“Mmm. Beef tonight, eh Geoffrey?” Liam stated.
“Oh, aye, Master Liam. Roasted to perfection just as m’lord likes,” the cook replied. “Can I help ya with anything? A biscuit to hold ya over, perhaps?”
“No thank you, Geoff. Just getting a bucket of water.”
The cook nodded and went back to the beef.
The two lads made their way over to the well spouts. Several buckets and cauldrons were scattered around. Liam selected a bucket, placed it under the shallow well spout, and began to pump. After a few seconds, water sloshed out of the spout and filled the bucket.
Hoisting the bucket, Liam gave David an evil grin. “To the stables!”
After pulling their cloaks tight, the two boys headed towards the rear of the castle, out into the castle yard. A light wind blew, causing the lightly falling snow to swirl about.
David motioned to a pair of footprints heading out to the stables. The two followed them, snow crunching beneath their feet.
As they approached the stable, they could hear Mareth giggling inside.
Liam gave a quiet snort of laughter. As quietly as they could, the two crept up to the stall next to where the couple had taken private refuge. The black horse in the stall nickered. Liam put his hand on the horse’s snout and pet him, causing the beast to settle down.
“But Alexander, it’s dirty out here,” Mareth complained.
“My love, this is the only place we can have a bit of privacy! And just think, in three months, we won’t need to sneak off to have privacy.”
“Mmm,” Mareth said. “Then after our wedding, off to Crystal Falls! It will be so elegant. I hear the sunrise reflects beautifully off of the quartz walls.”
David nodded, and Liam stood and dumped the bucket of water over the stall wall with a splash.
Mareth gave a startled yell.
“Why, you little...” Alexander started to say, when David emptied the bag of ashes with a *POOF*.
“Revenge is ours!” David yelled out as he and Liam took off in a sprint out of the stables, leaving a wailing Mareth behind.
Alexander gave an enraged yell, chasing after the pranksters.
David ran through the snowy castle grounds, Liam right beside him. He took a quick glance behind him, seeing Alexander covered in soot and ash, barreling towards them.
“Oh dear!” David said, still running at full speed. “It seems we’ve upset that chimney sweep… Oh, wait a minute! It’s the great, dignified Lord Alexander who seems to have encountered a spot of bother!”
“I’m going to kill you, Pudd!” Alexander yelled.
Liam started to laugh.
“Run, Liam, he’s going to spank us with his chimney brush!” David said.
Liam was overcome by a fit of laughter and stumbled. David, however, kept running.
After about twenty feet, he looked back. Alexander had caught up to Liam and was struggling with him on the ground. For an instant, David considered going back and helping his friend, but caution won out over valor, as Alexander would most likely easily be able to take both of them.
He turned and continued to run. Upon rounding the corner, he was clotheslined across the chest by Liam’s older brother, Joshua.
David landed on his back in the snow, stunned.
“Well, well, well. What do we have here?” Joshua said, grabbing David by his tunic and hoisting him to his feet. “Trying to escape a good thumping, I’d imagine.” Joshua began walking David back towards Alexander, who had Liam pinned.
“Joshua, you don’t want to get involved. Not now. Not at this point!” David warned.
Joshua smirked. “Well, since Eleenia isn’t here to come up with your fiendish plans, I’ll take my chances.” He began to forcibly walk David over to Alexander.
“Speaking of Eleenia, I heard you said you saved her from a few ruffians,” David said.
“You’re damn right! I taught those two a lesson they won’t soon forget.”
David chuckled and shook his head. “Taking credit for the deeds of two commoner girls. While being a liar is bad enough, there is nothing worse than stolen valor. Some Lord of Kheog you’ll turn out to be.”
Upon reaching Alexander, Joshua foot-swept David and held him down, maneuvering his knees onto David’s wrists. Liam was similarly at Alexander’s mercy.
“These two little privy-rag stains dumped water and ash on Mareth and me!” Alexander raged.
Joshua tried not to chuckle. “So what should be their punishment?”
