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Three days of marching. Has it really been three days already? An eternity, some twisted nightmare that has become my waking reality. I’m sorry Cael. I’m sorry Alira. I failed you.
The Kingsway felt desolate and unwelcoming. They marched in relative silence, with those from the provinces departing the main force as they passed through each town. Sometimes, it was one or two who made it home, others–none at all.
I tried Cael, I tried saying goodbye to them. How much they meant and what their sacrifice meant to me. Never what they needed to hear; no words could express it. The wives, husbands, children, mothers, and fathers. Brokenhearted, none could chastise the army’s commander. In her eyes, they saw a reflection of their own grief—a heart shattered beyond repair. Their loss was her loss, magnified a thousandfold.
You couldn’t imagine if you tried, Alira. How difficult it was. Not to ride back through the towns that once welcomed us with open arms and return the soldiers we had left to their families, but there was a far greater pain. It was in the expression of the families who waited, and none came back for them. How was I supposed to tell them what happened? How could I? But worse, how was I to relate what is coming? ‘Make for Namelle,’ I tried. Who knows now if they’ll even listen. Our kingdom is beyond the intervention of hope.
“Look, Zahra, home.” Tallie rode next to her and saw Namelle come into view over top the final hill. The foreboding clouds overhead gave the city an ominous and empty feel. They looked to be the gatekeeper of the Embrace’s tears which Zahra wanted to unleash.
A storm is coming, and none will be spared. One by one our people will know ruin and death.
“What do we tell them, Tallie? How I do I tell her?” It hadn’t occurred to Zahra until that moment, that as soon as the army crossed into the gates, she’d look upon the queen and find that she too waited for the one she loved; a husband who would never come home.
The clop of their horses’ hooves on the dirt road filled the silence. In the distance, Zahra heard the city’s horns and the excited shouts of children running out to greet their heroes. The banners of green and gold fluttered gently in the warm afternoon breeze atop the city walls. Pipes played a welcoming tune, and the green-tinged armor of the Lucian Company lined the road. Zahra saw only calm as the breeze rippled through the grass and danced among the trees of the old forest surrounding the city.
“First, let’s get home. Then we’ll fight the next battle.” Tallie grabbed Zahra’s hand, a reassurance she’d be with her no matter what. Zahra felt a bitter coldness, trapped in the infinite black expanse of her mind. She was adrift, in the darkest reaches that no light could touch. As the last of the soldiers came over the hill, the children stopped. Though they had caught up to Zahra, the lacking number of soldiers in the ranks was beyond their comprehension. They drew nearer to the gate and passed through the columns of the two hundred-fifty soldiers left behind.
“Tallie, I need you to listen to me.”
“What is it, Zahra?”
“When I see her, I’m going to resign my position.”
“Don’t be so irrational. No one can blame you for-”
“No, just... listen. I’m resigning as commander but, before I do, I’m going to pass the commission to you. You’re the only other officer left and one of the last people I trust.”
“You mean to leave then?”
“I have to,” Zahra replied. “I need to know if she’s still alive. I can’t do that if I’m tethered here under his watch.” She saw Rygar’s dark armor come into view on the dais from which they had left. “Something isn’t right Tallie, and I need someone I trust in command for the days ahead.”
Tallie looked at the general then replied, “do you think something is wrong?”
“No, not think,” Zahra told her. “Something is wrong.”
Zahra and Tallie led the army through the gate. Though many soldiers left the ranks to reunite with their loved ones, her gaze focused in on Hikari. In the moments that she drew near, Zahra felt nothing. Her anxiety had dissipated and, in its place, stirred a hatred. One not for the queen, but him. She dismounted her horse and walked up the steps of the dais.
Hikari bit her lip to hide the pain she felt and struggled to elicit any words which might convey a feigned happiness for her army’s return. Zahra didn’t wait any longer. She placed her hand down into her pocket, withdrew an item and closed the palm of her hand around it.
“So few of you have returned? Commander, I need to know what happened. Where is, um...” The walls which held back her tears had been torn down. As much as she wanted to reciprocate, Zahra had no tears left to cry. The taste of salt on her tongue from many days of it still lingered in her mouth. She grabbed the Queen’s hand and pressed the object she had taken from her pocket into it.
