The King's Assassin

by M.M. Brownlow

  Chapter 14

  The pre-dawn quiet was broken only by the tread of booted feet along the cobbled streets leading to the great cathedral that took up the west side of the mountain plateau that was home to the city of Eaglecrest. This cathedral was by no means the only church in the city but it was considered the central church, and so all major events were held there.

  Eryk walked along accompanied by an honor guard of only three. Byron was there, and he had picked two of his best men, his lieutenants Owen and Jon, to keep the king safe during his vigil. The vigil was to begin at dawn, and it would last until the coronation ceremony at noon. Eryk, dressed only in the pure white garments he would wear for the ceremony, was to spend the intervening hours in meditation, thinking about how to be a good and fair king for his people. Byron, still angry, thought to himself that Eryk would do well to think long and hard.

  While he walked, Eryk found himself wishing absurdly that it were winter. While the walk to the cathedral would have been less than pleasant, the time between dawn and noon would have been considerably shorter than now, just two short weeks before Midsummer.

  The captain was far from being lost in thought like Eryk. He was busy scanning left and right as he led the small procession through the city; Aislynn had him spooked with her thoughts of conspiracy. He had to admit that her conclusions seemed plausible enough, and he’d be damned if another king died on his watch. His examination of the area soon paid off, and he was comforted by a glimpse of Cheta shadowing them along a parallel road. If Cheta is nearby, then so is Aislynn, he thought to himself.

  Little did Byron know, but Aislynn wasn’t anywhere near the group. She was already at the cathedral getting herself organized before Eryk arrived. She trusted Cheta to help keep Eryk safe on his walk, and she had a lot of work to do before he reached his destination. She had already explored the cathedral, noting the main door and the smaller back door hidden behind one of the tapestries flanking the altar. It led into a corridor, which in turn led to Father Jonas’ offices. There was another door at the end of the corridor, which led outside. Aislynn made sure that both of the small doors were locked, but she knew that anyone with a hint of talent at picking locks would make short work of them. The windows were not any cause for concern at least, as they were all leaded glass and didn't open.

  Looking up, Aislynn was glad to see that this church had a roof held up with exposed beams. She knew that the open area above would help with the acoustics of the room, but for her it would make for an excellent hiding place, once she figured out the best way to get up there and best location to see as much as possible of the floor below.

  She finally decided that the large beam that ran the length of the room, from the great double doors to the altar, would make for the best vantage point. Numerous beams ran across the width of the room and met it, and as the first light of the dawn was just appearing in the sky, she scrambled up one of the six columns lining the walls of the cathedral and scampered across the beams like a human-sized squirrel. Sitting down at the junction of the beams, she settled herself for a long wait just as the doors to the cathedral opened.

  Eryk entered the church alone, leaving his guards outside. He paused in the entranceway for a few moments, and looked around. He had been here before, of course, for his mother’s funeral and then for his uncle’s, but this was really the first time he'd had the opportunity to look around.

  There were three massive columns running along each wall, and between them were immense stained glass windows, each depicting a different facet of the gods. Directly across from him was the altar, a large block of green-veined marble with carvings along the front showing scenes from the year: the sowing of the crops, the Harvestide, the rebirth of the sun; they were all there. Beside the marble altar were two large gilded candleholders, each meant to hold three candles. The candles currently waiting for him to light were all white, and the matches were laid out for him on the altar. Finally, behind the altar, were the great tapestries depicting the founding of Bacovia and the heroic king leading his people to victory in the bloody wars that finally ended because of that founding. Branden was named after that long ago king, Eryk remembered.

  Figuring that he had wasted enough time, he set about lighting his vigil candles, one for each aspect of the gods: knowledge, compassion, and honesty on the one side, and strength, valor, and duty on the other. They represented everything he was to strive for as a ruler of Bacovia, and he got the next seven hours or so to meditate on what each virtue meant and how he would strive to demonstrate these qualities in his day-to-day life.

  Oh joy, Eryk thought, as he turned and took his place at the kneeling pad that was waiting for him. At least I don’t have to spend hours kneeling on a stone floor, he remarked to himself with a bit of a smile.

