Red Rose Rising

by A J Manney

  She had asked her grandfather repeatedly if he had heard anything, but his answer was always the same. “No news is good news.”

  So, each night, Zalia went to sleep, praying for the safe return of Beckam and Valen.

  One night, two weeks after Beckam and Valen left, Zalia was roused in the middle of the night by someone banging on her door. Zalia sat up quickly, startled. She grabbed a robe and threw it around herself as she walked quickly to the door, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. She opened the door to find Kell standing there.

  “Princess, it’s Beckam, he’s asking for you,” he said urgently.

  Icy fear flooded Zalia’s body as she closed her door and ran behind Kell. Kell threw open the door and ushered Zalia into her grandfather’s room. Zalia froze for a moment when she saw Beckam. He was barely alive, but he called out her name when she walked into the room. Zalia ran to his side. “You’re... a...live,” his voice trailed off and slipped into unconsciousness.

  Quickly taking control of the situation, she told Kell and the others who had gathered around the bed. “Get his shirt off quickly. I have to have access to his wounds.” Beckam was completely unconscious, so they were able to move quickly without disturbing him. Zalia stared down at his stomach in horror.

  What have they done to you, Beckam, she thought horrified. He had deep lacerations all over his body.

  Her grandfather turned his angry eyes to hers. Zalia took a small step back. She had never seen him angry before. “You’re our only hope. We tried a healer’s brew and it did nothing,” he said angrily.

  Zalia shook herself. This was not the time to fall apart. She straightened her shoulders. “Okay, let’s see what I can do. She stepped forward and found the worst of his injuries and started there. She placed her hands over the first of many deep lacerations. Her hands started to tingle, the blue light started to appear. Zalia kept her hands over the wound until it was completely healed. She moved on to the next one, and the next. Too soon, Zalia started to see dark spots. She knew she was already starting to fade. She looked at her grandfather in alarm.

  “How are you feeling?” her grandfather asked her anxiously.

  “It’s too soon,” she said. She shouldn’t be tiring this soon. Not after her bond with Valen, but Zalia knew she wasn’t going to be able to finish Beckam before the darkness came for her. She did her best to finish as much as she could before the darkness claimed her.

  Zalia slowly opened her eyes, feeling like a weight was sitting on her chest. She looked around her and realized she was still in her grandfather’s room. She sat up from the couch slowly. Henrietta sat next to her and lifted a teacup to her. “Here, drink this,” she said softly.

  Zalia drank the healer’s brew. “Thank you,” she said. She let it settle for a few moments, then stood up and moved back towards Beckam. “How is he?” she asked her grandfather.

  Her grandfather was sitting in a chair next to Beckam. He looked at Beckam for a moment. “He’s tough. He's hanging in there,” he said. He looked at Zalia. “How are you?”

  Zalia shrugged. “I’m okay. I don’t understand why I passed out. Since I bonded with Valen, it’s been so much better. I didn’t even get halfway through the healing before I passed out,” she said in confusion.

  Her grandfather looked thoughtful but didn’t say anything. Zalia bent over Beckam. “I’m going to get back to work,” she said to her grandfather. She pulled the blanket back to look at his wounds. She put her hands on his stomach and started the healing process again.

  When Beckam’s wounds were all healed, her grandfather hugged her. “Thank you, Zalia,” he said, his voice emotional. Zalia hugged him back then sat down to wait until Beckam woke up. His face was starting to develop a little color again. They waited several hours before Beckam finally started coming around. He cracked his eyes open and looked around in confusion.

  His eyes found Zalia’s, and relief showed on his face. “You’re alive,” he said hoarsely, like he hadn’t used his vocal cords for a little while. “You healed me,” he said. Zalia found herself emotional. She just nodded. “Thank you,” he said. Again, Zalia nodded.

  She stood up and walked over to Beckam and took his hand. “Where’s Valen?” she asked quietly.

  Beckam’s face turned stone cold, and just like that, Zalia’s stomach dropped. Icy fear once again flooded her veins. “Is he... Is he...” she choked on the words.