“Your highness, I know that now is not the ideal time for a request such as this. With your blessing, I wish to resign my position in the highest disgrace and would appoint Captain Talliyenne Westron as Commander of the Royal Army.”
Rygar interjected. “Your highness, please, now is not the time to entertain such careless requests. Commander Ke’elle is clearly distressed from-”
“I grant that which you seek, Zahra Ke’elle.” Hikari accepted the resignation as Rygar looked on in disbelief. “In the highest disgrace to our kingdom, I grant you absolute release from militaristic obligation to the house Verbrandt, from this day until death takes you.” Hikari let go of Zahra’s hands and held a tight fist over the object she had been passed. “Zahra Ke’elle.”
“Your majesty.”
“Your request for her commissioning is hereby granted. Congratulations, Commander Westron. I hope you’ll excuse me for the moment, but I shall endeavor to mark this occasion at a later time.”
“Of course, your highness.”
“General, I need to lie down. My guard if you will.”
Rygar summoned the members of the Lucian Company detailed as the royal guard in the absence of those formally appointed. They helped Hikari onto her horse, and she departed from the town square back toward the castle. Avery farewelled Zahra then took a horse up the hill to follow Hikari, the only guardsman who survived.
As the queen left earshot, Rygar turned his attention to Tallie. “Commander, you’re dismissed. We’ll speak on the morrow after a good night’s rest.”
“Sir.” After a quick glance at Zahra, Tallie followed Hikari up the hill toward the officers’ quarters.
“You have a lot of explaining to do...” He said to Zahra, now his ex-commander.
The hate for what he did lingered in her mind. Like the sheyde that spread through her in the toughest times, hate had taken over and infected every memory she had of him. Only one thought permeated the rest and escaped the confines of her lips. “As do you.”
* * *
“What do you mean she just stayed behind?” Rygar had lost his patience with Zahra and slammed his hands on his desk. He paced around his quarters while she sat in the chair opposite the desk between them.
“They were her soldiers,” Zahra replied. “She had nothing left to lose and nothing more she could give. What little we saved, we owe to Alira.” If you had been there, you would understand. Would you have felt the loss of Cael and the thousands of troops as harshly as we did? I shouldn’t have to call that into question.
“You had one task that I gave you, to protect them. You had a chance to save Alira Verbrandt, and you failed.” He stopped behind his chair as his fingers gripped the back of it. His temperance, she felt, stood somewhere between wanting to throw the chair or strike her.
“Very choice words for the one who calls himself our leader yet stayed behind while the entire kingdom marched to war.” Here it comes. “And what happened? Tell me, general, what did you do to aid the cause, hmm? The only task you had was to dispatch our reinforcements when I called, all of our reinforcements, and still you withheld our greatest warriors from the war effort.”
“I acted in the best interests of the people,” Rygar replied, spurned by Zahra’s words.
“In the best interests of the people? The best interests of the people would have been sending me every soldier I asked for. The best interests of the people would have been leading them yourself. The best-” Don’t say it Zahra, don’t say it. “The best interests of the people would have been letting your queen know that her husband and thousands of our people were dead.”
“That’s where you are blinded. Your naivety clouds you from seeing beyond the confines of your small mind. That girl served a far greater purpose for us than you ever could have imagined. Now, it’s all done away with.”
“And what is that purpose? Please, enlighten me.”
“Alira Verbrandt needed to live. She was meant to take the terms that were offered and agree to unify our kingdom with Illyria. She could have gained us powerful allies, which we find ourselves sorely lacking.”
Needed to take the terms? How could you poss-... no, no it can’t be. Keep pressing him, Zahra. “Well she’s gone, and whatever dream you had of uniting us with Essea is finished. They ended it, a swift cavalry charge saw to that.” Zahra saw remorse for a moment on Rygar’s face. She took a dagger from her mind and, through her tongue, lodged it in his side. “You remember it quite fondly don’t you? For it’s the same place that you abandoned her father so many years ago.”
Smack! The back of his hand caught Zahra on the cheek. If you think that hurts me more than condemning my sister, then you are mistaken. I hope that felt good, because the next time you raise a hand to me, you’re going to lose it. She touched her hand to her cheek and felt the sting of the strike.
