Alutar: The Great Demon (53 page)

“And how does getting arrested help Tyronia?” spat Karl.

“She was not arrested,” explained the tearful captain. “She volunteered during one of King Mectin’s drives to acquire women for the Old Keep.”

“I do not understand,” Karl said with a puzzled expression. “Because I spurned her she would leap into the arms of our enemy? That makes no sense. Is she trying to get revenge on me?”

“She did not go into the Old Keep to love King Mectin,” scowled the captain. “She went there to kill him.”

A look of horror fell over Karl’s face, and his hands curled into fists of rage. “Why didn’t you tell me?” he snarled.

“She didn’t want either of us to know about it,” answered Captain Marez. “She didn’t want to be a distraction to our plans any more. Besides, I just learned of it this morning. She threatened to kill any man who told me about it, but one of them could no longer hold the secret. The men are all sick about it.”

Karl turned towards the wall, picked up his sword sheath, and pulled it on, his face a mask of hatred and determination.

“Where are you going?” Theos asked with alarm.

“To get her back,” snarled the Knight of Alcea. “I may be married to another, but I also love Althea. I will not abandon her to the likes of Mectin.”

Karl stormed off with intentions of fighting his way into the Old Keep, but when he reached the doorway, he slammed into an invisible shield. He whirled around and drew his two-handed sword.

“Release your shields, mage,” he spat, “or I will release them for you.”

Theos flicked his wrist and an invisible box formed around the Knight of Alcea. Karl tried to move towards the mages, but he could not. He tried retreating and he could not. Eventually, he sighed heavily and looked at Theos with a pleading expression.

“Let me go, Theos,” he said imploringly. “I have already lost one love in my life. While I can never satisfy Althea by returning her love, I place her life above my own. I can not let her die in that keep.”

“I am treating you as someone should have treated me when I mistakenly sought to challenge the Old Keep,” Theos said in a calming voice. “While your actions are from the heart, your head is not thinking properly. You gain nothing from attacking the Old Keep in your condition. You will not save the life of Althea, but you most certainly will lose your own. I cannot allow you to do that to yourself.”

Karl opened his mouth to respond, but Theos still saw the lines of determination on the face of the Knight of Alcea.

“There is more,” Theos continued. “Information has been kept from you because it was thought that you did not need to be distracted during this mission, but I now realize that that decision was wrong. Your wife is dead, Karl. Lyda died during the winter when the roof collapsed in the building where she lived. The others thought such information would be devastating for you, so they agreed to wait until your mission was complete before you were told. It seemed like a reasonable decision at the time, but had you been told, Althea would not be where she is today.”

“Why tell him this now?” scowled Captain Marez. “Are you crazy? This is not the way to calm him down.”

“He is a Knight of Alcea,” declared Theos, “and a man that I greatly respect. He deserves the truth, and he deserves our help in getting through all of this.”

Karl sank to his knees, his sword falling from loose fingers. Tears filled his eyes and flowed down his cheeks.

“Let me go,” he implored Theos. “Just let me go.”

“I will make a deal with you, Karl Gree,” Theos said compassionately. “If you will give me your word as a Knight of Alcea to wait one hour before making any decisions, I will walk by your side as we attack the Old Keep. We will leave this life together, midstream in the river of our enemy’s blood, or we will continue to plan for the total destruction of the Federation. The choice will be yours. Do I have your word?”

Karl Gree knew that he had no choice. Theos was quite capable of maintaining the shields around him for as long as the mage could stay awake. Karl sighed and nodded in agreement.

* * * *

Seven figures walked towards the Royal Palace in Valdo. Prince Samuel led the group, and six Black-clad warriors flanked him. The guards at the gates saw the small army approaching and quickly called for reinforcements. A dozen soldiers responded to the plea, and a runner raced into the palace. When the group reached the gates, the young Federation soldiers stood ready to repulse an attack.

“It is good to see my men ready for action,” opened Prince Samuel, “but are you all gathered here to block the entrance of the palace to the Crown Prince?”

“Prince Samuel?” gasped one of the soldiers. “Is that who you are?”

