Chapter Four

Chapter Four

The sounds of battle still raged behind Borli as he ran through the trees, though it was becoming distant. Upon seeing his commanding officer incapacitate Rembold, he had put the ring on and activated his own pendant. He had run past the oncoming Chaelestans and into the forest at the bottom of the hill. He hated the thought of leaving his friends and knew they would likely die, but he also knew his duty.

He heard a whinny from ahead and paused. He was still invisible, but not silent, and the pendant was no longer active to protect him. Taking a few cautious steps forward, he peered between the trunks. The horse was riderless. Still being quiet, he crept forward.

It was Rembold's mount. Somehow, in all the chaos, it had escaped and was now chewing on some grass.

Borli checked around him, then took the ring off. He slowly approached the horse, hand outstretched and speaking softly. It looked at him, the fear of what had just happened to it still evident in its eyes. It tossed its head and stamped. Borli put his hand up to the beasts nose and it smelled him, then put its head down.

Borli rested his hand on its nose and pet its side. He noticed the saddlebags still attached. After a few minutes of calming the beast and letting it get used to him, he tried mounting. It allowed him on.

Riding as fast as he dared push the poor thing, he reached Suuri just after noon. He met little resistance at the city gate, the guards there recognizing his uniform. He rose through the streets, trying not to take anyone down as he maneuvered past carts and pedestrians. He reached the steward's home and dismounted, tying the rope to the hitch post outside. The house was grander than most. It was made mostly of large timber frames and stood three stories tall. Borli knocked the big brass knocker and waited.

Nobody answered. He tried again. Still nothing. Figuring that Ainu was likely at the castle, he remounted and made his way there. He put up the horse in the royals stables, and walked to the gate. The guards again recognized him, but he still had to go through the full security measures. When he asked why, he was informed of the attempt on King Leijon's life and his current state, then told that nobody was allowed to see the king.

Ignoring that information, he got on the elevator and went up to the floor above the throne room: the royal quarters. As he left the elevator, the prince was walking toward him.

“Prince Mikol!” Borli said in surprise, bowing at the waist, then standing and saluting.

“Borli, isn't it?” the prince said.

“Yes, your highness.”

“Well Borli, nobody is allowed to see my father at the moment. Is there something I can help you with?”

Borli hesitated, considering Rembold's words. Only the king and Ainu were to be informed.

“It is an urgent matter concerning Steward Rembold.”

Mikol nodded slowly. “I see. Can you report to me?”

“I was told to inform only the king, your highness.”

“That is perhaps a wise precaution, but I assure you it is safe to report to me. I am not a traitor,” Mikol said, smiling. Borli noticed his teeth were very white, likely a perk of being so well cared for. “Besides, nobody can see the king. Even I have to speak to him through a short range communicator while looking at him through glass. He is contagious.”

Borli considered a moment, then decided to tell him.

“Rembold has been taken captive by Chaelestans, Prince Mikol. They are taking him to the meteorite ruins to perform a blood ritual, by which they will take his powers as steward and transfer them to another.”

Prince Mikol clenched his jaw and closed his eyes, breathing steadily.

“Surely things can not get much worse. I will inform his majesty. And what of the rest of the guard?”

Borli tried to not let his voice crack with emotion. “Captive or dead, sir.”

“I am sorry, Borli. You may go now and rest.”

“Your highness,” Borli said, remaining at attention. “I need to inform Ainu, but nobody was at the steward's home. Is she here in the castle?”

“Ainu has disappeared, though from what my mother the queen has said, I suspect she knows where Ainu went. I would speak to her. I last saw her in the garden, praying. You are dismissed, Borli.” Mikol turned and went back into the royal chambers. Borli got back into the elevator and rode it to the first floor. Through a hallway and out into the courtyard he went, walking briskly.

Queen Solna was kneeling before a monolith, hands clasped and a white veil over her head. She was dressed in a white dress with blue trim, the latter color that of the creation goddess Loda. Borli approached, but did not interrupt. Instead, he went to one knee and bowed his head.

Solna carefully stood and turned, revealing her face by putting back the veil. She saw Borli and smiled, then frowned.

“Borli. Were you not with Steward Rembold on his journey?”

“Yes, your majesty.”

“Stand and report.”

Borli reported the events of the past day, trying not to relive the emotions. The queen leaned her body against the monolith as she listened, concern creasing her brow.

“Do you know where Ainu has gone?” Borli asked at the end.

She looked up and nodded once. “She has fled to the Akademia Magia to protect her son.”

