow at the latest. Any questions before we adjourn?"

  When there were none, nodded and left the room. Just like that. No more orders, words of advice, or questions of his own before he left them to their own planning. Meric looked first at Alyssa and then at Brody, silently asking them to speak up. Both remained close-mouthed and looked to be as unprepared as he was. He would just have to handle it. He had been given a job to complete, so the first step was to settle on who exactly they would take with them, or even if it should be more than just the three of them. Traveling across Glendon would not be an issue since they had the approval of the Crown. It would be once they were in Rennick that caution would have to be taken. A small enough force to make stealth possible if needed, but large enough that they could fight their way out of trouble.

  "What do you think, six or ten?" He was looking at Brody by the time he finished speaking.

  "Depends on the six," replied the man, thoughtfully. "Think we could get James, Pierson, and Woodard... or maybe Westerly in place of one of them? That'd be eight, all good in a tight spot."

  Meric agreed even as he shifted around to face Alyssa. "That work for you?"

  "We will need to get the King's approval to inform any who are not already aware of my abilities, but I agree."

  "I will speak with the Lord Marshal to make sure the people we want are available, and then we can gather them all up and have a quick strategy session somewhere."

  "There is a meeting room directly across from this one that we can use," Alyssa supplied.

  With that they all stood and headed to the exit. Alyssa and Brody moved to the room they would be using to make sure it was available while he headed for Lord Camden's office, which just down the hall. He was fortunate to find the man standing outside the door, speaking to the King. He planned to stop some distance from them and wait until they were finished, but Roderick saw him and waved him forward. It took several minutes for them to talk it out and then approve his request. Barclay even told him to take all four of the men named. James and Pierson could have been useful here, but it was decided that their mission was important enough to spare them. The most time was taken on the revelation of Alyssa's Gift, but in the end they knew it would be best if she was not hindered in any way. With that done he tracked down two pages, gave them the names, and told them where to send the men when they were found. The door was open as he approached so he moved through without stopping to join Brody and Alyssa at an oval table capable of seating t
welve. Alyssa handed him a mug of ale once he was settled and after thanking her and taking a sip, he shared the conversation he had just finished. Two pleased expressions were turned on him before both of them also got more comfortable while they waited on the others to show.

  Meric spent the time going over the logistics of the trip in his head. It would take around five to six weeks to reach the area they were headed and that was if no complications arose. Much of the trip would be across rough terrain since there was not one continuous road leading to the northeast of the kingdom, and returning back to Yost and cutting north would add too much time and distance. Barclay could provide a good map for the Glendon portion of the trip and they would still have to do some trail breaking, but between he and Malina that should not slow them down too much. Once in Rennick the four natives of the kingdom all knew the territory, having spent years in the north fighting across many battlefields. They would need to take care when the need to resupply came about, but most of the land they would be traveling through was secluded enough that it could be crossed without raising any alarms. After they found the entrance to the caves they would have to decide how much time they could spend searching before turning back.

  James, Malina, and Silas chose that moment to enter. Silas moved to the sideboard to pour himself a drink and Malina led James to two open seats. Meric explained to them that they were waiting for others to join and then they could get started. It was about ten minutes later that Woodard came in and shut the door at Meric's request.

  "Now that we are all here, I will let you know the basic plan and then we can hash out the details. We will be taking a small group, just those present, and crossing into Rennick on the way to Besiar's Hackles. We are to find the Dwarves, try to secure their assistance, and get back here. Hopefully with the information that will let us find the relic that the Orcs are hunting before they are able to, and before the fighting gets serious. I doubt it will be that simple, but that is our goal.

  "Before we get started hammering out plan, you should know that this is strictly voluntary and if you wish to be excluded from this mission, you can let me know later. There will be no hard feelings. This is a dicey venture at best. Myself, Brody, Malina, and Silas all have sentences of torture and death waiting if we get caught and any 'spies' from Glendon will probably face the same, so no one will blame you for stepping back. Now that that is out of the way, we can get down to business."

  There were many small details to go over and probably some things they were forgetting, but after just over three hours they had a working plan and felt confident that they would be ready to depart in the morning.

  CHAPTER TWENTY EIGHT

  Being Neighborly

  The mist from Brody's breath mixed with Morgan's as he patted the big beast on the neck. The morning had dawned with clear skies and the coolest temperature they had seen yet this year. He had just finished checking the pack horse's straps and was now moving around Morgan to do the same to Ferron and Dela, the horse owned by Alyssa, and then their pack horses. Normally Meric would check his own animals, but they had an unexpected visitor to see them off and he and Alyssa were with the little girl now. Melanie had managed to sneak out to say goodbye one last time before they left and probably needed to hear that they were coming back, at least once more. He felt for the child, and hoped they were not lying when they reassured her they would see her again.