“I’d say a damn good thumping! But only beat on their chests and legs, so we don’t leave a mark.”
Joshua nodded in agreement.
David winced and braced himself for the beating that was on its way.
* * * * * *
Doing his best to ignore the dull achy pain in his chest, arms, and legs, David ran the pine branch over the snow, smoothing it out, making it blend in with the rest of the sea of white that was Castle Branvold’s grounds. He glanced over at Liam, who was rubbing his chest, looking dejected.
“David, why don’t we just call it quits,” Liam suggested.
David balked. “You’ve got to be joking! We need to exact retribution!”
“But Eleenia isn’t here to help us plan it!”
“We don’t need El’s help to best those two buffoons! Now put on your big boy smalls and think. Where would they be?”
Liam rubbed his chin. “Hm. I doubt we’ll be seeing Mareth for two hours or so, given her cleaning ritual.”
“I’m not interested in Mareth. She has paid in full already. I want Alexander and Joshua!”
Liam shrugged. “Probably down in the laundry, since Alexander most likely didn’t bring too many changes of clothing.”
David tossed his pine branch aside, looking over the trap. Satisfied it was acceptably obscured, he nodded. “To the laundry then. Follow my lead.”
Heading into the castle, making sure they avoided either of their families, the pair made their way through the castle to the entrance of the castle laundry. The heat that poured up the stairs was extremely welcoming as they crept down the stone stairs.
David squatted low to peer into the room, and sure enough, Alexander and Joshua were there, bragging to the ten or so laundry girls about their triumph over their younger brothers. As luck would have it, their backs were to them. David got Liam’s attention, pointed to him, then to Alexander, followed by a ‘pull the pants down’ motion.
Liam grinned and nodded.
They continued down the stairs. Several of the women looked over towards them. David held his finger up to his mouth, indicating he wanted them to be quiet.
Trying not to smile, the girls subtly nodded, pretending not to notice the boys.
Quietly they skulked.
“I’ll tell you, ladies,” Alexander bragged. “Those two now know not to cross us. The beating we rained down on them is one they won’t soon forget.”
“Wow!” A girl said. “So strong and manly!”
Joshua and Alexander stood puffed up and proud.
“And you should have seen me save Eleenia,” Joshua continued. “She was set upon by these five ruffians who were angry she made them lose a bet. I jumped into the fray and single handedly…”
“Now!” David yelled.
As quickly as possible, David grabbed hold of Joshua’s pants, while Liam grabbed Alexander’s and they pulled them down around their ankles, exposing their smallclothes. Quickly they turned and ran amid the high-pitched cackling and laughing of the girls in the laundry as the now red-faced older brothers tried to pull their pants back up.
“I’m going to kill you, Pudd!” Alexander roared.
“Don’t worry, Brother,” David yelled from the stairs. “I doubt any brought their magnifiers, so your little, and I mean little, secret is safe!”
“Lord Alexander, the teeny!” Liam chided.
The pair darted up the stairs as their
older brothers managed to rectify their pants, chasing after them.
Trying not to laugh, David made his way through the castle, Liam right on his tail, out into the yard.
“Remember, weave!” David yelled.
Liam nodded. The pair began to weave back and forth in a serpentine pattern.
Alexander and Joshua, still red faced, barreled out of the castle doorway, giving chase.
David and Liam ran past the stables and made a right, weaving in and out. Glancing over his shoulder, David saw that their older brothers were still in hot pursuit. Past their trap they ran. Glancing back, he could see their pursuers gaining, when suddenly, they disappeared in a puff of white, the snap of pine branches, and a pair of startled yells.
“ARGH! DAMN YOU TWO!!!” Joshua yelled.
David and Liam stopped, turned, and looked back, both grinning ear to ear.
“Lord Branvold, Operation Manure Pit has been a resounding success!”
Liam broke into laughs. “And I know that hasn’t frozen up yet!”
Manure-covered hands appeared at the edge of the pit as the older brothers began to claw their way out.