Borli understood. It made sense that Rembold's son would also be in danger.

“Then we must tell her what has happened to her husband,” Borli said. “She needs to know he is in danger. And your majesty, can we do anything to save him?”

“We can, but let us speak about this with my family.”

“Prince Mikol and your husband already know.”

“Then we will counsel with them to decide our best courses of action,” the queen said. She led him back into the castle and to the royal chambers.

“I did not sleep in the same bed with my husband last night,” she said as they walked. “The night before, after he was attacked, we took precautions and I slept outside of the castle somewhere in the city.”

“Are there reports of other people being similarly ill?” he asked.

“Yes. We have brought them all to a separate wing of the castle. The number has grown to over seventy. We are bringing them in as quickly as possible.”

They reached the door and entered. The ceiling was fifteen feet high and painted with scenes from nature, as were the walls. The king lay on a small bed, surrounded by glass with a brass tube the led to the window to allow air in and out. A communicator, a brass ball that fit in the palm, was on a table near him. He was sitting up and smiled when he saw his wife. Healers were in the room, but none were inside the box at the moment.

Borli again bowed, and the queen brought him back to his feet. He could see the change that had come over his liege. His skin was red and blotchy, his eyes bloodshot. Leijon seemed to be breathing very heavily.

“'Verustava' is what the healers have started calling it,” Queen Solna said softly.

“It makes sense, seeing his eyes so,” Borli replied.

Prince Mikol walked to his mother and gestured to Borli.

“Mikol, I know we do not want to expose anyone more. But we must discuss recent events with your father and yourself. We will need the healers to leave for a time.”

“Should we not include the judges or our counselors?” Mikol asked.

“No,” she said, “I fear that one or more of them have turned traitor. Only one close to us could have allowed Aveni so close to Leijon. And somebody sabotaged the guards guns so they would misfire. Until we find the traitor, we must keep decisions made only between ourselves and Borli. I would also add Steward Rembold and his family to that list.”

They sat on chairs near the glass, looking at the king and each holding a communicator. The healers were asked to leave, and they began talking. Borli reported what he could, and was in turn informed of details of Aveni's attack on the king. He was informed that the Chaelestan was in a containment cell in the dungeons, being held for questioning.

“Aveni is certainly the one who infected me,” Leijon said. His mane of blonde hair was wet with sweat and hung limply around his face. He had strong, square features, but now they were limp. “And yet, he does not seem to be affected by the disease. When we was captured, he had a fever, as I have and bloodshot eyes, but his skin was not blotchy. Since being incarcerated, he seems to actually be healing. The healers are confused. They cannot tell what is making him better.” He stopped talking and took a moment to catch his breath.

“What's more,” Queen Solna said, “is that Aveni came with many more people than were found dead in the throne room. We suspect that they are still in the city, infecting citizens and causing this plague to spread. By now they would be as bad as his majesty or worse.”

“So what do we do about them? Surely if we find them we can stop the spread,” Borli suggested.

“Find a bead on a beach,” Mikol said. Borli nodded.

“I fear the only way we may be able to stop this is to quarantine the whole city,” Leijon said.

“But that tens of thousands of citizens!” Borli said in shock. “Surely there is a way to detect this disease and separate the infected from the healthy? Besides,” he added, “we don't know who is infected that may have already left to another city or town.”

They considered those words in silence. Mikol spoke first.

“If they have brought this plague to Suuri, they surely have brought it elsewhere. Perhaps even the Akademia Magia.”

This brought Ainu to Borli's mind.

“And what of Steward Rembold?” he asked. “We must save him from the Chaelestans!”

“Would you have me send an army to rescue him?” Leijon asked. “You yourself just reported that it appeared that over three hundred soldiers were in that camp.”

“Then send the aerships and take the meteor ruins back from the Chaelestans,” Borli said.

“But who would we send?” Solna asked. “We cannot trust many people right now, not even General Throck of the Royal Aerforce.”

King Leijon was looking at Borli.

“Borli, you have been a guard of Steward Rembold for how long now?”

Borli thought a moment.

“Ten years, your majesty. Since graduation.” It dawned on him what the king was thinking. “Oh, no-”

“Borli, you of all your comrades survived while defending Rembold. You have served faithfully and I believe you have enough experience. We will make you a knight captain in the aerforce and send you with your own squadron to rescue Rembold.”

Borli was stunned by the king's words. He still held the communicator to his mouth, not moving.

“Father, he lacks the training of how to fly an aership,” Mikol said. “Perhaps I should join him and help?”