The soldiers gathered were no older than the heir, and none of them recognized the prince. They remained frozen, unsure of what to do. Fortunately, Colonel Fodor resolved the awkward situation by hurrying out of the palace to see who was attempting to bring armed warriors through the gates. He stared at the prince for a moment before nodding his recognition.

“Welcome home, Prince Samuel,” the colonel said in a friendly manner. “We have been searching all over for you.” Turning to the soldiers nearby, the colonel ordered the men, “Open the gates and form a protective detail around the prince.”

“I have my own protective force,” replied Prince Samuel. “The soldiers may maintain their guard on the gates.”

The gates swung open, but the colonel frowned deeply.

“This is highly irregular, Prince Samuel,” he said softly. “It is the army’s duty to protect you.”

“I understand,” replied Prince Samuel, “and by manning the gates, they are doing exactly that. Nevertheless, my personal guards will accompany me wherever I go. Take me to General Vladin, Colonel.”

The colonel nodded and turned to lead the way. Prince Samuel and his bodyguards followed. When they entered the palace, everyone stopped moving and stared at the group as they passed by. Garth noted the gapes and realized that word had spread quickly through the palace. He wondered if the princesses were already aware of Samuel’s arrival. Using his fingers to communicate, he warned Luke Stanford of his thoughts and reminded him that the Ranger was the spokesman for the bodyguards. Garth was only along to gauge the reception that Prince Samuel received. He had no intentions of staying in Valdo. The colonel showed the group into the general’s office. General Vladin looked up with a smile on his face, but he gazed at the escorts with concern. The general bowed to the prince and then addressed the colonel.

“Did you not tell Prince Samuel that the entire army is at his disposal?” General Vladin asked.

“I have been told,” answered Prince Samuel. “These men are sworn to me, and I will keep them close. Does that trouble you, General Vladin?”

The general was surprised by the response. He knew Samuel as a lad, and he had never known him to be outspoken or forceful. He raised an eyebrow as he shook his head.

“Whatever pleases you, pleases me, Prince Samuel,” the general stated. “Welcome home. You may leave us, Colonel Fodor.”

“I would like the colonel to remain,” stated the prince. “Tell me the state of the kingdom, General.”

General Vladin frowned deeply. Having the colonel remain for the discussion meant that the prince was not entirely sure of the allegiance of the general. It was a subtle hint that the general could easily be replaced.

For the next hour, the general spoke of the affairs of Spino. Throughout the telling, no one but the general spoke. There were no questions or comments from the prince or anyone else. The general began to feel uneasy about the whole meeting. When he was done, he looked to the prince for comment.

“You did not mention my sisters,” stated the prince. “Are they pushing to gain power?”

The general nodded. “They are, but I did not think it was pertinent. I am sure that once they hear that you have returned home, their demands will wither. Their demands were, of course, born out of impatience. They did not believe that you would return, and they saw Spino without a leader.”

“As do many of the nobles?” questioned the prince.

The general sighed and nodded. “In honesty, the nobles remember you as a bit of an oddity. Much was said in Valdo when you joined the Cult of Everlasting Bounty. I believe that many in this city still believe you unfit for office.”

“And does that include the officers in this room?” asked the prince.

Colonel Fodor was quick to shake his head. The general was a little slower with his reply.

“I live to serve the rightful ruler of Spino,” declared the general. “That is you, Prince Samuel. I have had my men scouring the countryside in search of you. Would I do so if my intentions were less than dedicated to the line of succession?”

“I suppose not,” the prince smiled slightly. “I think we need to have a coronation today, General.”

“Today?” balked the general. “That is impossible. There are arrangements to be made, guests to be invited, decorations created. The list is endless.”

“There is no list,” stated the prince. “I cannot imagine having a gala affair when our kingdom is in such a deplorable state. The coronation will be held in the throne room before sunset. You may invite who you will, but the princesses will be required to attend. In fact, I would like them brought here immediately. If there is to be trouble from that quarter, I wish to deal with it now. General, Colonel, we will talk again tomorrow.”