  “He’s alive, but I don’t know for how long,” Beckam said gruffly.

  Zalia couldn’t breathe. She felt like a huge rock was sitting on her chest. Her grandfather came around and looked down at Beckam. “How are you feeling?” he asked quietly.

  Beckam pushed himself into a sitting position. “I can’t believe Zalia’s healing powers. I feel absolutely no pain. I’m weak and hungry and tired, but my body doesn’t hurt at all. It’s amazing.”

  “Are you up to telling us what happened, or do you need to eat and rest first?” her grandfather asked him.

  Zalia held her breath. She didn’t want to pressure him, but she really needed to know where Valen was and if he was okay. Valen? she tentatively reached out to him but didn’t receive a response.

  Beckam looked right at Zalia. “I will tell my story now. You all need to know what happened.” He sounded so defeated. Zalia wasn’t sure she wanted to hear this story. She was scared for Valen.

  Beckam began, “It took us close to five days to get to Astra. Our plan was to get in quietly and have Valen set up a meeting with his father. Then we would take him out.”

  He looked down for a moment and then back up in anger. “It was an ambush. King Mylan knew we were coming. He and his army were waiting for us inside the castle walls. We walked right into a trap. The small army we took with us was no match for his entire army.” He paused for a moment and tried to rein in his anger. Everybody waited silently, giving him time to compose himself.

  “He killed all my men, leaving only Valen and myself alive,” Beckam said in fierce anger.

  Beckam was quiet again. Zalia felt sick to her stomach. Those poor soldiers. She knew so many of them personally. Beckam didn’t say anything more. She hated to push him, but she had to know.

  “What happened to Valen?” she asked softly.

  Beckam pinned her with his eyes. Then he looked away. “Beckam what is it? What happened?”

  Beckam looked back at her, his jaw rigid with anger. “They took him away,” he said in anger.

  Zalia felt as if the wind was knocked out of her. “But how? He’s the best sword fighter there is? There’s no way they would have been able to take him down,” she said, fighting tears.

  “He went willingly,” Beckam said.

  “Why?” Zalia asked quietly. Beckam looked down and wouldn’t meet her eyes. “Beckam?” she questioned keeping her voice soft and calm, as she had learned from Valen.

  “Valen’s father said he had you locked up. He said if Valen went with him willingly, he would let you go,” he paused. “His father did something to him, and Valen couldn’t feel you anymore. He couldn’t contact you, so he had no way of knowing if his father was bluffing or not. Valen wouldn’t take the chance,” he said quietly.

  Beckam looked her in the eye. “I’m sorry. Valen would never let anything happen to you, so he let them take him. They carried him away in shackles. I, I think his father is going to kill him for trying to overthrow his rule.”

  “NO!” Zalia cried out. This couldn’t be happening! She had to do something. “Why would he do that?” she screamed at Beckam.

  Beckam looked at her solemnly, “Because he loves you.”

  Zalia couldn’t hold on any longer. She felt her knees weaken and thought her knees might give out on her. Strong arms grabbed her arms and held her upright. She looked up into Kell’s eyes. “Are you okay, Princess?” he asked.

  No, she thought. But I will be. Zalia took a few deep breaths and nodded at Kell. He released his hold on her but didn’t step too far away. Zalia took on
e more deep breath and then looked at Beckam. “You’re sure Valen is in Astra now?” she asked.

  Beckam looked at her sadly. “Yes.” Then he looked at her face and said, “Zalia, whatever you’re thinking, just stop. There’s a reason King Mylan let me go. He wanted to be sure I came back here and told you about Valen. He wants you to come after Valen. Otherwise, he would have killed me.”

  Zalia didn’t say anything. Her mind was racing with a plan. She lifted her head and looked at Beckam. “Valen would come for me,” she said.

  Beckam nodded, “Yes, but Valen is a trained warrior. He’s practically an assassin. You’re a...”

  Zalia interrupted him. “If you say I’m a girl, I will hurt you,” she said angrily.