“And place the heir to the throne in danger?” Queen Solna said. “I do not want my son going on any such missions.”

“Mother, I know how to fly these ships, and I know the strategies. You know what my training has been,” Mikol reasoned. “I do not need to join in the fighting. I can stay on the ships and keep them ready to take the steward and any survivors away from the ruins.”

Panic was all over Queen Solna's face. “Leijon, talk sense into your son.”

“Mikol, she does have a point. But I also understand our situation and the need for those we trust to accomplish what we must.” He looked as his wife with compassion. “Love, these two men are the only ones we can send who we can fully trust. Borli has certainly earned that by his actions to bring us news of Rembold.”

The queen put her head in her hands and Mikol placed his hand on her back.

“Mother, I will be fine. I am an accomplished mage in my own right. And we will pray to Jot that all goes well. He tends to listen to the royal family.”

Borli sat quietly as they talked. There were a few minutes of silence before he spoke again.

“Do we have any way to contact Ainu?” he asked. “She needs to know her husband was captured.”

“Not without delivering the message yourself. Only the steward owns something that can communicate across such distances,” Leijon explained.

“His house is empty now, and I have his horse. Perhaps there is something we can find that would work?” Borli said.

Solna sniffed and looked up from her hands. “Ainu would use a bowl and a strange liquid to speak to her husband.”

Borli remembered seeing Rembold use the same thing in the camp.

“Rembold had something like that with him. Maybe it's in the saddlebags?” he said.

“Go, seek, and return quickly,” Leijon said. “Mikol, accompany him. We must all be very wary from now on.”

The pair left the room and made their way to the stables. The horse was still there, thankfully, and its bags were sitting next to it. A stable hand was brushing the beast.

“Prince Mikol!” said the hand, bowing. “Would you like your horse saddled?”

“No, thank you. I came to inspect this mount here, actually.” He pet the horse until the young man left, then helped Borli dig through the bags.

“There are so many odd contraptions in here,” Borli said, pulling out a long rope-like tube that was coiled. “I wonder what they do.”

“Found it,” Mikol said, pulling out a bowl. “And here is the liquid, I think,” he said, pulling out a small vial from the same bag.

They returned to the royal chambers quickly, trying to ignore the stares of passerby. When they entered the room, they found healers once again in the room. One was in the glass this time, administering to the king and wearing a robe and a strange metal mask. The queen stood against the wall, watching. They walked to her and stood with her.

“He started having a coughing fit,” she explained.

Borli's eyes wandered to one of the healers, who seemed to be arranging the flowers on a table against the opposite wall. The healer glanced backward at the king, then left the room, perhaps a little too quickly.

“That healer that just left was acting suspicious,” Borli whispered to Mikol. They waited ten minutes until King Leijon commanded the healers to leave. Borli walked to the flowers and started searching. A moment later, he pulled a communicator from a vase and held it up. The other three saw what he held up and were surprised. Borli turned the switch to the off position and brought it over.

“I wonder how much they heard, if anything,” Mikol whispered.

“And who knows if there are others in the room,” Borli added.

“Then we will avoid speaking exactly about what we are talking about,” said the queen.

“We found what we needed,” Mikol said aloud.

“Good,” she replied. “We should make contact and inform her of the news. Will you two please go do that now? I will tend to the king.” She pulled back a part of her dress and revealed a gun hidden near her ankle. She looked pointedly at them, then at the door.

Borli and Prince Mikol left with the bowl and fluid. Guards were standing outside the room. Borli wondered if any of them were in on the conspiracy against the king. The pair got in the elevator and the prince pulled the lever. They reached the second floor of the castle and Mikol led the way through the corridors. He entered a door and Borli followed. They were in a study. Mikol walked up to a bookshelf and removed three of the volumes there. Behind them was a brass button. He pushed it and the whole bookshelf moved away from the wall a few feet, giving them enough room to get behind. They entered a narrow stone corridor lit only by a few hanging baubles of fire magic along the walls. They ascended a flight of stairs and went right at a fork. Mikol stopped at the end of the corridor and turned.

“We should be safe here. This door behind me leads to a small balcony otherwise inaccessible,” he said. Borli placed the bowl on the ground and filled it with the liquid.

“Do you know how this works?” Mikol asked him.

“I saw the steward use it a few times. He sat with it in his lap, then hummed a tune. I don't know what the tune was.”

“So he used air magic to activate it, if he was singing,” Mikol surmised. “I wonder what melody it was? It may be specific to him.”

“It sounded like an old love song I've heard before,” Borli recalled.