  Brody left them to their farewell. In a day or two he would find some way, probably more than once, to tease Meric about his little family or the wife and kid, but only in good humor. He was happy for the man that might as well be his brother, and he hoped that things worked out for all three of them. You never knew what could happen from one day to the next. Maybe he and Alyssa would get hitched one day and adopt Melanie if no one else was able to take care of her. Life could be funny that way. When he was younger he certainly would have laughed in the face of anyone telling him he would one day be an innkeeper. For today he would let them have this moment together without any interruptions.

  He finished up with the horses and then surveyed the rest of their group to assess their readiness, like he once did when he wore the rank of sergeant. They were all standing around and talking quietly, having finished their preparations. He heard two sets of footsteps approaching from behind and assumed that Meric and Alyssa were ready to go. He had no idea if it was the memories of past preparations that made him revert into his Sergeant days, or just knowing that he would soon be taking on that role again, but whichever it was did not matter. He just went with it, and decided there was no time like the present to get started.

  "Mount up!" boomed across the courtyard. There was no use even trying to hide the grin as he saw Alyssa jump, and he noticed that Meric did not hide his either. He watched for a second to make sure everyone was moving and then suited actions to his own words. Once settled in the saddle, he waited for the rest of them to finish doing the same and got them started. "Westerly, take us out."

  A good sergeant was one that took care of all the little things so that the commander was free to focus on the more important issues and the overall view. Unless Meric informed him otherwise, he would consider himself holding the position. He knew that with a group so small that a sergeant was not needed, but thought it might be fun to boss the others around some. He would just think of it as training for his future assignment. One could never have too much training. He also thought that he might never again get the chance to boss around a couple of officers, especially a captain. This last notion had him grinning at the back of James' head as the man rode directly in front of him. They started out double file and would probably stay that way for most of the time that they were on any road. Once they left the trail their formation would be dictated by the surroundings. For now it was Westerly on point followed by Pierson and Woodard, next came James and Malina, and then he and Silas. Meric and Alyssa brought up the rear. This would likely change many times as the days passed, but for now was as good an order as any.

  They rode through the early morning shadows of the city without any fanfare, and got barely a glance from most of the people that were out so early. Half a day passed before turning north not long after they rode through a small village. It was still unknown what exactly Terrance Fenton's involvement meant, and if there were any more eyes watching them that they did not know about, so they were careful to make sure no one was in sight when they left the road and entered Marten Woods. The wide-spread pine trees started about thirty yards off of the road and became more crowded the farther north you went. While not as dark and foreboding as Haster Forest, the area contained plenty of cover once they were another thirty or forty yards into the foliage; they could not be seen from the open countryside that they had just left.

  Brody relaxed a bit, relieved that the only eyes that noticed them belonged to an owl they must have startled from its resting place. He watched it fly off to another perch hidden in the treetops with a grin, must not like being waken up any more than he did. He realized Meric's love for the wilderness must have rubbed off on him somewhat, because he was enjoying the ride through the woods.

  From here good time was made, considering they were traveling through a heavily wooded area. The map they had been provided with was very detailed, and they had no trouble finding the marked streams and clearings that could be used to camp.

  -X-

  Eight days later saw them approaching one of the wagon rut trails that ran between a small village and a decent sized town on the nearby lake. Carter's Landing was about half the size of Yost with a lake that was a good bit less than half the size of Fomar, but it did a fair trade in the fish and other wildlife that called the surrounding area home. The spring-fed lake also provided plenty of water for the farms spreading out from the town. All together this made Carter's Landing, if not a bustling trade town, then at the least a logical stopping place on the way north or south. They decided to bypass the bigger lake town and ride through the collection of farms
and houses at the other end of the trail.

  The woods had thinned out a bit where the two just visible ruts passed through. The path could only be seen because of the depressions each side of the wagon packed into the ground and the noticeable lack of trees in line with them. Even though you could see farther in this stretch, the little village was still not visible until they were within a few yards of where the woods ended at edge of two fields, one fallow and the other with lettuce and empty brown corn stalks. A few trees and some thick brush hid the houses in the distance until they cleared the tree line. As they approached the town they could see several people gathered around the front of the only structure in sight that was not a house or barn. Brody assumed that it was a communal building that they all shared for things like schooling, town hall meetings, celebrations, and make-shift inn. He was wondering why they did not all go inside for this meeting as his group came upon them. Apparently what they were discussing was pretty serious, because Westerly had almost reached them when someone finally acknowledged the newcomers.

  Meric was just passing Brody as the rest of the group came to a halt, and Brody decided to ride up to the front with him. The small crowd had was filled with raised voices and people trying to talk over one another as one older man who was standing on the steps of the building tried to calm everyone. He was waving his hands in helpless frustration as they practically ignored him, until one young man at the back of the crowd inadvertently helped with a surprisingly deep yell of, "strangers ridin' up." The wind had picked up during the morning, and for a moment all that could be heard was sound of it whipping around the front of the building and rustling the lone tree standing there.

  "Good day," Meric said. "We were just passing through and thought we might be able to pay you good people to top off our supplies."