THE VROL TRILOGY (46 page)

"Of course! The fool was to betray us at the
full moon! His lifeless body now fertilizes the earth. So welcome
is your advice, good friend. Now, if you will excuse me, I shall
return in a moment."

Krynos walked off, his large frame casting a
shadow in his wake, leaving Draagh and Alea alone as he called out
to someone from across the courtyard.

"Draagh, how can this be? What has happened
here? Did you use your magic and cause their minds to forget? Have
you changed them so? It cannot be that I am again the cause of some
form of suffering - please, change them back and take me from this
place…"

"Oh no, my dear. In this world, you - that
is, Alea was never born. It is a new world - different, yet similar
- and it is yours. I suggest you treat it and your new companions
well."

Struggling to understand, she responded,
"Krynos shall ask me to recount tales of my adventures at tonight's
feast. What shall I say?"

"Improvise, my dear, improvise. I just stated
that you have suffered a bit of memory loss, so that should give
you sufficient time to craft an elaborate backstory, or to simply
have permanent memory loss - that is up to you, my dear. Now, if
you'll excuse me… ah, here returns Krynos now - with someone in
tow."

Draagh looked out over the courtyard, seeing
the kindly lycan king bowing to passing females, as was his nature.
He had lost his wife some centuries before and had remained without
a mate, preferring to take delight in the romantic good fortunes of
others. Draagh gently kissed Alea on her forehead, and both then
turned to watch Krynos return with the one who would assist the
woman with her new home.

"Alea, I would like for you to meet one of my
most trusted officers. It is he who shall arrange for your lodging
and duties."

The woman looked upon a familiar face she
believed she would never see again.

"My Lord, the pleasure is mine," she said, as
she bowed, trying to contain her smile - and a small tear in the
corner of her eye.

3
^rd
Captain
Morgus gazed upon the new arrival with a bold focus, saying,
"Please, my lady. None as beautiful as you should bow to one such
as me. I am but a soldier, while you are… the future.
Welcome."

Alea turned and looked around in all
directions, but could not see Draagh anywhere.

He had left her to a new beginning.

###

The main hall was already filled to maximum
capacity when Max arrived, wearing his tailored suit of leather,
which garnered him looks of admiration from not only single women
but also assorted soldiers. As he descended the stairs from the
mezzanine he scanned the crowd, looking for Jennie and his
grandfather. He then looked at the end of the hall and saw Draagh,
seated at the high table with Krynos and Donus, with them all
obviously enjoying a conversation of some sort. Resigning himself
to take a place among the quickly disappearing seating on the main
floor, he suddenly heard Krynos call out to him.

"Max, my son! You are to sit at the high
table this evening. Please! Come!"

Max looked up to see Draagh also motioning
him to approach, so he made his way to the elevated stage and bound
up the small number of stairs, graciously taking a seat at his
grandfather's side.

"King Krynos, when does the celebration
officially begin?" asked Max as he looked out over the crowd, still
not seeing Jennie anywhere.

"My boy, in but moments. We only wait upon
two more who shall join us."

Two
more
?

His thoughts were interrupted when he saw
Jennie and Liliana entering the hall, wearing matching, single
shoulder pink dresses, beautifully tailored, with the older one's
outfit tightly hugging the perfect curvature of her body. Liliana's
dress, although equally beautiful, was more fit to the innocence of
a child. The little girl's face was drawn into a look of awe, as
her eyes darted around the room. It was not often that a youngling
was invited to a celebration of any sort, and more certainly not
orphans, as they had no sponsors to escort them.

Seeing the two girls enter, Max's jaw
dropped, with the pair eliciting a similar response from both
Krynos and Donus. Draagh sat at the table with a grin as he played
a bit with his long, braided mustache, his cherished pipe at the
ready, and watching as all of his plans came to
fruition.

As Jennie and Liliana walked down the main
aisle, soldiers and females alike came to a hushed silence. All
were aware of their good deeds, and the entire Rhönen Dominion had
a great deal to be thankful for.