“I think you have forgotten your place, need I remind you where you stand?”
“It is you who has forgotten. I am no longer yours to command. I will bleed no more for your ambition.”
“But you forget one crucial point, commander. That every soldier, no matter how long discharged from her royal highness’ service, is responsible for their actions during their service to the Royal Army of Namelle.”
Zahra couldn’t find anything in her memory which could be construed as an offense. As she thought on it, through the room’s entryway filed in six, armored members of the Lucian Company led by Corporal Sere.
“What is this?” Zahra asked, half standing out of her chair in anger.
“I hereby order the arrest Zahra Ke’elle, on charges of desertion. For abandoning a member of the royal family of Namelle to save herself.” Zahra’s eyes were as wide as they could open, and her nostrils flared as the guards grabbed onto her arms.
“Honestly, Zahra. Not just any member of the royal family, but your own sister.” The sorrow on his face had turned smug and he shook his head. “Alira was supposed to take that deal. Nonetheless, her death was nothing more than a complicating factor.”
“You knew...” You bastard. “Did you have this planned before we left?”
He opened a drawer of his desk and pulled out a letter with a broken red seal. “Would you like me to read this to you?” She gave no response but knew what this was. “Well, allow me to entertain you for a few moments before you are gone from my sight.” The general cleared his throat:
“To he who commands,
Our two nations have not been re-acquainted since that fateful day on the great plain many cycles ago. There, you united against us and fought alongside the other rebellious nations of the south and the east. It cost you many lives, such an unnecessary waste. That day, we took from you your king and I’m certain many others who were dear to you.
Today, I want you to understand what awaits you beyond the mountains you cower behind. I march a host of ten thousand south from Essea in the morning. Should you not meet me, I will lay siege to the city in the mountains and burn it down. Then, we will come for you. Town by town, we will remove every trace of your existence until we raze your city and put to death its populace.
I assure you that this isn’t what my heart desires. I wish for you a place beside us. Rest assured that your immunity has been arranged by his Imperial Majesty. What we ask is minor and of benefit to us both. We shall march, unrestricted into the lands of the south. Your kingdom shall agree to join the Illyrian Empire and fight for the Imperator when so called. Lastly, as a show of good faith in our union, I will marry a member of the house of your ruling family. A symbol of the unity between Essea and Namelle.
I trust that when the time comes, you’ll make the right decision. I eagerly await your reply, in whatever form that may come.
For his eternal glory,
Artim il Essen
Viscount of Essea, Vanguard of Illyria
“You knew, and you did nothing!” Zahra lashed out to strike Rygar but was restrained by the guards holding her down against the desk.
“I saved this city, you insolent cur.” He said as he pointed finger at her face.
“You think yourself a paragon? I don’t know what kind of twisted champion believes he had saved us when thousands lie dead.” Zahra’s blood ran hot through her veins and her tensed body. “You have damned us all.”
“I’ll admit,” Rygar continued. “Certainly it may appear that way when you’re not the one holding all the cards.”
“Alira is dead, your last hope of talking down Essea is gone. What more could you have to offer the empire?”
“Have you ever known me to be unprepared?” No. “I have secured a future brighter than you can imagine. I’ll admit, it took some reasoning with the viscount. Getting him to see this vision as I see it was not easy.” He pointed to another stack of letters he took from his desk, each with the same red seal as the first. “There was a way to secure a better allegiance, another to the east. I had only to remove a few obstacles.”
Obstacle, is that what I am to you? Is that all Cael and Alira were? You will pay for this, goddess help me... Wait. To the east, how is that possible? Our lands lie in the south. How can he possibly... Hikari.
“I see you finally understand. The loss of your sister was but a minor setback. It took some thought, but the fortunate death of the king has enabled another marriage. The viscount will marry Queen Soto. Together, our kingdoms–with the unexpected addition of Shiun–will be united despite all that has happened.” The smile on his face was twisted. The image of the man she grew up with, who she loved as a father, was no more. “I’ve finished with the accused. Corporal, lock her away in the darkest pit you can find down there. She will spend her last days awaiting his majesty’s justice.”