  Beckam smirked. He abruptly hid it when he saw her face. Zalia looked at him and crossed her arms. “I will be going after Valen, and you can’t stop me. You can either come with me and help me or you can just wait for my return.”

  “Kell,” she called out. “Will you go with me?”

  Kell looked at Beckam for a moment, then at the King. Beckam just glared at Zalia, but Zalia’s grandfather nodded slightly. Kell turned back to Zalia. “I would be honored to, Princess.”

  Her grandfather, who had been silent during the exchange walked over to Zalia. “What’s your plan, Zalia?” he asked quietly.

  Zalia’s mind had been racing and planning since the moment she heard what happened to Valen. She had so many thoughts, but the plan locked into place in her mind the moment her grandfather looked at her.

  Zalia lifted her head. “I am going to return to Arrosa and take my rightful place as Queen of the Kingdom of the Red Rose. I will raise up my father’s army. I’m hoping Kell can take a group of soldiers with us. I am going to ask Adaire to head back to Sol and bring his army to meet me in Astra. Maybe he can even persuade Prince Raider to join us. Surprise didn’t work before, and I have no doubt it won’t work again. King Mylan has spies everywhere. We won’t go for stealth; we will go with strength and mass. Using our combined armies, we should be to destroy King Mylan. When we get to the Kingdom of the Dark Moon, we will attack from all sides. While the soldiers are busy, we will send a small group in to retrieve Valen.”

  Nobody said anything for a few moments. Kell looked at Zalia with interest. “How are you going to overthrow King Mylan’s rule in your kingdom?”

  Zalia thought for a few minutes. “Beckam, how many soldiers did King Mylan leave in charge in my kingdom?”

  Beckam was still not happy, but he answered anyway. “From the intel we gathered, it doesn’t seem like he left a huge contingency. The people fear King Mylan, so he doesn’t need a lot of soldiers to keep the peace.”

  “Do you know where all my soldiers are?” she questioned.

  Beckam answered. “The leaders and all the members of the King’s Guard are imprisoned in the chambers under the castle. The rest of the foot soldiers were sent home.”

  Zalia looked at him questioningly. “Why would they willingly go home?”

  “Because King Mylan is sick. The soldiers told us that he demonstrated what would happen to any soldier who didn’t step down and follow the soldiers from Astra,” he said angrily.

  Zalia was scared to hear the answer but needed to. “What did he do?” she asked quietly.

  Beckam was silent a moment. “He led a demonstration in the courtyard. Five soldiers and their families were brought out. He bound the soldiers, then killed their families in front of them,” Beckam said angrily.

  Zalia’s heart broke for those soldiers, while her heart grew in hatred for King Mylan. “King Mylan needs to be stopped,” she said. The men all agreed on that.

  Zalia was quiet a moment. “Kell and I will sneak into the castle. Kael and I used to do it all the time. We will head to where my soldiers are being held. We will free them and take down the guards from Astra.

  The King looked at Beckam and Kell. “It’s a good plan,” he said reluctantly. Kell nodded; Beckam didn’t respond. “Beckam,” he called gently. “What do you think?”

  Beckam looked at Zalia. “Valen will kill me if I take you there.”

  Zalia just rolled her eyes. “He will not.”

  Beckam argued with her. “He really will. Zalia, you don’t understand how much he loves you, and his protective instincts are a little over the top with you. He literally could kill me for taking you into his father’s kingdom.”

  Zalia looked at him and said, “Well, I won’t let that happen. But Beckam, I am leaving for Astra whether you come or not.”

  Beckam stared at her with a hard look, but Zalia didn’t back down. “Fine,” he finally gave in.

  Zalia breathed a sigh of relief. She would do it without Beckam, but she had really hoped he would go with. “All right, we will meet tonight to strategize. Then we will leave tomorrow morning at sunrise. Beckam, you rest today. I’m going to find Adaire and talk him into going with us. Kell, you prepare the soldiers that we will be taking with us.” With that, she whirled around and headed for the door.

  She wasn’t quite out the door when she heard Kell laugh and say, “She’s going to handle being queen quite well.”

  She heard her grandfather’s amused, “Indeed.”