After approaching the stage Jennie and
Liliana bowed to their king, and then to Donus, Draagh and Max.
Liliana then delicately curtseyed while wearing a giant smile,
trying not to look around too much at the massive throngs of her
older lycan brothers and sisters.

Krynos slowly stood to speak, causing the
hall to become quiet, as everyone saw his massive frame rise up
from the high table. The king then motioned for the two lovely
lycans to join him at his side, prompting Jennie to lead Liliana up
the stairs, hand in hand. After the two had taken their seats (with
Liliana poking her head up in order to get a better view), Krynos
began to address the crowd.

"My brothers and sisters. Tonight we
celebrate the victory of The Battle of the Blood, as I have named
it due to the copious amounts of vital fluids that flowed within
the castle walls - some of it sadly coming from our own. Although
we were attacked during our monthly hours of weakness, against
insurmountable odds we defeated the forces of Vladros, who could
only invade while hiding behind a veil of cowardice. In the past we
have had many battles, and during those battles we have suffered
losses - sometimes losses so great we believed we might never
recover, but we forged on. We regrouped, improved our defenses and
became yet stronger than ever before."

Surveying his beloved subjects he felt
his eyes water a bit, but picked up his golden goblet and
continued.

"Aside from our beloved Kangor and
Wilhelm, seventeen normals that had volunteered to defend their
king and castle were sadly taken from this world. Tomorrow I shall
travel to their village and meet with their families, and as is
stated in the law, provide them with an honorarium of gold that
should keep them comfortable for the rest of their lives. Further,
a sister betrayed us, although she did so unwittingly, and for that
we are sad, but the law states that there must be a punishment for
betrayal. As king, I must uphold our laws, as they are just. A
nation without laws is simply a nation of men - men who can change
the laws to fit their needs, and this always leads to tyranny. As
king, I am also charged with meting out the punishment for those
violations, and so, as Alea was such a beloved member of our
community, and due to the fact that she committed her dastardly act
while not being of right mind, I chose to banish her from our lands
instead of terminating her existence."

After having watched and listened to every
word coming out of the lycan king's mouth, Max leaned over to his
grandfather and whispered, "Hey Draagh, Alea's going to be ok,
isn't she?"

Max's grandfather patted the young man on the
back, and responded to his grandson, "My son, she will be just
fine. In fact, I believe she has already found another home - and a
chance to atone for her errors."

Krynos continued with his speech while
raising his goblet, to which everyone in the hall followed, also
raising their drinking vessels.

"To our sister, Alea. May she find that which
she seeks, and hopefully a better life elsewhere."

Everyone in the hall (except Jennie) raised
their goblets of mead yet higher, and a rumbling murmur sounded
out.

"To Alea."

Then, after everyone had taking sufficient
swallows of their mead, Krynos looked at the guests at the high
table, where he first addressed Liliana, who sat with wide eyes and
a giant smile, expecting nothing but appreciating everything.

"Young Liliana - you who have been with
our family for but a few short years; whose parents were so
tragically taken from you - you have shown skill, bravery and
wisdom beyond your limited time among us. I thank you, my dear
child, as your precocious mannerisms prompted you to disobey the
monthly hiding and seek out your new friend and protector, while
saving many lives in the process."

Krynos looked away from Liliana, and out on
to the crowd as he continued, "My brothers and sisters, although
stories have already been passed on of this girl's bravery, I would
like to tell you a bit about what she did, and how she possibly
saved this kingdom. You see, she snuck out of her kennel, and then,
navigating through the maze of ventilation tunnels in the castle,
made her way down into the sub-basement and used magic to assist
both Max and Jennie, bringing them to their forms of reason, so
that they could enter into the fray of battle and help to defeat
the enemy. Not only that, I heard that she has become quite skilled
as a pseudo-mage, and managed to incinerate the egg sack of a
particularly wicked vampire."