The officers left the room and one of the Rangers made sure that no one remained beyond the door before they spoke freely. Prince Samuel sighed with relief. He unclasped his hands, having held them tightly together so that their shaking did not give away his nervousness.

“You did well, Prince Samuel,” offered Garth.

“But that was not me speaking,” Prince Samuel replied. “I mean, that is not who I really am.”

“We understand that,” smiled Garth, “but these people do not. You will have to keep this up for another day or two, but you will soon be able to revert to yourself. What you are trying to do now is to set the ground rules for the people closest to you. General Vladin now understands that he is replaceable. He will try his hardest to please you and gain your confidence. Colonel Fodor will do the same, hoping that Vladin displeases you in some way. There will be some rivalry there, but I do not think it will blossom into trouble. The next step will be your sisters. They are very self-centered and used to getting their own way. You need to impress upon them that their lives are now yours to control. If they do not behave, they may end up in less desirable surroundings, but there is danger in those young women that you must pay attention to. Allow the Rangers to be the forceful ones during your meeting. You will be the kindly older brother who they will need to appease to survive.”

“You mean to have my bodyguards threaten them?” frowned the prince.

“That is exactly what I mean,” smiled Garth. “I am sure that during your meeting, one of the sisters will show her displeasure with the thought of you being king. Allow the Rangers to handle it in their own way. Let them become fearful, not of you, but of your men. You will be their saving grace.”

Princess Anadale and Princess Bahia were shown into the general’s office to meet with Prince Samuel. Princess Anadale, the older of the two, glared at Prince Samuel as she entered the room, but neither of the princesses spoke.

“Thank you for the warm welcome,” Prince Samuel said sarcastically. “I wanted both of you here to inform you personally of the coronation later today. As my sisters, it would be noticeable if you were not present, so I will be requiring your attendance.”

“Coronation?” balked Princess Anadale. “On whose authority? I don’t know how you tricked General Vladin into thinking that you are the heir, but Mother loathed you. There is no way that she would want you to rule Spino.”

“Mother is dead,” the prince stated without emotion. “As to what Mother wanted, she modified the line of succession last year to reinstate me as the heir. General Vladin is merely performing his duties as required by law.”

“The throne is rightfully mine,” spat Princess Anadale. “You should crawl back to your cult and die.”

Luke Stanford moved so quickly that the princesses never saw the threat coming. He unsheathed his sword and stepped forward, bringing the tip of the blade up under Princess Anadale’s chin. Anadale screamed.

“It is treason to wish ill of the rightful heir,” snarled the Ranger. “As a protector of the crown, I would be within the law to take the life of anyone seeking the death of Prince Samuel, whether they be princess or peasant. Are you ready to die, Princess?”

Prince Samuel dispassionately watched the play unfold. Anadale’s eyes grew large with fear, and her head tilted upward as the Ranger pressed the tip of the sword to her throat. Princess Bahia’s face paled noticeably as she gaped in horror.

“Samuel,” pleaded Princess Bahia, “stop him. He is killing our sister.”

“Is he?” asked Prince Samuel. “A true sister would be supportive of her older brother. I am going to have my hands full trying to run this country without having to look over my shoulder at the people living within the palace.”

“I will support you,” croaked Princess Anadale. “I swear I will. Call off your dog.”

Prince Samuel hesitated as if pondering some weighty decision. After a few moments of silence, he waved dismissively at the Ranger. Luke slowly withdrew his sword and the princess lowered her head. She stared at Luke with fear in her eyes.

“I will keep a watch on you,” Luke said menacingly. “Do not even think of disobeying Prince Samuel.”

After a moment of glaring into the princess’s eyes, Luke suddenly stepped back and sheathed his sword. Prince Samuel watched his sisters closely for any interaction between them, but there was none. He did notice the ostentatious display of jewelry on both of them. Each wore expensive rings on each finger and a necklace that would feed the entire city for a week.

“The coronation will not be a showy affair,” Prince Samuel said softly, breaking the awkward silence. “I would prefer it if both you would forego wearing expensive jewelry. With so many people in this city starving to death, it becomes a mockery when the royal family displays their enormous wealth.”