Mikol thought for a moment, then nodded, comprehension crossing his face in the dim light.

“I think I know. It was likely a song that reminded him of his wife. Perhaps a love song that they both enjoyed when courting.”

“But that doesn't help us,” Borli said. “I don't know the song, and if I did, I don't sing.”

Mikol shook his head.

“I do not think it has to be that specific song. Rather, I think it is any melody that reminds the sender of the receiver. I have had some dealings with Rembold and his wife, but not as many as my parents.” He thought again, his brows furrowed and his eyes looking to the right. “What song....”

Borli waited for the prince to remember a tune that could remind him of the steward and his wife. He realized he would probably be the one to break the news to Ainu about her husband's kidnapping.

“Yes. I know,” Mikol said. “It is a folk tune that I once saw them dancing to at one of our feasts. I noticed then that they both were wonderful dancers and looked like they knew each other so well they were almost one entity.”

He sat and held the bowl in his lap, then looked up at Borli.

“Anything else before I start?”

“Oh, yes! He would swirl it slowly around the bowl as he hummed.”

Mikol swirled the bowl slowly and hummed a quick-paced tune. Borli had heard it before. The lyrics normally spoke of a fox chasing a squirrel and the hilarity and chaos they caused in the village.

An image appeared on the surface of the liquid. It was the ceiling with a hanging light. A moment passed before a face appeared. It was a boy, perhaps thirteen or so. He looked like a very young version of the steward.

“Oh, hey Prince Mikol!” Drogun said happily. “How do you have my dad's missive bowl?”

“Drogun, right?” Borli asked, peering into the image.

“Yep! Aren't you one of my dad's guards?”

“Yes. Is your mother around?”

Drogun shook his head. He was awfully chipper for a teenager. “She just left less than a minute ago. We're about to land at the Akademia Magia, so she is talking with my uncle.”

“Drogun,” Mikol said, “We do not know how much time we have. Could you please bring her to us?”

“Sure, your highness.” He left their view.

“He seems to be really happy,” Mikol observed.

“He's probably excited to be on an aership. He really likes machinery, if I remember right,” Borli said.

“I can understand that excitement,” the prince said, smiling. Borli knew that Mikol loved aerships, and owned one himself.

“Why wasn't the steward traveling by aership when you were attacked?” the prince asked as they waited.

“Two reasons. The meteor ruins always mess with aerships,” Borli said. Mikol nodded aware of that. “Also, we were going to Sailenen Kaupunki, and those mountains are some of the worst to navigate a ship through.”

“Ah, yes. I understand perfectly. The clouds sit just at the wrong height-”

“Hello?” Ainu said. They looked down at her.

“Ainu, good afternoon,” Prince Mikol said.

“Prince Mikol? How do you have my husband's missive bowl?”

Borli spoke first. “Ainu, I am Borli, part of the guard of the steward.”

“Ah, yes, Borli,” she said. “I know you. But if you're with the prince. . .”

Borli hung his head, afraid to say the words. “I am sorry to report that your husband has been captured by Chaelestans.”

Ainu's put her hand to her forehead, grief sweeping across her face. She took a deep breath. “Please, tell me what happened.”

Borli explained the events of that morning to her, ending with his arrival to the city. The whole time he talked, her face showed little emotion.

“Ainu,” Mikol said. “We are mounting a rescue. Borli and I will take a fleet of aerships to the meteor ruins and save your husband.”

Ainu looked at him with such gratitude. “Prince Mikol, please do not risk your life for my husband. You are the heir to the throne. Surely another can do it.”

“My parents and I have discussed it. I will go. Borli will lead us.”

Ainu nodded. They told her the plan to rescue the steward.

“I have news for you to bring to your parents,” she said after they finished. “An attempt was made on Head Maestro Sulgur's life this morning. My son told me not an hour ago.” She explained what happened with Tumus and how he was now being questioned.

“We are being attacked on at least three fronts,” Borli observed. “The king, the steward, and the head maestro. What are the Chaelestans trying to accomplish?”

“None of them are dead, though,” Mikol said. “My father is dying, Rembold is captured.”

“And the poison on the dart Tumus tried to use was not deadly. It has been tested on a mouse,” Ainu said.

They fell silent for a moment.

“We must move to rescue Rembold,” Mikol said. “I will gather the best men I can. We will take at least four hundred of our best mages to take down these Chaelestan bastards. It will take a few hours to prepare, so we must hurry.”

They said farewell to Ainu and emptied the liquid back into the vial.