  Just as she was about to close the door, she heard Beckam’s grumbled response. “If she doesn’t get killed first.

  Zalia closed the door and leaned against the wall for a moment. This is for real. We’re really doing this. She stepped away from the wall and took a deep breath. “Valen, hang on. We’re coming for you,” she said out loud as she strode down the hall to find Adaire and talk him into her plan.

  Chapter 26

  It didn’t take Adaire nearly as long to convince as it had Beckam. He agreed to meet with the team at dinner to discuss the plan. After her talk with Adaire, Zalia headed to her room. She needed extra rest after her healing today. She wanted to be at her best for the days ahead. She went to her bathroom and took a relaxing bath. After she washed her body and her hair, she climbed out, toweled off, and got dressed. She spent a few minutes setting out what she would need to pack. Then she lay down on her bed hoping to be able to sleep for an hour or two, so her body could rejuvenate from healing. She had a hard time shutting her mind off. She didn’t fall into a deep sleep, but she did rest for two hours.

  By the time it was time to meet up, Zalia had packed everything she would need for the next several weeks and set out clothes to put on the next morning. She grabbed Raven from her room and headed to the meeting.

  On the way, Raven asked. “How are you doing?”

  Zalia responded. “I just want to get moving. Waiting is killing me. Now that I know he’s in danger, it’s killing me to just stay here.”

  Raven looked at her. “Do you think Prince Adaire will be able to get Prince Raider to join us?”

  “I’m not sure,” Zalia said. She looked at Raven as they walked. “Do you know anything about him?”

  “No,” Raven said.

  Zalia stopped Raven before they went in to meet with everybody. “Listen, are you sure you want to go with us?”

  Raven looked at Zalia stoically. “We’ve come this far. I’m not leaving you now. We’re in this together,” she said earnestly.

  Zalia’s eyes teared up. “I don’t deserve you, Raven,” she said with a smile. She reached out and hugged Raven tightly. Then she stepped back and looked at her. “I have no idea how this is all going to turn out,” she said.

  Raven nodded. “I know. We have to just take it one step at a time. We can do this. We’ve spent months training for this. Now it’s time to prove ourselves,” she said.

  Zalia agreed. “All right. Let’s go.”

  They walked into the room and saw King Avery, Beckam, Kell, and Adaire all gathered around a map at a small table. They stood up and greeted the girls as they walked in. Zalia walked right over to Beckam and hugged him. “How are you feeling?” she asked. He looked so much better than earlier, now that he had washed up and put on c
lean clothes.

  He smiled down at her. “Great, cousin! I slept all afternoon and feel human again.”

  Zalia looked up at him and asked quietly so the others couldn’t hear, “I know you may be ready to return physically, but what about mentally? I know you went through a lot. Don’t think I haven’t noticed you haven’t told us how you received all those cuts.”

  Beckam’s smile faded as she talked and his face hardened. “I’ll be fine. Nothing to worry about.” With that, he turned back to the conversation at hand. Zalia knew he was redirecting her, and she let him. She was worried about him.

  Dinner was a quick affair. Nobody wanted to linger when they had much to plan. After the plates were carried away, their dinner table became their battlefield. They put out the map of the five kingdoms on the table. They spent the next three hours talking battle strategy. Zalia listened and gave input occasionally, but mostly she left it up to the guys. This was their domain.

  By the time they all parted ways to get some sleep, it was decided that they would leave at first light. They would travel with fifty of the warriors from her grandfather’s kingdom for. They would ride quickly to reach Arrosa within two or three days. Once they reached Arrosa, Adaire would split and head to his kingdom to rally his army and hopefully convince Prince Raider to join on the way.

  Zalia and her crew would camp out in the woods. At nightfall, Zalia, Raven, Beckam, and Kell would sneak into the castle and find the prisoners in the basement. The remaining soldiers would stay in the woods and wait for the signal. Once they were able to free her soldiers, Zalia along with Kell and Beckam would lead them in an attack against King Mylan’s guards. The waiting soldiers from Cascadia would help take out the guards on the outer walls and courtyard area.