“How could you, you bastard! I trusted you... I loved you.” Tears were squeezed from Zahra’s eyes as she fought against the guards who restrained her. “You’ve thrown away everything we had, and everything we built together for a promise to an empire that massacred our army.”
“No, Zahra. Fault lies only with these cursed lands, and the bloodlines who supported a king’s arrogance. Thousands of innocents died for royal blood and a worthless alliance. Not a drop more will be spilled, I promise you that.”
Zahra kicked and thrashed as the guards pulled her out of the chair, slammed her down onto the stone floor and bound her arms behind her back. “You will spend the rest of your days watching for me over your shoulder. Before my final breath is drawn, I’ll have your head, traitor!”
Rygar raised his hand, signaling the guards to pause. “I should remind you, Zahra Ke’elle, not to cause a scene. You’ve already lost your brother and sister. I’d hate for you to lose your invitation to the wedding as well.” He waved them on, and the guards dragged her away. Zahra shouted down the hallway, struggling to free herself from their grip. Rygar turned to the window, watching the storm clouds gather as distant thunder rumbled. “I’d hate for you to undo everything I’ve worked so hard to achieve.”
* * *
As she lay on the wooden floor of her cell, Zahra contemplated why she hadn’t seen this coming. His refusal to come with us, his failure to send our best soldiers and even his neglect in telling the queen her own husband–his king–was dead. Lost in the moment, too many deaths to see through it. All the while, he remained in the background to pull the strings. Trystan would roll over in his grave if he saw it happen. His friend, who forsook his children and damned his city.
Why? What does he have to gain from this? Surely it can’t be militaristic, Artim has plenty of soldiers and wouldn’t need one with both a broken body and lack of a moral compass. Prestige? I’m sure his conquests will mean nothing in the eyes of Illyria. We held you in such regard general. In a matter of weeks you’ve cost us everything.
When I get out of this cell, I’m coming for you. It may not be today, but I promise you–Trystan, Kala, Cael, and Alira–that I will cleave that man’s head from his body. As he looks up at me in disbelief, I will speak your names so that he may carry them with him into the blackness of the Abyss, where he will wander aimless and formless forever.
From the light of the window high on the walls of her cell, Zahra knew she had wasted away well into the day that followed. Surely, he must have told Hikari something by now. Or, perhaps not, he’d be wiser to keep it that way. To spring the news of unconsented betrothal on her would be disastrous. She couldn’t help but laugh at the thought of Shiun’s response. The emperor will empty the entirety of the lands of Jade and Blossom and sail every Samurashi and Dragoon under his command across the Quelled Sea to march on Namelle. It’s only a matter of time.
As afternoon turned to night, Zahra had saw but one steady presence; a lone guard who brought her bread and water. The pair exchanged nothing more than a glance each time. He looked at me once with reverence. Now, I’m but the great heroine of Namelle who abandoned her princess and will pay the eternal price for her actions. I can only wonder what Tallie must be thinking, they may have told her I slipped away in the middle of the night. She’d think I had gone to look for Alira. I did tell her that was my intention.
The guard’s footsteps came closer toward her cell door. I suppose it’s time for dinner. Let’s see what stale rock I’ll have a tough time choking down now. The unwelcome sight of the empty-handed guard greeted her.
“And you’ve come with nothing? If I’m going to be stuck in here, I’d rather not starve in the process.”
He looked back and forth down the halls and then fiddled with a key in the lock. The sound of iron met iron as he turned it and popped open the cell door.
“Are we... going somewhere?”
“Shh, I need you to be quiet, commander.” He continued to survey the hallways and appeared to listen.
“I don’t take orders from you!” Zahra wouldn’t have it. “Give me your name and I swear the punishment will be-”
He stepped on into her cell, used his weight to pin her against the wall and held his glove to her mouth. She didn’t listen and loosed quite a number of muffled obscenities.
“Shut. Up.” His voice was stern, which caught Zahra off guard. His soft seeming eyes were filled with worry. Something was either very right, or very wrong. “If you want to get out of here tonight, don’t say another word. Put your trust in me if only for a few moments. I’m all that stands between you and the gallows.” Zahra, though hesitant, agreed and he removed the shackles on her ankles.
