Accidental Dragoon

by Jamie Davis

  “Then why don’t we just announce her?” Cari asked.

  “That wouldn’t work.” Mona shook her head and frowned. “They would just rush Timron to the coronation and crown him. They already spread word about an imposter to the throne. While the populace might rise up to support her, the Duke of Charon will have all the cards in his hands if Timron is already Emperor. There’s nothing we will have comparable to his control over the army once that happens.”

  “I don’t know,” Hal said. “I’ve managed far more with less in my day.”

  “Dad, we’ve got little time, and no one wants to start a civil war that sweeps through the entire empire again like before. If there’s a way to get Jaycee on the throne now before Timron is crowned, that’s what we need to do. It will keep a lot of people from getting caught and killed in the crossfire.”

  “I guess you’re right,” Hal said. “So, what’s the plan?”

  Cari scanned the group around her. They needed more help. “We plan soon. First, we need one more person here to make sure we can pull this off.”

  Four hours later, in the early morning hours of the next day, the planning began in earnest with all of them around the broad table. Percy sat nearby with Jaycee, reading her a story from a book of fairy tales.

  Merrick, the newcomer to the group, sat at the table on the bench opposite Cari. He leaned forward after hearing their initial plans and tapped his fingers on the table.

  Cari looked his way, “you have some ideas, Merrick?”

  The underworld merchant leader paused in thought and then said, “the big trick is getting into the Palace during the Coronation or, preferably before it. They’re going to be watching all the doors and gates leading into the Palace Square and the palace itself. They’ll also be watching all the known secret passages. There was a time when I might have been able to sneak you in via a route from the sewers, now I am afraid that option will be covered, as well. Too many people know of it to be safe.”

  “There is one thing that they might not know about,” Mona said. “Kareena once told me of a passage near our quarters in the royal wing of the Palace. She said no one but her father knew about it. He told her of it only when the palace was surrounded by the usurper Kang’s forces, hoping she would use it to escape. In the end, their defenses were overcome more quickly than expected and she never got the chance to use it.”

  “If there’s a passage no one knows about, that would be the perfect way to get inside,” Cari said. “Where are your rooms in the palace in relation to the grand audience hall? That’s where the coronation is supposed to happen. Is it close?”

  “Close enough,” her mother said. “It’s next to the imperial apartments. The grand audience hall is right next to those.”

  “Do you know where the passage lets out into the city?” Merrick asked. “It’s one thing to know where the entrance in the palace is located, it’s another to find the far end of said secret passage.”

  “Kareena only told me it opened out into something she called the Chapel of the Eighth Canal. Does that mean anything to any of you?”

  Cari looked around at her companions hoping someone showed some signs of recognition. Merrick sat back holding his fingers steepled in front of his nose. He looked as if he were praying despite the scowl on his face. “Merrick, something’s bothering you. Do you know of this chapel? You do come from the Canal District of the city.”

  “I know where that chapel is, but that’s only the good news.”

  “So,” Hal said. “What’s the bad news?”

  “It’s not in my part of the Canal District. It’s in an area belonging to my chief rival and a known ally to the Duke of Charon. There are many factions that watch over that district. Many of them are allied with me and if I don’t have an arrangement with them, I can purchase an arrangement with them. But the Eighth Canal Gang is something altogether different. The leader there is one of the Duke of Charon’s cronies. If he sees you all coming, he’ll put two and two together and figure out we’re up to something. If there is a secret entrance to the palace leading to his area, my guess is he’s heard legends of its existence, if we show up in his area armed to the teeth, he’s going to realize it’s true and warn the Duke.”

  “So, first we have to deal with this person and his gang. Then we have to find the tunnel entrance. Then, once all that goes according to plan, we sneak into the palace and fight our way into the coronation and put Jaycee on the throne,” Cari said. “And here I thought this was going to be difficult.”

  “If it was easy, Cari, everyone would be doing it,” Hal said.