The crowd roared with approving laughter and
broke out into applause, as Liliana blushed slightly and waved to
the cheering masses. Krynos put up his hand to silence the crowd,
and turning to Liliana, continued, but this time speaking to the
child.

"Dear Liliana. It is with the utmost
gratitude that I thank you. I have spoken with my brother Draagh,
and he has assured me that you will receive magical training of the
highest order. Further, as soon as your small frame shall allow,
you will be placed in training to learn the arts of battle. I do
believe that the time has come for us to increase our ranks with
those of the fairer sex. Your friend Jennie has shown us that it is
something that needs to be done."

He turned back out to the crowd, and with a
kind smile said, "Now that we all know of her great deeds and
service to the kingdom, I should ask if there is anyone who would
claim this child, as she is most deserved of a family."

Liliana, the orphan child, who just days
prior had no one and nothing to look forward to in life, except for
maybe becoming a castle servant, looked out to the crowd, her small
mouth open in awe, as almost everyone in the hall stood up and
raised their arms. Numerous couples stood together, holding hands,
wanting to accept the girl into their family. Some already had
pups, and others had yet to procreate, or were simply barren.
Liliana would have a family, no matter the outcome.

Max leaned back, and looking behind the backs
of everyone at the high table, whispered to the young girl, "Hey
Liliana. I told you that you had a great family!"

She looked back at Max as a tear rolled down
her small cheek.

Then, surprising everyone (except possibly
Draagh), Jennie burst up out of her chair and loudly proclaimed, "I
claim this child. I claim her as my daughter."

Max leaned over to his grandfather and went
to speak, but Draagh silenced the young man with a hand on his
shoulder and a meaningful glance.

Looking at the little girl who was barely
able to see over the top of the high table, Jennie reached down and
picked her up, standing her on her large chair.

"Liliana. Would you choose me? You have all
of these great people to choose from, but I honestly cannot see
going through the rest of my life without having you in it. I want
to be your mother. Please, be my daughter."

Liliana was frozen in place, stunned. She
stared at Jennie for a moment, and then tears started streaming
down her small, round face. She gazed up into the older woman's
eyes, seeing a hopeful expression, when she threw her arms around
Jennie's neck and whispered to her.

"I dreamed of you being my mother. Yes
Jennie, I would only choose you, and I will try to not say those
swear words anymore. I promise."

The crowd broke out into cheers and applause
as the two girls hugged each other closely.

Their bond had been initiated by the child's
good nature, and strengthened by her fearless actions during the
night. But it had been sealed with a tiny pink ribbon on a
door.

Krynos put his hands up, silencing the crowd,
and began to speak yet again.

"Excellent! Now, that we have taken care of
that, I would like to address the beautiful warrior, and now
mother, standing by my side. Jennie Escalante - you came to us to
learn, but have already taught us much. Your valiant efforts, as
well as your excellent skills in battle have brought new hope to
our kingdom. We are very grateful, and as I stated before, the
stain you created in the mezzanine where once lie the mashed skull
of an enemy most insidious shall forevermore be cordoned off, and
left as an example to those who would bring their vile filth inside
these castle walls."

Polite applause mildly interrupted the lycan
king, most having heard of Jennie's decisive defeat of Ryder
Johnson.

"Jennie, while I did not witness the fight, I
was told that the speed in which you liquefied your enemy's brain
was most impressive. I would only ask that you train our warriors
to do the same. And, as I am aware that you and your companion Max
must eventually return to the world of your birth, please know that
this is also your home, and that you are welcome here -
always."

Expecting a verbal response from the stunning
lycan woman, who was looking unusually delicate in her modern, pink
dress, Krynos was surprised as the two girls turned and threw their
arms around his massive trunk, hugging him tightly. At first
slightly set back with an astounded look on his face, he wrapped
his massive arms around them both and lowered his head with a
gentle smile. The girls then moved back to their chairs and Jennie
addressed the crowd. She was not one to give speeches - she was
more prone to action, but the overwhelming collective emotion of
the event prompted her to bring words to her lips.