  Up above, Aislynn found that she was enjoying the first part of the vigil, at least. She really hadn't had a lot of time to get to know Eryk, and now she had what seemed like unlimited time at least to get to know what he looked like. She admired the way his dark hair and tanned skin contrasted against the startling white of his sleeveless tunic, and she certainly appreciated the work that went into the well-defined muscles of his arms.

  He was undoubtedly an attractive man, and she knew that there were a number of young ladies in this city who had thoughts about those arms wrapped around her. Too bad they hadn’t had the time to spend with him as she had. That would likely change their minds. Or at least some of them.

  Aislynn sighed to herself and shook her head, knowing that she was being uncharitable. When he wasn’t being an egotistical jerk, he had been a lot of fun to be around, like at the Ball. But even without Branden so vehemently against her, she would never get to spend any real quality time with Eryk.

  Aislynn spent some time daydreaming, scanning the room below and watching the colored light from the windows move slowly across the room, changing Eryk’s clothing a rainbow of colors. She was startled out of her musings by a flash of movement near the front of the cathedral.

  Damn, she thought, I do hate it when I’m right about things like this.

  Moving silently along the beam in a crouch, Aislynn crept toward the front of the room and positioned herself above the tapestries. The flicker of movement came again, the tapestry to the right swaying slightly. She knew that someone was there, but didn't want to pounce yet in case it was just Father Jonas or another priest who had come to check up on Eryk. They weren't supposed to be here during this time, trusting their king to perform his vigil properly, but it was easy for doubt or miscommunications to occur and it would put a damper on the coronation ceremony if it started with a dead clergyman. She waited, muscles tensed, ready to jump.

  If she hadn't been watching carefully, Aislynn would have missed him. The assassin moved slowly and carefully, keeping pressed up against the wall to take full advantage of the shadows there. He was dressed in an outfit colored in black and shades of grey in a mottled pattern similar to her own, blurring his outline against the wall. He carried a dagger in his mouth, with a black blade and a black handle so that the weapon wouldn't catch the light and give him away.

  At least I know that his blade isn't poisoned, Aislynn thought as she slowly drew her own daggers from their sheaths. As soon as he was positioned to her liking, she threw the first of her knives, leaping down toward the assassin a split-second later.

  Her dagger hit him in the shoulder, spinning him to face her, and she planted her feet on to his chest as she landed, knocking him flat onto his back. Eryk, startled out of his meditations, sprang up and away from the two assassins just as the unknown man grabbed Aislynn’s ankle and pulled, sending her into a dive over his head. She rolled as she hit the ground, coming up onto her feet and spinning to face him, dagger in hand.

  “So our suspicions are correct,” the man hissed quietly. “The king is protected. Who are you, little girl?”

  “It doesn't matter who I am,”
Aislynn snarled back, circling slowly, matching her pace to his. “All that matters is that you have lost two of your fellows so far, with an incomplete contract to show for it. Are the losses worth it?”

  “Ah, but you have also lost one of your own, don’t forget, and we have completed part of our contract. Do you really think that you can stop us?” He chuckled, a deep throaty sound, and he suddenly lunged toward her, dagger leading the way.

  Aislynn sprang to meet him, her own dagger held out ready to parry, and they met in a flurry of knives. He was in control, attacking her arms, her face, and her stomach. She could do nothing but parry his attacks, unable to disengage long enough to step backwards and give herself some breathing room. She was suddenly very grateful for the few mornings that she had spent sparring with Byron. Her reflexes were more finely honed now than they had been when she had arrived a short while ago, but this man was far better than she was.

  Suddenly, the assailant in front of her missed a beat, and seeing the opening for the trap it was, Aislynn feinted forward with her dagger, transferring her weight onto her right leg, knee bent. Then, she suddenly pushed off her right leg, spinning in a roundhouse kick aimed at his head.

  The assassin ducked, still perfectly balanced, but his lower body position enabled Aislynn to land her kick and push off again, driving her knee into his face and forcing him backwards. The impetus of the fight was now hers, and she followed her attack immediately with a snap kick, breaking his nose and sending blood cascading down his face. While her opponent reeled in agony, Aislynn drove forward with her dagger, slicing across his scalp and sending more blood flowing down his face, this time into his eyes.

