Laurel looked over towards her father, who beamed a smile at her and nodded. "Yes, Richard, I shall marry you." She threw her arms around Richard's neck and embraced his unmoving form.
The old tailor got up and knelt in front of Lord Ki Kalendeen's throne. "Thank you, my lord. Thank you. For the bottom of my heart, I thank you."
"Please, Master Lubick, stand up."
Lubick stood and grasped Alexander's hand. "I thank God in heaven that we have a lord such as you. Now I understand why they call you Lord Alexander the Just. Thank you again, my lord. Thank you."
Richard put his hand on the old man's shoulder. "Master Lubick. I ask that you also forgive me. I would be honored if you would come and live with us in New Portsmouth. And besides, I know of no other tailor who I would rather have make my bride's wedding gown."
Lubick turned and glared at the young noble. "You little spoiled bastard!" A thud rang out as Richard received a punch in the jaw. Lubick’s face then warmed up and clasped Richard's hand. "Now, I can forgive you. I should not hold a grudge against the father of my grandchild."
Lord Alexander gave a relieved sigh. “Your father and I thought that would be your response. He sent a stage, and it is waiting to take all of you to New Portsmouth this very afternoon.”
Lubick put his right arm around Laurel and his left around Richard, who was nursing his jaw dramatically, and they all turned and walked towards the large double doors. "Come, we shall be at your father's home in two days."
David watched Richard give one more hate-filled glare at Lord Ki Kalendeen as they exited the courtroom and hurried down the corridor.
Lord Ki Kalendeen walked over to David. "That's the last of them, son. Let's go have a glass of sweet wine and I shall answer a few questions you might have. Then we shall get ready for your brother's wedding. On second thought, I'll have Drake make you up a flask of strong tea. You'll need it to stay awake during the Bishop's service."
"Father, why was the only other option you gave him to work the smelting pits?"
Lord Ki Kalendeen let out a tired sigh. "I was only enforcing Lord Edington's wishes. He wants his son to learn responsibility. As you can see, the lesson was badly needed. I just hope when he becomes Lord of New Portsmouth, he has more of a backbone than his father."
"But why did YOU have to force him to marry? Shouldn't that have been Lord Edington's job?"
"It's better for a man to hate a total stranger than to hate his own father. Enough questions for now, my son. His Grace is in quite a talkative mood today and you may need more than one flask of tea to keep you awake."
Laughing, he put his arm around his youngest son and they walked out of the courtroom.
* * * * * *
Outside the armory, steam rose from the cold floor as the warmth of the spilling blood oozed across its length. Along the walls, blood and entrails had splattered every few feet, creating a morbid gray and red pattern. Broken bodies, mouths twisted in silent, horrified screams, littered the room as soulless forms ransacked the weapons rack for anything useful.
“What a mess,” Dameus said to himself. He hadn’t realized that there would be so many guards at this time of day in the armory. They had been able to take them by surprise, but he had lost almost half of the lesser undead he had created. The greater undead had also taken some injuries, but they were easily repaired. The guards who had been stationed here were a different matter. Out of the 57 that had been here, only 21 were still intact enough to be raised.
The door creaked open and General Sagaroth stepped into the room. The gruesome sight didn’t appear to disturb him. One of the skeletons hissed at the sight of the intruder and it raised its sword, stepping forward to strike.
“NO!” yelled Dameus. “He is one of us!”
The skeleton lowered its sword and bowed in an apologetic manner. Sagaroth shuddered. He still hadn’t gotten used to the sight of the walking dead. Stepping over a body, he approached Dameus. The skeleton dropped to one knee at Sagaroth’s feet.
“Oh, get up. You have work to do.” Dameus pointed to the weapons rack, and the undead creature nodded and walked off. The apprentice necromancer turned his attention to a nearby body.
“Everything seems to be going well, Dameus.” Sagaroth surveyed the room with a combination of pride and revulsion. “Now that you have eliminated the main force of guards and confiscated their weapons, the rest of the castle should fall relatively easily.”
Dameus pulled a dagger out of the body’s abdomen. He tossed it aside and it landed with a wet clatter in a puddle of blood.
The skeleton that had attacked Sagaroth came back with its fist closed around something and offered it to him. Sagaroth held out his hand, and the skeleton dropped several gold coins into it.
“Oh, thank you.” He turned his attention back to Dameus. “Just a few more hours, and we shall bring the Ki Kalendeens and the Branvolds to their knees!” Sagaroth laughed wickedly. Dameus continued to examine the body. The laughter died. “Dameus, are you listening to me?”
The necromancer looked up. “Hmm? Oh, yes. Knees. Right.” He went back to his work.
