Forever Knight (The Champion Chronicles Book 3) (20 page)

“Your journey was uneventful?” Arpwin asked.

King Toknon walked over to a far window and opened it to let in fresh air.  The fire in the room’s fireplace was blazing hot, making it a bit too warm for his tastes.

“Yes it was.  A snow storm was bearing down upon Thellia as I left, so it was good to leave before it hit the mountains and made the valley impassible.”

“That was quite fortunate.”

Toknon looked down upon the inner courtyard of the castle.  “Winter storms come across the steppes of the eastern provinces of the empire from the northwest and funnel right down the river between the White Mountains to the south and the Great Mountains to the north.  We can get several feet of snow from these storms.”

Arpwin raised an eyebrow, wondering if King Toknon was truly telling the truth.  “Several feet?  In a single storm?”

“Believe me, it’s true.  But we have been dealing with snowy winters since our ancestors laid their roots down along the Jorgan River.  It is really not an issue for us.  We have come to enjoy our snow and not lament its arrival.”

“We get snow here, of course.  Maybe a foot or so over the course of an entire winter, but certainly never all at once.  I cannot imagine how we would handle that much snow at once.”

Toknon let out a rare laugh.  “I think you would be surprised at how resilient your people would be.”

Arpwin smiled back.  “Of course, you are right.”

He stepped over to the fire and gave it a quick poke with a long steel poker.  Sparks showered up and the fire blazed even higher.

“It is plenty warm enough in here, but thank you for your hospitality,” Toknon said.

“Oh, it is my pleasure.  I only wish that a more suitable chamber was available for your use.  We don’t have many kings that make a sudden appearance at our doorstep.”

“The room is fine.  Small and quaint suits my mood perfectly.  My chambers at home are a bit big for me these days.”

Arpwin sensed the change in Toknon’s voice.  It suddenly became more somber as the young king clearly was referring to the recent death of his father, King Lorraine.  “My sympathies for your loss.  I had heard many good things about King Lorraine.  That late King Thorndale thought highly of him.”

“Yes, well, thank you.  We had our differences, but he was a good man.  Always tried to put his kingdom first.”

An awkward silence fell as Arpwin struggled to find words to say.  Thell was their former enemy and the person chiefly responsible for that was standing right in front of him.  He knew that their icy relationship had thawed and they could now be considered friendly, but there was still some uncomfortableness between them.

With the silence clearly lasting too long, Arpwin said, “Queen Elissa will be pleased that you made the journey despite the circumstances.”

“I would not have missed the ball for the world.  I made her a promise that I would attend, and here I am.”

“Are you sure that you do not want to have an audience with her before the festivities tomorrow?  I know the queen will have some spare time this evening.”

“No, I came here quietly on purpose.  I do not want to take away from her moment, as this masquerade ball is a celebration all about her.  Plus, I am sure that she has many duties to attend to.  There will be plenty of time for us to visit tomorrow.”

“Very well,” Arpwin replied.  “And your men, they are okay sleeping in the next room?  You do not want them here?”

Toknon let a sly smile cross his face.  “Is there reason to be concerned for my safety?”

Arpwin laughed.  “Of course not!  I just want to make your stay is as pleasant as possible.”

“You have done more than enough.  Thank you, Arpwin.”  Toknon was standing by the window, looking down upon the courtyard while Arpwin continued their conversation.  His attention was only partially upon the activity below him, but two men who came through the gate caught his eye.  He turned away from Arpwin to get a closer look.

“There are plenty of young maidens and pages that are ready to serve your needs, so all you need to do is ask.  Anything that is ours, of course, is yours.”  As he noticed a change in Toknon’s demeanor, he stepped forward and asked, “What is it?”

Toknon did not respond immediately.  Something about the two men that walked into the inner courtyard intrigued him.  Both were obviously soldiers, based on their long strides, wide shoulders, and thick bodies.  But they weren’t dressed like soldiers.  The larger of the two walked stiffly with a purpose, while the other looked around, as if this were the first time in a castle.  Or he was studying its layout.

The smaller man, who wasn’t much smaller, glanced in his direction, exposing his face.  Toknon took a step back and let out a gasp.  The last time he had seen Commander Roland was in his own castle, when the Taran had come for secret permission to pass through his kingdom.  He could not image why a Taran centurion commander was casually walking into this castle.  He began to wonder if he was truly going to be safe.

Arpwin had walked up to the window and looked out.  “What is it?” he asked again.

Toknon caught himself and hoped Arpwin had not noticed his surprised reaction.  “Oh, it is nothing.”

“Someone you recognize?” Arpwin asked.

Toknon shook his head and smiled.  “No, of course not.”

Arpwin glanced over at King Toknon and knew he was lying.

***

The page led Peter and Roland down the wide hallway towards their chambers.  The activity in the castle had picked up as everyone was in full party preparation mode.  What were once empty halls were now filled with servants, maids, and pages running about helping to get the castle ready for the ball.  Long tables had already been set up in the hallway where late-comers without a costume would be able to choose from a variety of outfits to use.  Although most ladies and their lords would come fully prepared in a grand costume, some would come without anything to wear.  It would have been an insult to let them into the ball without a proper costume and mask, so there would be costumes available for them.

Once they reached their chamber door, the page gave a quick bow and ran off to his next errand.  Peter opened the door.

Berrien was sitting in a chair, but stood as soon as Peter walked in.

“Peter, good.  We have much…”  His words trailed off as he noticed the newcomer walk through the doorway.

Peter closed the door, first checking to make sure there was no one nearby that would attempt to snoop on their conversation.  Roland stood near the doorway, looking around the room.

“Who is this?” Berrien asked.