  Aislynn didn't dare lose her advantage, and she drove forward with her dagger again, determined to end this now. Unfortunately, despite his pain and semi-blindness, her opponent was expecting her attack and grabbed her wrist as it shot forward. He was still crouched, and now he straightened, using Aislynn’s momentum against her as he flung her over his head to crash into one of the stone columns headfirst. Dazed, blood now streaming from a cut on her forehead, she staggered backwards, trying to clear her head before the killing blow came from behind.

  Fortunately, the assassin had taken these few moments of respite to wipe the blood from his eyes and assess the situation, so she was able to regain her balance, but just barely. Just as she felt the dizziness subside a little, a kick connected and Aislynn was suddenly sprawling sideways. She felt ribs crack as she hit the ground, knocking the breath out of her. The assassin advanced toward her quickly and eagerly, knowing that he had the advantage with her knocked prone, and Aislynn looked around desperately for a weapon to fend off the coming attacks.

  Seeing nothing nearby, she glanced back at her attacker, now very close, and prepared to defend herself as best she could. Luck was with her, and the assassin had only brought weapons intended for close quarters, forcing him to attack her with his legs, kicked and stomping. It was unwieldy and not terribly effective, and Aislynn was able to regain her feet in short order.

  The two assassins paused for a moment, appraising each other and the situation in which they found themselves. They were both hurt, but neither knew how bad the injuries were for the other party. They were both still alive, which surprised the unknown man, who had thought that Aislynn would be easy prey due to her apparent age and therefore assumed lack of experience.

  Aislynn was unarmed, having lost her dagger in her fall, but he was still holding his, which gave him some advantage. Aislynn knew that he was weighing his options, and she knew that he would attack again, unwilling to give up the contract as lost. She prepared herself, taking a deep breath before wincing from the cracked ribs.

  When he finally charged, it was with the intention of finishing this fight quickly. The charge was controlled, but it still left him slightly off balance, which Aislynn could see from the way he had his weight on the balls of his feet. She waited until the last possible instant, and then stepped to the side, his dagger catching on her clothing and tearing her shirt along her midsection.

  She continued her movement, using his momentum and her own, and ended up on the far side of her assailant, the side that didn't have the dagger. Ignoring the pain in her ribs, Aislynn kicked out twice in quick succession, first to the back of the knees and then to the kidneys. As the assassin fell forward, nearly doubled over in pain, she stepped behind him, and with a brutal twist, snapped his neck. He fell dead to the floor and Aislynn slumped down to the ground beside him, wanting to curl up in pain.

  The whole fight had only taken a few minutes, and Eryk now ran quickly over to Aislynn.

  “You saved my life,” he stated, preparing to pick her up.

  “Don’t!” she cried out, stopping him in his tracks. “It’s bad enough that there’s blood all over this church. You don’t need blood all over your coronation garments too. I’m fine. Just give me a moment. And of course I saved your life, you imbecile. That’s why I’m here, remember?”

  A few moments later, Aislynn struggled to her feet, gasping in pain, and she crouched over the dead body, searching for something. A few seconds after that, satisfied, she flipped a coin over to Eryk. He caught it out of the air, and turned it over. Stamped into the side was a small, black scorpion.

  “He was from the same guild as the other two,” he commented.

  Aislynn just nodded as she fished around her own pocket, trying to find something. Extracting a small gold coin of her own, she stood carefully and looked at Eryk. Who was busy staring at her.

  “What are you looking at?” she demanded.

  “You,” he replied simply. “You look…different, somehow.”

  Aislynn glanced down at herself, not knowing what he could possibly be talking about. She was dressed in her assassin’s outfit, a black and grey shirt and pants suit that fit tightly, hugging her curves. It was torn across her midriff, exposing the pale skin of her stomach, which showed a faint red line where the dagger had brushed across her skin. While she couldn't see it, she could feel that there was blood in her hair, matting it to her head because of her scalp injury. Her temple was also tender when she touched it, a great big bruise just starting to form.