“Follow me.” He threw over a darkened cloak and instructed her to don the hood. The guard took one final listen for any others, and they left the cell. He led Zahra down the dark corridors which seemed like a maze in the dim light of the old dungeons. The smell of antiquated stone and stale air were present throughout. As the pair wandered in the dark, only the sounds of their footsteps reverberated with those of rats who scurried back and forth. Only a brave few guards ever ventured into the forgotten tunnels of the old castle’s dungeons after the sun slipped beneath the horizon.
Far too many spirits linger here in the dark. Angry and vengeful, those damned in a bygone era. Many who entered the darkness of Namelle’s dungeons never made it out and even those of the first days wander here still.
The thought of ancient spirits sent shivers through her body. She had to be sure of her escape, else she would be left to linger amongst the empire of the dead.
“We’re almost there, keep moving.”
“Where are you taking me?”
“To the North Gate, on his orders.” The guard nodded to someone further down the passage. As Zahra pondered the response, the light of a near-closed lantern penetrated the darkness of the corridor. Zahra’s heart beat faster, but she felt safe as the guard remained unmoved. As the cloaked figure came into view, she saw the blush red armor and gold accents.
The armor of Shiun.
“I’m glad to see you unharmed, Will. Did you have any trouble from this one?”
I know that voice.
“Nothing worth mentioning. She did great, Lin.” Will replied, as he embraced his friend.
“It does me well to see you, Lin.” Zahra wrapped her arms around his body and hugged him. They were never close, but their relationship didn’t matter at this moment.
“I’m glad to see you, Zahra, and no worse for wear at that.” Lin replied with a smile and grabbed her shoulders.
“I’m alright, thanks to your man for getting me out.” She turned to Will, a guard she hadn’t seen before that night. “How can I ever repay you?”
“My brother fought with you in Khuldir and died there. The men who came back said that he was the one you trusted to hold the lower city and that he died a hero’s death. Your soldiers speak of you with reverence, saying how you saved so many lives on the Heaven’s Fall. Never give up the fight, commander.”
“She’s gone! Somebody tell the general she’s escaped!” Shouting echoed from down the corridor. Her empty cell had been discovered. The muster of the castle guard was heard in the distance, as they searched the tunnels for any sign of Zahra.
Will drew his sword. “Get out of here.”
“Thank you, Will. I’m forever indebted to you.” Zahra said and kissed him on the cheek. In the light of Lin’s lantern, Will started to blush and turned a bit more serious. “If she’s out there, commander, if there’s any hope to save your sister then you have to find her.”
“Thanks, Zelle, and good luck!” Will wandered back into the darkness toward the search party of guards.
“Zelle... then that means he’s-”
“He knows Zahra. Come on, we have to get going.” They ran a short distance down the passageway until Lin stopped and cracked a door open. It led them out onto a hill beside the castle, slippery from the downpour of rain and a storm that surged overhead. Lin extinguished the lantern and put up his hood. He wrapped his arm around Zahra to give the appearance of a night walk as a couple. She shot a funny look at him through the side of her eye. “What? Oh come on, it’s easier this way.”
They strolled through the streets of the city toward the North Gate and the upper city beyond the castle. As they passed under an archway, Zahra was grabbed by a hand from the shadow and pulled in. “Be still, they’re looking for you.” Tallie’s voice spoke, and she nodded ahead.
“Tallie!” Zahra hugged her. “I’m so happy–”
“Time for that later, Zee.” Tallie told her. “
Lin had scouted the way ahead and managed to slip past the patrols. “If you get them to move off, commander, we have a clear shot to the stables and out of here. Were you able to-?”
“She’s right here.” Tallie slipped into a hidden alcove in the wall and came back out with a woman in a white dress; a grey cloak drawn over her face. “Here she is. Queen Soto, unharmed.” Tallie snuck Hikari out of her quarters and helped her escape.
“A bit late for a stroll if I do say so, commander,” Hikari said with a snicker as she drew back the hood. “So, we’re all here then?”
“Everyone’s here, Hika,” Lin replied.
“I’ll get them clear, get to the stables and get out of the city. If they toll the bells the gates will shut, so we have to act quickly.” Tallie knew her part, and the risk involved if she was discovered.