“I am Commander Roland.  I serve as commander of a division of northern army centurions.”

Berrien looked him over closely.  “What are you doing here?  We have no need for soldiers here.  We are diplomats.”

“I came bearing news.  From Emperor Tarcious.”

Berrien raised an eyebrow.  “Emperor Tarcious?  When did this happen?  Did the younger brother tire of his older sibling?”

“Those are questions I will not ask, as I do not care to know the answer.  I serve whomever it is that rules from the palace in Tara City.  How he got there, that is not my business.”

“Typical soldier,” Berrien said with a smile.  “Loyal to a fault.”

Roland stiffened.  “My duty is to serve the empire.  My loyalty is my honor.”

Berrien let out a laugh.  “I meant no insult!  I was merely stating the obvious.  To be a good centurion, you must be loyal to the empire.  I commend you for that.  You said you had news from our new emperor?”

Roland glanced around, as if he were looking for something.

“Do not worry, there are no secret hallways where Karmon spies are listening.  Trust me, I already checked.  This chamber is safe and secure.  You may speak freely.”

“The army marches from the north,” Roland said.

“What?” Peter exclaimed.

Berrien remained silent, processing what he was just told.  “This does not make sense,” he said after a moment.  “Emperor Tarcious, when he was still Prince Tarcious, sent me here to reestablish a treaty with the Karmons.  This treaty would be very favorable to us and put a garrison of centurions on Karmon soil.  Why in the world would the emperor attack Karmon, now?”

“As you said, I am but a soldier.  I do not ask why when my commanders send me into battle.”

“Well, I am not a soldier, so I can ask the question,” Berrien retorted.  “The army comes marching in while I’m stuck inside the walls?  Peter, we need to leave immediately.  I am not going to be left inside to fend for myself while centurions march upon the city.”

“Staying here is exactly what you are to do,” Roland said in his commander’s voice.  “The order comes directly from the emperor.  You wish to defy him?”

“If it means saving my hide, then yes.”

“What kind of Taran are you!” Roland snapped.

“One who wants to live until tomorrow,” Berrien shot back.

“What exactly are our orders?” Peter asked, interrupting the argument.

Roland let a harsh glare stay on Berrien for a moment before turning to Peter.  “You have already established yourselves as legitimate diplomats?”

“Of course!” Berrien growled.  “Because we are.”

“And you have the trust of the lords and the queen?” Roland ignored the reply from Berrien and asked Peter.

“Where are you going with this?” Berrien demanded.

Roland turned back to Berrien and said with irritation in his voice, “Peter asked the question, and I am answering him.  Now that you are secure inside the castle, you have access to the queen and the lords.  In order to instill chaos within the city, you are to kill the queen.”

Berrien was stunned to silence while he pondered what he had been ordered to do.

“We have not had an audience with the queen,” Peter said casually, as if being ordered to assassinate a nation’s ruler was an everyday occurrence.  “We have only had meetings with their Lord Martin.  I do not know if we can get close enough to her to carry out these orders.”

“I am not an assassin,” Berrien said, interrupting Peter.

“You are an agent of the empire,” Roland said.  “You will carry out your orders.”

“I am a diplomat, not a soldier or an assassin.  If you want to kill her, you go ahead.  But with the army coming to the city, I think it is time for me to leave.”

“And then you’ll be a traitor to the empire.”

“So be it,” Berrien replied.  “But I’ll be alive.”

Peter stepped forward, moving in between the two arguing men.  “Berrien is not a solder, but I am.  I will do it.  When will the army be here?”

“Two days.”

“That leaves us very little time.”

“Can you get an audience with the queen, or get her alone somehow?” Roland asked.

Berrien wandered to a corner of the room and poured himself a goblet of wine from a tall pitcher.  He guzzled down one goblet and poured himself another.  Then he replied, “The queen is tied up with preparations for her ball.  We have tried to get an audience with her the past few days, but she is too busy.  And she constantly has a team of maids and servants hovering over her.  Unless you want this to be a suicide mission, you will have no chance to get her alone.”

“What about the masquerade ball?” Peter asked.  “It will be busy and chaotic.  If we plan this carefully, we might be able to not only assassinate her, but do it in a way that will strike fear into the rest of the lords of the realm.”

Roland smiled.  “You were always the consummate soldier, Peter.”

Peter walked over to Berrien, who had already drained a second goblet and was working on the third.  “We will need your help, Berrien.”

Berrien laughed.  “You will die before you get close enough to kill the queen.”

“Maybe,” Peter said.  “But with your help, we just might be able to do this.”

“I will be leaving first thing in the morning.  I will not be caught behind these walls when the centurions come marching upon it.  Nor do I want to be around when the queen is assassinated.  The first people they will look for will be foreigners.  Innocence or guilt will not matter.  They will execute you and me if we are still here after this happens.”

“Then we will just have to have a plan to get away.  We can still kill the queen and get out of the city before the Taran army arrives.  I know you, you can figure this out.  Me, I’m just a grunt soldier.  What do you say?  Will you help us plan this?”

Berrien drained his goblet before he answered.  “Let me make this clear.  Do not ask me to assassinate the queen.  I will not do that.”

“You have some sort of moral code?” Roland said with a harsh laugh.

Before Berrien could retort, Peter lifted a finger at Roland and said, “Enough.  We need his help and if you keep badgering him, he may just up and leave.  Now shut up and let Berrien finish.”

Roland’s face turned red, but he kept his mouth shut.

To Berrien, Peter asked, “Will you help?”

Berrien let out a long sigh.  He hated the idea of assassination because it always provided motivation and stimulation for revolutions.  “I will help, but understand that I will be out of the city the moment it happens.  I will not wait for you or help you to get out. “