  Cari finished the phrase as her father said it. It was a favorite saying of his. “Yeah, yeah, I know. Anything worth having is worth fighting for and the all the other sayings that fit here.” She turned back to the problem at hand. “Merrick, what kind of support and forces does the leader of the Eighth Canal Gang have?”

  “He’s got the usual band of thugs. He keeps most of them centered around his warehouse near the central canal where all the other canals come together and lead to the river. There are probably no more than twenty or thirty in all.”

  “That’s not too bad,” Stefan said. “My platoon from Tandon can probably handle them.”

  “If they get tied up in the fighting in the Canal District,” Cari asked. “How are they going to be able to come help us fight inside the palace?”

  “Oh, that’s a good point.”

  Silence settled around the table.

  “We need more people,” Cari said. “At some point, we’re going to have to open this up and let other people know what we’re planning. Liam, have you been able to round up any of the former Dragoons?”

  The Dragoon sergeant nodded. “There are about fifteen in the city that I know of. There may be others who will arrive before we kick off our plan, but everyone was pretty much scattered back to their homes after the regiment was disbanded. It was difficult to get the word out to too many in time for them to travel here. Figure on no more than thirty in all.”

  “That’s something and we’ll take it. We’ve got them to add to our number,” Cari said, ticking off the numbers on her fingers. “We’ve got Stefan’s platoon from Tandon, Harley Denne’s collection of loyal city watchmen, and those Dragoons who’ll get back to the city in time. We are going to need them all with us inside the palace once the fighting starts.”

  Merrick cleared his throat. “I’ve been trying to stay in the background on this, but I see that if I want to have things work out my way, I’m going to have to have a more active role.”

  “What does that mean, exactly,” Cari asked.

  “I have some men and women of my own, but not enough to match the Eighth Canal Gang. That said, I can call in some markers. I can probably come up with another thirty people between mine and the ones I can afford to hire. That should be enough to keep the Eighth Canal’s people occupied while you all look for the entrance to the tunnel.”

  “If your people go in first,” Hal suggested, “the other side might not realize it’s associated with us. Is there a way you can make it look like an ordinary underworld squabble or maybe a takeover attempt?”

  “That’s a good idea. He and I are not friends at all. Some even call us enemies. He might think I’m using the coronation as a distraction to take over his part of the Canal District. If that were the case, he probably wouldn’t want to tell the Duke he was under attack. It would show weakness.”

  “Exactly,” Hal said. “You tackle them on your end. Keep them occupied by hitting them down by their warehouse. That would be where you would attack if you wanted to take his resources for yourself anyway. Once that pulls all of the guards from the rest of the area, we can move in with the rest of our group floating through the canals in a barge until we are near the chapel.”

  Cari nodded. “It sounds like this plan is starting to come together. All we need is a way to stop the ceremony once we reach the grand audience hall. I think I have a plan that might h
elp with that. Liam, do you still have my holoprojector,”

  “Yes, it is in my bags we brought from the tavern.”

  “Then we’ve got a way to distract the Duke’s men while we get Jaycee to the throne. It should distract at least a portion of the guards in the hall. Here’s what I’m thinking.”

  Cari outlined her idea. Everyone around the table pitched in their own thoughts until the plan solidified into something that might just work. Cari glanced over at her father as the final details were hammered out between her mother and Merrick. Her dad looked at her and winked.

  Cari smiled. If it weren’t so dangerous, the next couple of days would be a whole lot of fun.

  * * *

  Quest accepted — infiltrate the palace and crown a new Empress

  Chapter 38

  Cari crouched behind her mom and dad as the barge floated down the canal. Jaycee sat on the deck behind her accompanied by Helen, Francesca, and Percy. Standing behind them Rodrigo and the three Dragoons rounded out this part of the assault on the palace.

  As she looked at her friends and family, all of them here beside her for this final plan to set things right in Fantasma again. Cari realized her journey here in Fantasma seemed to have come full circle, not just for her, but for her parents as well.