  “I look like a mess,” she commented. “That is certainly different than usual, yes. Marja would be horrified if she knew that you had seen me like this. She goes to great lengths to make me presentable, you know.”

  Aislynn leaned over and dropped the coin she was holding on to the body.

  “What’s that for?” Eryk asked, nodding toward the coin sitting on the body.

  “You see that coin in your hand? The one I just dropped is my equivalent to that. Leave it with the body so that they know there’s another guild involved. From what he said, they suspected it already.”

  “They? You mean that there are more of them? Here?”

  “I suspect that there is at least one more in the city right now,” Aislynn explained. “The contract is out on both you and your father, and they initially attacked you as a pair. When that pair failed, they sent more guild members, which would explain the delay between those initial attacks and the one on your father yesterday.

  “Chances are, this is the assassin who killed your father, and he was trying to finish the contract by killing you too. He should have a partner around the city somewhere, and when his partner comes to examine the body, which he will, it would be best if he found my coin. It may discourage them from continuing, though I doubt it.”

  “So now what?” Eryk asked, looking around at the mess.

  “Now I’m going to go get those guards of yours outside, they are going to claim responsibility for killing this guy, you will return to your vigil, and I’m going to see a healer.”

  “Will you be at the coronation ceremony?” he asked anxiously, causing Aislynn to look over at him suspiciously.

  “I thought you didn't want to see me anywhere near you,” she commented acidl
y.

  “I said that before, when I was angry and hurt. This is now, after all of this,” he said, gesturing to the body. “Now I know that you meant everything that you said, I know you didn't kill my father, and I didn't honestly know that before. I know I don’t need to be afraid of you.”

  “You just saw me kill someone, literally with my bare hands, and now you decide that you don’t need to be afraid of me. Sometimes, I have serious concerns for your mental aptitude.” Aislynn smiled slightly and continued. “I'll try to be there, but I won’t guarantee it. Cheta should be around here somewhere, and I'll make sure she stays nearby, but you should be fine for at least the rest of the day.”

  Aislynn started to walk toward the doors to get the guards when Eryk’s voice stopped her.

  “Aislynn, thank you,” he said quietly, “and I really am sorry about yesterday.”

  Aislynn nodded dismissively, and went to fetch the guards, explaining what she wanted when they entered. She remembered these two from yesterday, and they had no difficulty with her orders. Granted, considering it was very obvious that Byron was okay with Aislynn and these two were his lieutenants, it was always possible that they simply didn’t dare disobey her.

  With another nod to Eryk, she slipped out the door and headed back to the castle after a brief meeting the Cheta, trying to stay as inconspicuous as possible.

  It took her quite awhile to reach her destination, and when she arrived, she went immediately to the guards’ barracks, looking for Byron. She found him in his office, a room she had seen the day before.

  “Hey, do you suppose you could find me a healer?” she asked, startling him. His eyes widened as he took in her appearance.

  “What happened?” he asked quietly, a shocked look on his face.

  “Do I really look that bad?” she asked with a smile. “Summon a healer for me, and I'll fill you in on the details.”

  By the time the healer arrived, Aislynn was basically finished with her explanation, and the healer asked no questions.

  The wound in her scalp required five stitches, and the healer bound her ribs for her, supporting the three cracked bones so that they would be able to heal properly. She was directed not to get the bandages wet, and was told that she could remove them only to apply the salve he gave her, but then she needed to replace them. The healer would remove them permanently in a couple of days, and until then, she was to be careful with her movements.

  As the healer left, he gave her a packet of herbs she could use to numb the pain. Byron, who had been waiting outside the closed door while the healer attended his patient, came back in.

  “So what’s going to happen now?” he asked her.

  “I honestly don’t know, but I suspect there will be another attack, likely soon. I left a coin with the body, but I don’t really think it will be much of a deterrent. I’m not going to be at my best for the next few days, so I’m going to need your help to keep him safe.”

  Byron nodded his agreement to both aspects of that statement. “You should go and get cleaned up,” he said. “I assume you’re planning to attend the ceremony?”