“Your highness, you know what happens if we fail here tonight. Rygar, he plans to-”
“I know. I was informed of the fate that was to be imposed upon me just after midday.” This is the first time I’ve ever seen her angry. “A few more days, Zahra, and they’ll be here. I shall leave Namelle and rally support from my father in Shiun.”
“That’s where you intend to go?” Zahra asked.
“Where we intend to go,” Lin replied. “I’ll accompany her home. We can rally the emperor to our cause.”
“Quick, while the patrol’s attention is drawn elsewhere.” Tallie watched the members of the Lucian Company finish their search and run off down the road. “I’ll make sure they stay clear of the stables. Lin, give me a minute and then follow behind.” She turned to hug Zahra and then ran off into the night.
“The storm will mask our escape, and the streets will be clear. Are we ready?” Lin asked, eager to move.
“Wait!” A thought permeated Zahra’s mind. “Do you still have it?” Zahra turned to ask Hikari.
“He took it.” Zahra’s heart sank into her chest. “Rygar intends to give it to the Esseans as a unification gift. An unfortunate loss to be sure, but we’ll have to go on.”
“That unfortunate loss is one we cannot suffer. I have seen what power it holds when it courts the shadow. A terrible fate awaits us if it falls into Artim’s hands.” Zahra took a deep breath and knew what she had to do was perilous. “He keeps everything of great value in his chamber, that’s where it’ll be.”
“Zahra, no, it’s too dangerous. If he captures you...” Hikari’s concern wore heavy on her face.
“He won’t.” She reassured the queen. “Get her to the docks, Lin. I’ll be right behind you.” Zahra turned to check if the street was clear and made ready to run. “Zahra, if there’s no other way out, take the rampart next to his chamber run to end of the battlement. It’ll buy you time.”
“Thanks.” Zahra nodded.
“And if the time comes, don’t be afraid. If you leap, all you need is faith.” He pulled Hikari into the street and stuck to the shadows. The weather kept the population indoors so they wouldn’t be discovered.
Zahra stepped out into the rain and made her way for the castle’s interior.
* * *
It took Zahra only minutes to slip past the Lucian Guards and infiltrate the Lion’s Den. She quickly reached the inner courtyard and scaled the branches of the great tree to the second level. After pausing briefly to let a search party pass, she approached the general’s chamber and found the door ajar. Peering inside, she saw no one. A fire crackled in the hearth, its flames dancing on the walls and struggling to pierce the darkness. Fitting.
She snuck inside and went straight to his desk, breaking the lock which held it shut. Inside was the box of stone and, therein, the Ring of Terra. She thought about what divine comeuppance might befall her if she slipped it over her finger and decided she wasn’t about to give the spirit within control over her. She placed it in her pocket and closed the desk.
As Zahra looked around the room, she saw that Talon rested on a table next to the fireplace. Taking it back, she tied its belt around her waist and noticed something else next to where the sword was. A small, folded over letter that bore her name, inscribed with his hand.
What could he have to say? ‘Sorry for locking you in the dungeon until your mortal enemy shows up, Zahra?’ A mocking tone, he deserves no less. She picked up the unopened letter and threw it into the fire. Only when she turned to leave did Zahra realize what he intended. Those words, they were meant to be his farewell. He knew I’d come here. This is a trap!
She ran to the door and looked out. Thank the goddess, no one’s coming. She stepped into the hall to escape back out of the atrium. As her eyes readjusted to the dark, at the end of the hall Zahra saw a sight she didn’t expect to see. Her little, white fur ball of a cat, Ace, sat there as if he beckoned her toward the exit. Of course you’re no worse for wear in all of this aren’t you little buddy. She tried to walk toward Ace, but torches flickered, and voices shouted in the stairwell from below. Ace turned to look and ran off back up the stairs. I’ll see you again soon. Stay safe!
Zahra realized she would have to find a new escape plan but as she turned to head for the battlement, another sight greeted her. In his stone-grey armor and black cape was Rygar. The trap is sprung. “I will offer you one chance, get out of my way or you will pay for it with your life!” Zahra threatened. He refused and drew Eclipse against her. She drew Talon and stared him down while the footsteps behind her drew closer.
“Is this it, Zahra? Is this how we end? After many years of raising you as my daughter and teaching you to become the fiercest warrior I’ve ever known, now you raise your sword against me?” He looked at the blade of his own as if he reacquainted himself with its weight in his hand.