  Just as her father was instrumental in helping his friend Kay reach the throne and take her rightful place as the Empress Kareena, Cari would also be instrumental in helping Kareena’s heir reach the throne. A lot relied on the various parts of their plan coming together. Everything was in motion now. It was too late to second guess anything.

  A tarp stretched across the stacks of crates on either side of them in the barge. Cari and the others were huddled in between the boxes beneath the tarp. To a casual observer, it would appear as if it was an ordinary canal barge on its way to unload its cargo downstream. Cari wanted to check on their progress, but they all needed to stay hidden. Merrick’s men manning the barge would ensure they got to where they needed to be.

  In the distance, Cari heard the unmistakable crack of musket and pistol fire. “That’s the signal,” she whispered. “Merrick and his people have started their attack on the Eighth Canal Gang’s warehouse.”

  Her dad looked back at her and grinned. He was acting so strange. Her father was usually stern and about as far from this risk-taking adventurer as anyone could be. Now he acted as if this was just another typical day for him in Fantasma. After thinking about it, Cari realized maybe it was.

  The canal barge bumped up against something that scraped along the side of the hull. A few seconds later Cari felt the rocking motion of the barge stop. There was some more sound of gunfire in the distance and shouting voices nearby sounded the alarm.

  “I think now’s our chance,” Cari said. Her dad glanced back and nodded in agreement.

  Cari pointed to her friends. “Let’s go. Percy, Helen, and Francesca make sure you keep Jaycee close to me. We’re going to be moving fast.”

  “She’s safe with us, captain,” Percy said, his eagerness to be part of the action causing his voice to crack. He was proud to have been able to come along. He all but insisted, claiming he was the best person to protect the young princess while the fighting was going on. Now he stood ready to live up to his promise, his cutlass shoved into one side of his belt and a loaded pistol shoved in the other.

  Cari reached over and lifted the edge of the tarp.

  One of the barge’s crew was climbing down from the edge of the canal and returning to the deck below. He came over to her as she emerged from their hiding place. “It looks like most of them took the bait, ma’am. There’s still a few lingering in the area of the chapel from what I could see. It didn’t look like they’re going after the others.

  “Good enough,” Cari said. “You’ve gotten us this far. We’ll take it from here.”

  Cari moved along the barge’s deck, crouched so she remained out of sight below the edge of the canal’s stone walls. The others padded along right behind her. When she reached the front of the barge, she jumped off onto the ledge at the edge of the canal.

  A narrow stone staircase led up to the street above. Cari took a deep breath and bounded up the steps, the rest of the team following behind.

  “Cari, let me go first,” her dad said, catching up to her as she reached the top of the steps.

  “I’ve got this, dad. You keep an eye out for any magic being used and watch my back. I know I can trust you.”

  He didn’t look happy with the assignment but nodded. He’d agreed to that part of their plan. He had to be ready to counter any magic they ran into.

  Cari reached the top of the steps and vaulted over the low ledge onto the street. It took her a few seconds to get oriented and find the chapel. It wasn’t a very large building and didn’t look like much of a church. It was a square building about twenty feet on a side sitting at the end of a row of taller buildings and shops right next to the canal.

  There were several small groups of men and women standing around pointing frantically to the east. That would be where the attack on the warehouse was happening. There’d been no more gunfire, but that didn’t surprise Cari. No one was going to take the time to reload a single shot musket or pistol in the middle of a fight.

  As the rest of the group came up onto the street, the small groups of residents noticed there were suddenly armed people in their midst. Most of the clusters of people turned and ran for one of the nearby buildings. Cari discounted them. They were likely ordinary residents trying to get away from trouble.

  Two of the groups didn’t run. They drew their swords and charged Cari and her companions instead. There were ten gang members in all.

  Cari’s friends spread out to receive the charge, weapons ready.