  Aislynn nodded as she rose, slowly and carefully. “I'll see you there,” she said as she turned to go.

  When Aislynn got back to her rooms, Marja paled at the sight of her, but didn't comment as she got hot water to help Aislynn wash the blood out of her hair. Then Aislynn cleaned the rest of herself as best she could around the bandages and let Marja help her dress.

  The severe black dress stood out in stark contrast to her pale skin, made paler than usual from blood loss. Trying to make the effect less startling, Marja selected some jewelry set with yellow topaz stones to complement the outfit, twining some into her hair to match the necklace and bracelet she would wear. She also applied a few cosmetics to give Aislynn the appearance of some healthy color.

  Finally ready for the ceremony, Marja looked her over and nodded in acceptance of her appearance.

  “Would you like me to come with you?” she asked.

  Aislynn thought about it for a moment, and then nodded. “It will be something to see, I’m sure,” she replied, “and I’m sure that I could use the support, especially if Branden sees me there.”

  It took only a few minutes for Marja to get ready, something that constantly made Aislynn jealous of her friend, and then the two of them set off for the cathedral, joining the growing crowd of people heading in that direction.

  When they arrived, Aislynn’s rank allowed her to move up to the front of the crowd, and she was careful to pick a spot on the opposite side of the mass from Branden. She saw no need to aggravate the already tense situation between them.

  Right at the stroke of noon, the bells of the cathedral calling the hour, Eryk walked out of the church, flanked by his guards. He looked relaxed as he scanned the crowd surreptitiously, and she noticed a slight smile touch his lips when he saw her. She smiled back. The ceremony then proceeded without any difficulties, and when it was over, Bacovia had a new king.

  After the ceremony concluded, Cheta rejoined Aislynn and Marja, and the three of them made their way back to the castle. Aislynn was feeling very sore and tired, and decided that she would take the herbs the healer had given her and retire. She was hoping the rest would help her aching ribs heal faster.

  As Eryk proceeded back to the castle, in a slow procession through the city so that the citizens could see their new king first hand, Branden joined him.

  “What was she doing there?” he demanded. With that tone of voice, there was no point asking Branden to which she he was referring.

  “Would you just lay off?” Eryk asked. “She’s currently the representative from Evendell, a kingdom that we have very tight and important diplomatic relations with. It was totally appropriate that she be there for my coronation.”

  “So are you going to forgive her for lying to you? Going to let her near you again so that she can stab you in the back?” Branden’s voice was rising as he was demanding his questions, and the look in his eyes frightened Eryk a little. What was going on with his friend?

  “Relax, Branden. You don’t need to worry about that.” There, he thought, that should be open ended enough to satisfy him. Eryk didn't want to provoke him, especially not in public. He’d have to ask Aislynn to see if she could figure out what was going on with him. Maybe her special skills would be helpful. Branden’s actions were very unlike him, and Eryk didn’t think that it was just power going to his head.

  When they finally reached the castle, Eryk was disappointed that Aislynn wasn’t there to greet him, but he was very careful not to let that show. Instead, Alexius was grinning and waving to him. When he approached, she rushed up and flung herself into his arms, planting a demure kiss on his cheek.

  “Welcome home, your Majesty,” she breathed softly into his ear, her voice hinting that the welcome could be more than a simple kiss, if he wanted it to be. Eryk was startled to find himself wishing that it were someone else whispering those invitations.

  As he gently placed Alexius back down on to the ground, he couldn't help but notice Branden’s smile of approval. He wondered what his friend would do if he discovered that it wasn’t Alexius that Eryk was thinking of. He decided that it was likely best for everyone if Branden never found that out. Taking Alexius by the hand, Eryk led the way into the castle and to the dining hall to break his fast. It certainly wouldn’t do any harm to humor Alexius, and maybe it would do some good. If Branden saw him paying more attention to his sister, then maybe he really would lay off about Aislynn.

  Eryk didn’t know much, but right now, he did know that he didn’t want Aislynn to go anywhere. He was rather glad that he was apparently stuck with her around his court.