“You’ve already made your decision. You are nothing more than a treasonous serpent who courts death.” She raised her sword and pointed it toward him. “Every memory we’ve created is tarnished by the man you’ve become. The father I knew is lost, for before me stands a monster. Nothing more than the shadow of a better man.”
Her words stung him, his voice was pained, and she knew he didn’t want to fight her but was prepared for what he must. “Did you read my letter, Zahra? Do you even care why I chose the course that I did?”
She felt the anger in her boil up as the sheyde took her. I could slip this ring on and bring an end to you, yet it would be an end to everything. She looked down at Talon. What relics can’t be used to finish, a sword can. “No, I cast it into the fire.” She saw it disturbed him that she hadn’t read it. “Your secrets are known only to the flames now.” Anger, betrayal, distrust. The sheyde within her used and manipulated it all.
Across from him, Rygar saw the girl he had forsaken—his daughter, whom he had lost. The green of the sheyde flickered in her eyes, casting a devilish light that cut through the darkness of the night. Illuminated by the glow from his chamber, he saw a dark aura surrounding her, then a flash of silver steel thrusting outward from it.
Zahra followed through and pressed her attack in the narrow corridor. Steel met steel under the light of the moon and, as swords caught the stone of the wall, sparks flew. Zahra fought, wild, with a reckless abandon, matched equally by Rygar’s decades of swordsmanship and a stout defense. She was fast, spurred on by the sheyde and every bit the fighter he trained for more than a decade.
“Stop this, Zahra. I need you to understand.” He tried to reach her, but she continued the attack. She pushed him back past her exit but pressed on. Zahra paid no attention to his repeated attempts to bring this to an end. She didn’t want diplomacy, she wanted his head.
Rygar’s sword sliced across Zahra’s left shoulder, reopening an old wound from the Heaven’s Fall. Blood streamed down her arm, staining her hand. She grabbed him by the throat and kicked him backward to the ground, then placed Talon’s blade against his throat.
“I trusted you. My brother and sister trusted you and you failed us.” The Lucian Company’s soldiers reached the top of the stairs and, when they saw Zahra with her sword to Rygar’s throat they sprinted down the corridor toward her. She looked back at him and gritted her teeth. “This isn’t over, coward. I have you so marked for death, and you will beg for me to give it to you before the end.”
As the bells of Namelle tolled outside, Zahra ran onto the battlement. She sprinted to the end and could go no further. In the distance of the road to the north she made out two riders. Good, Hikari is safe. You did it, Lin. The sheyde subsided and Zahra turned to fight. Two Lucians, brave or stupid by her judgment, charged her from the ranks. She reminded them why the legend of Zahra Ke’elle was real, having parried one strike, and side stepped another. Zahra drove Talon into one soldier’s back and sent him down into a puddle of his own blood.
The other turned back toward her and swung with a heavy slash. She blocked it and pushed the soldier’s sword to the side. She cut across his stomach and spun around to push Talon through his armor into his side. As he bent over, she withdrew her sword and sliced downward to remove his head. More Lucians ran down the battlement with Rygar in their midst. She jumped up to the edge, peaked over and looked back at him. Rygar shook his head.
But what option do I have.
“Don’t try it! You know nothing but death awaits you there.” Rygar tried to reason with her, and hoped the unyielded Zahra might listen. “Please, come down and let’s talk through this.”
She put Talon back into its sheath and leapt from the wall. As she fell towards certain death, Zahra closed her eyes and accepted the brief moment of peace. Whump! She landed on something soft she hadn’t expected.
What is this? If this is the simplicity of death, then everyone should try it... at least once.
“Let’s go, Zahra. We have to get out of here!” Avery pulled her out of the cart of hay positioned at the bottom of the wall. She grabbed his hand and hopped over the side. “Here, get on.” He passed her the reins of a horse while he mounted another.
“Heads up!” Taren Sere exclaimed from atop a third horse as the Lucians fired crossbow bolts down on them. Avery held up his shield to protect Zahra and deflected one bound for her chest. “Let’s go, we can’t linger here.”