“We need to get to safety now!” David said.
“It’s almost dinner time. They’ll all be in the main dining hall.” Liam replied.
As quickly as possible, the two darted off into the castle, quickly discarded their winter robes, and ran in, sitting down at the main dining table in their usual plates, doing their best to look as innocent as possible as the rest of the families stared at them.
Lord Ki Kalendeen sighed and shook his head. “David, what have you two been up to?”
“Nothing,” he said, feigning innocence.
Serena wrinkled her nose in disgust. “What is that smell?”
Alexander and Joshua charged into the room, covered from chest to foot with manure and other garbage caked onto their clothes.
Everyone stared in disbelief for a second when Lord Branvold busted out laughing, soon joined by the rest of the families and the staff, with only Lady Ki Kalendeen abstaining.
“Father!” Alexander yelled.
Lord Ki Kalendeen stood and held up his finger. “Not one word from you two!” He looked to Lord Branvold. “I’ll handle it this time.” Pushing in his chair, he stomped over to the two manure-covered young men, grabbed them by the scruff of their collars, and turned them around, leading them out of the dining room. “I am getting so tired of this! You let your younger brothers get the best of you time and time again! You are our heirs! You are supposed to be better than this! And I thought it was bad when Eleenia was still here!”
David and Liam looked at one another in triumph, which was short lived as Lady Ki Kalendeen sat down next to them, glaring at them, not a hint of amusement on her face. “Boys, I am very disappointed in you.”
“But, Mother,” David said.
“No! No ‘but, Mother,’ I don’t want to hear it. I am sick of this constant rivalry you have with your older siblings. Your father and I won’t be around forever, and your siblings are the only ones you are going to have to count on! You can’t continue like this, David! Now, just let that sink in a bit.” She stood and went back to her seat next to Lady Branvold.
David sighed. “Well, it is going to be a long ride back to Lystra.”
Liam smirked. “I know, but just realize this. We won.”
* * * * * *
Lord General Lexar Sagaroth sat in the dark room, irritation evident on his battle-scarred face. The dream-message from the Great Necromancer said midnight, on the 26th day of Emberlight, which was almost two hours past. The hard wooden chair was beyond the point of uncomfortable and the air was starting to get thin. The only light in the room came from candles on the floor, which had burned down to nubs. A century's worth of dust covered the ground, his footprints the only disruption to the snow-like blanket. The hot, musty smell of this forbidden room added to the discomfort. Yet, he waited.
This was the first time he was to make the journey to the City of the Dead. He had served the Sons of Perdition since his 15th birthday, so long ago. They were the ones who pulled the strings, manipulating monarchies and clergy on the island of Avalon, perhaps over the whole of Midgard. Slowly, he had made his way up the Aragil network, along with advancing through the ranks of the Aragil army, all the way to the rank of Lord General. He reported directly to Master Kendall, the chief advisor of King Tyral Endicott, the king of the small landlocked nation. Only now was he deemed worthy enough to be brought before the Great Necromancer. The rumored power over life and death could be given to him as a reward for his service. What other reason could there be for this summons? No one deserved it more. He was looked upon as one of the greatest generals in the history of Aragil. Earlier in his career, he had been stationed at the border near the Devon swamps. He had never lost a battle in his 20 years as a commander, although the swamp dwellers were not what he considered formidable opponents. On the battlefield, his enemies would be struck down with ease, riddled with fear. ‘Being one hand over two legs tall with bulging muscles did have its advantages,' he thought. One year ago, the King had made him Lord General and given him the fortress of Ironshield in the east. His duty was to guard the border against the Elgannan armies, even though Aragil and Elgannan had been at peace for as long as he could remember.
‘Not bad for the orphaned son of a peasant farmer’, he thought. The King of Aragil had given him full reign in Ironshield. Thousands of troops were under his command, and the people hailed him as a great hero, and yet he wanted more.