  Five of the charging thugs suddenly slipped from their feet and fell to the ground as a sheet of ice appeared on the cobblestone street beneath them.

  Cari smiled. “Thanks, Dad.”

  “Divide and conquer,” her father said. He fired off a stream of ice darts in the direction of the disabled crew as they struggled to regain their feet. Several of them went down again and stayed down.

  Cari didn’t see what else happened with them. She was busy as the other band of thugs reached them. There were five in this group as well and Cari’s crew rapidly overwhelmed them. Cari crossed swords with one of them for a brief time then Thad drove his sword in from the side, killing the man.

  Within ten seconds the street was cleared of any living threats. All the nearby members of the Eighth Canal Gang had been dealt with.

  “Come on,” Mona called out. “We still have to search the chapel and find the entrance. I suspect it’s not going to be easy.”

  Cari’s mom reached the chapel first and tried the door, finding it locked. She knelt, pulling a strange device from her utility belt. Cranking a tiny wheel on the side of a small box the size of a deck of cards, Mona inserted the metal rod sticking out of one end into the lock. She pressed the button on the top of the box and Cari heard a soft whirring followed by a distinct click from the lock. Her mother smiled and pulled the device from the keyhole, stood and pushed the door open.

  “That’s pretty cool, Mom. You have to get me one of those.

  “You can have mine when we’re done here.” Mona stepped inside, followed by Hal, Cari, and then Jaycee and her trio of assigned guards. The Dragoons brought up the rear.

  Frescos and religious scenes in bright painted colors covered the walls and even parts of the domed ceiling above. That much was visible even in the dim daylight filtering in through stained-glass windows on the front wall.

  “What are we looking for?” Cari asked.

  Her mom looked around and shrugged. “It’ll depend on a lot of things. Just search for something that doesn’t look like it belongs, like a seam or crack in the wall, or a mark on the floor that might show where a secret door scraped against the tiles.”

  Helen, Francesca, and Percy remained in the center of the r
oom with Jaycee, the three dragoons spread out to check the walls along with Rodrigo. Cari and her parents spread out on the opposite side of the chapel and began searching the walls there.

  They searched all along the plaster walls for at least ten minutes but found nothing. Cari ran her hands along the wall in front of her. It all felt the same as the rest.

  The walls were painted white plaster, with no visible seams anywhere. She found it hard to believe there was some sort of door to be found there.

  “Could these walls have been plastered after the opening was built?” Cari asked. “There’s no way there wouldn’t be a seam or something visible otherwise.”

  “I suppose that’s possible,” her mom said. “Kareena said she never went into the tunnel.”

  Chance shook his head. “This plaster is old, as old as the building itself if I’m correct. It’s been painted recently, but it’s been here a long time.”

  “Maybe the entrance is outside somewhere next to the building like the basement entrance we used to escape into the sewers a few days ago,” Rodrigo suggested.

  Cari knew they didn’t have much time to waste. They’d already taken too long. Still, if they went outside and were seen searching around the exterior of the chapel, it would cause the residents here to send for help, if they hadn’t already. Cari shook her head. “Save that as a last resort, Rod. I have to think the entrance is in here, somewhere. We’ll have to go over the walls again.”

  “What about the floor?” Her dad said. He pointed at the tiles on which they stood. Cari glanced down. The floor was covered in a mosaic of tiles forming patterns and arranged in panels of various images displayed in the intricate tile work. She walked along, retracing her steps when she first entered the chapel. She examined the tile images depicted at her feet. The first one showed a knight on horseback charging a dragon with his lance lowered before him. The next one in the row of mosaic panels along the center aisle depicted what looked like some sort of magic user or wizard, judging from the staff he wielded. Lightning played outward from the end of the staff. Below the mage, a group of enemies cowered. She walked forward towards the altar to the third and final scene depicted in the tiles. In that image, a king knelt in front of a throne. A robed man placed a crown on his head.