The three riders galloped away from the wall as fast as their horses could carry them. As Zahra looked back, she saw Rygar watch her and then turn away. The gates of Namelle didn’t open and no pursuit was mounted. Zahra, Avery, and Taren had ridden less than twenty minutes before they arrived at the old port on the north-western beaches of Aenne Aelle.
The few docks left were dilapidated, but they hosted a large ship with another unmanned vessel opposite it. On the dock were Lin and Hikari, who waited in the light rain that fell from above, relieved to see the others were safe. After they dismounted, the group embraced one another. Everything that needed to be said was felt in those moments between them, there at the harbor.
“To Shiun then?” Zahra asked Lin and Hikari.
“Back to the halls of my father, the three of us,” Hikari replied, running her hands over her stomach. In the chaos of everything that happened, Zahra forgot that Hikari carried her brother’s child. She smiled, knowing her brother’s heir was safe and that a part of him still existed.
“Find her, Zahra,” Hikari said. “If Alira’s alive, you have to bring her home.”
Zahra hugged both Hikari and Lin and saw them onboard the ship. The three stayed on the dock until the Shiunese vessel slipped away from the dock. It sailed for the open ocean, fighting the swells brought on by the heavy, storm winds that created white-capped waves.
“Well, what now?” Avery asked. “We can’t go back to Namelle. Can’t say we’d be welcomed.”
Taren looked across the water. “We sail for Port d’Espoir, to Talliers. We’ll be welcome there. The Verbrandt family and Riennes family share a close history.”
“In this weather? Are you crazy? The storm will swallow us whole!” Avery had no desire to entertain putting the small fishing boat out left at the dock into the bay.
“What choice do we have, Avery?” Zahra asked. “Lead on Taren, to Talliers it is.”
The three walked down the dock and boarded the boat as Taren cast it off the side and opened the sail. Under the cover of clouds and rain the world was dark and the ocean fierce. Thunder crashed and lightning illuminated the clouds as wind howled, ripping through their boat’s sail.
“We need to row as hard as we can or the wind will push us off course,” Taren ordered as the others sat down to row. Each swell grew greater, and their oars contended with the white capped waves. “It’s only a short distance. Keep this up and we can make it by morning mes amis!”
Was that... Amienne?
Fatigue set in quickly. The ship was tossed relentlessly by the unforgiving ocean. A rogue wave struck, sending half the oars into the sea. The three voyagers clung to the sides of the boat as another wave smashed into them. Soaked and shivering, they huddled together near the rudder.
A third wave hit with such force that Zahra was thrown headfirst into the mast. Her head struck hard and split open. Dazed and unsteady, she could barely stay upright. Avery grabbed her to keep her from collapsing. Over her shoulder, he saw a towering wave rise up and crash over the boat, plunging them beneath the surface.
When he surfaced, he realized the boat had capsized and sank to the bottom of the bay. Clinging to Zahra, Avery tried to call out for Taren, but he was nowhere in sight. Adrift in the storm’s fury, Avery held Zahra tightly and prayed for dawn’s arrival.
* * *
Rygar sat at his desk, twirling a cup of wine as he stared into the fire. Alira and Cael were deceased, Hikari escaped, and his own daughter wanted his head. The wood in the fire crackled and spit its hot embers into the air above where they faded into nothingness.
Over his shoulder he heard it, a sound he had dreaded for so long. A dark rift opened in his chamber and sapped all but the last embers of his fire. Out of the blackness, Calos came through. In the dark of the chamber, the demon’s yellow eyes watched him. The moment of Rygar’s reckoning had come. He tipped up his cup and finished the last of his wine, letting the empty vessel drop from his hand and roll to a stop on the floor.
“If you’ve come to end my life, just do it. You can’t take from me any more than that which I’ve already lost.”
Calos’s laughter echoed through the chamber. “You will answer to him when he arrives. Rest assured, now is not your time. You still have a purpose to serve us. The Imperator has sent me to ensure it.”
“What purpose could I have left? I’m finished, just end it already.”
“Not yet.” Calos’s gaze drifted to a painting of Zahra on the wall. He extended a clawed finger to trace her face. “When she returns, she will come looking for you.” Calos turned his eyes back to Rygar’s. “And when she does, we’ll be waiting.”