Suddenly, the candles dimmed. A strong feeling of terror washed over him as the room started to recede. Without warning, he felt himself wrenched in a direction he did not know existed. A rushing sensation overtook him as he was hurtled through the void. Floating in the deepest darkness, he felt completely alone. His head swam and nausea swept over him. The feeling of movement passed quickly and he was abruptly brought to a halt. He opened his eyes to survey his new surroundings.
The smell of incense rolled over him and he stood up with a startled yell. Three black-clad figures encircled him, their arms stretched upward and their heads thrown backwards, looking as though they had just undergone a great strain. They started to relax, all staring at him intently, faces hidden by their hoods.
One of the figures spoke. "Lord Sagaroth?"
Sagaroth glared at him and nodded.
"I am Kesmond, senior apprentice. Lord Kadeus will see you now. Please follow me."
The figure turned and walked towards a doorway. Sagaroth quickly followed.
Sconces hanging from the walls lit the room. Beautiful paintings in golden frames hung every few feet.
The hallway widened, ending at a pair of black doors, which swung open as the black-clad figure approached them. A breeze blew from the chamber beyond. Sagaroth hurried through the doors as they started to close.
A sickly yellow light that seemed to come from nowhere lit the entire room. The vaulted ceiling reached at least twenty legs above him. A black carpet ran from the door to a throne on the other side of the room. Skeletons were propped up alongside the entire length of the carpet, wearing tattered, rusted armor and wielding battered weapons of every variety. They had all been set up to look like they were standing at attention. When several of the skeletal figures turned their heads to look at him, Sagaroth was seized by panic. Listening to legends about undead was quite different than standing face to face with a walking corpse, its eyeless sockets staring right through to the very soul. Using every ounce of discipline he had gained throughout his many years of military service, he managed to maintain his senses. He took a deep breath and he walked calmly towards the being seated on the throne.
The throne itself looked as though it was made of gold. Gems of unspeakable value were worked into it, glistening in the yellow light. Atop the throne sat another hooded, black-clad figure with a gold sash running acros
s the length of his chest.
Sweat started to trickle down Sagaroth's face. "Lord Kadeus?" He was thankful that his voice didn't quaver.
The figure pulled back the hood with fat little hands revealing a balding man with a sweaty, toad-like face. He jumped down from the throne, looking almost comical. "Lord Sagaroth!" Kadeus walked over to him, giving him a courteous bow. "I've heard so many good things about you. It's nice to finally meet you in person."
'So, this is the Great Necromancer,' Sagaroth thought. The top of Kadeus' head came about half way up Sagaroth's chest. The feelings of fear and dread he had a few moments earlier were replaced by an effort to keep from laughing out loud at the toad-faced little man. "Likewise, my lord." Kadeus flashed him a wide smile, revealing overly white and sparkly teeth. The contrast was just too much. Sagaroth couldn't contain himself any longer, and he burst out into a deep, resounding laugh.
The grin on Kadeus' face dissolved into a look of disgust. "Let me assure you, you will find me a formidable enemy if you upset me." Sagaroth started laughing louder, knees starting to buckle. Kadeus started to turn red with anger. He shot his hands up and muttered some arcane words. Suddenly, there was a flash of yellow light and Sagaroth felt like he was seized by hundreds of hands in a massive death grip. Looking down at his body, he could see nothing but the sickly glow around him. Unable to move on his own, he was forced down to his knees. Amusement was quickly once again replaced with the unfamiliar feeling of fear, and despite all his effort to the contrary, a small yell escaped his throat.
"Why do you make me do this?" Kadeus sighed. "You military types are all alike. I wanted us to have a relationship of mutual respect, but now I guess I shall have to resort to intimidation. Very well." Suddenly, Sagaroth couldn't breathe. The invisible hands around his body constricted. Pain shot through his body and the world around him began to recede as the blackness of unconsciousness swept over him. Just as he was he was about to pass out, the magic force that held him let go. He took a long, labored breath and realized that he was lying on his back. Kadeus stood over him, sweat dripping from the end of his bulbous nose onto Sagaroth's forehead.