Sagaroth looked at him in disbelief. “How can you not be excited at a time like this? This is going to be a glorious victory.”
Dameus looked up at Sagaroth for the first time since he entered the room. “General, playing the ambassador may be glorious and exciting, but please forgive me if trudging through cold sewage tends to generate a lack of enthusiasm on my part. Now, if you are finished, I have work to do.” With a dismissive gesture of his hand, he waved the General away.
Sagaroth’s eye twitched in anger at the comparatively small man’s insolent words. An urge to reach down and snap his neck crossed his mind, but he brought his anger under control before speaking. “Dameus, I appreciate the personal discomforts you have had to endure during this mission, but it is in service to our Master.”
Once again, the skeleton walked over to Sagaroth, hands clenched around something. Sagaroth held out his hand a bit nervously and the skeleton handed him a wedding ring and gold pendant.
The necromancer continued working without visibly acknowledging the large general’s words. A flash of energy surged from his hands and the corpse opened its eyes.
“Stand!” Dameus commanded. The newly-created undead obeyed. “Well, Lord Sagaroth, you had better get back to the warm splendor of the main castle. I have things under control here. The attack shall begin as scheduled, although I do have to warn you, the undead will be outnumbered three to two.”
The skeleton once again cautiously approached the large general, hands clenched around something. Sagaroth sighed and held out his hand again. His eyes widened in disgust as the undead creature dropped a kidney, dripping blood and urine, into his hand. Sagaroth let go quickly and it fell with a splat to the blood soaked floor.
Dameus shook his head in frustration. "Will you leave those bodies alone and find the rest of the weapons?" he shouted. The skeleton bowed and quickly obeyed.
“You still have my sword?” Sagaroth asked, wiping his hand on the inside of his cloak.
Dameus nodded without looking up.
“Good.” Sagaroth turned to leave. “Oh, and one more thing. I want you to make sure that Lady Arianna Ki Kalendeen is delivered safely to me after the battle. Dameus, listen to me, she must not be harmed. Did you hear that?”
“Yes, I heard you. With a voice that loud how couldn’t I hear you.”
“She must not be harmed, Dameus.” His face lit up a bit as he thought about the dark-haired beautiful woman. “I want her brought to me right after our victory.” He stroked his moustache lustfully.
“I heard you the first time. But I don’t think she will be willing to lie with you after you destroy her family.”
“That’s not what I want her for!” he said, defensively. “She’s the
sister of King Nicolae. He may not be as eager to retaliate knowing she is our prisoner.”
“Is her prison going to be a cell in Ironshield or your bed chamber?” asked Dameus. “Not that there would be much difference,” he added under his breath.
The comment brought a sharp slap across the back of Dameus’ head. He fell to the ground hard under the strength of the large general’s blow, landing on his face. “I have had enough of your brazen remarks. Lord Kadeus put you in my charge, and from now on, you will show me the proper respect, you spindly little demon.”
Dameus rubbed his bleeding lip and smiled at the demon comment. “As you command,” he said. He tried his best to not let the mocking show in his voice. His words and his eyes told different stories, as he glared at Sagaroth.
A gloating expression appeared on Sagaroth’s face. “Good. Keep up your work and I shall see you again after the battle.” He walked towards the door and opened it. “Dameus, if you try, I’m sure you could become a first-rate servant.” He chuckled and closed the door behind him.
Dameus picked up the dagger next to him and threw it at the closed door. The hilt landed against it with a thud. “First-rate servant. We’ll see who’s the servant when I hang you with your own entrails.”
He felt his mouth to make sure none of his teeth were missing, and then turned his attention back to the creating of undead.
* * * * * *
David exited the main castle and walked across the outer courtyard towards the chapel. Things had quieted down a bit since the morning, as the final wedding preparations had already been made. Several female servants, dressed in very old, traditional livery with flowers woven into their hair, passed him carrying large bouquets to the chapel. Music from the practicing minstrels drifted through the air. The smell of mutton being cooked for the first day of the wedding feast mixed with the scent of the flowers to overwhelm his senses. He left the courtyard and started walking down the path that led to the chapel.
Rounding the corner, he came to the front of the chapel, set aside from the rest of the castle. The large wooden double doors were opened to allow easy access for the servants putting on the final touches. The frames of the black oaken doors were lined with white flowers dotting long green vines. Four guards in full, shining plate armor were already outside, standing at attention with halberds in their hands. The guests would be arriving in little over an hour. David walked past the unmoving guards into the main worship hall of the chapel.
The inside of the chapel was also festively decorated with vines and flowers, which sat on top of the gothic architecture all the way up to the vaulted wooden ceilings, 15 legs above. He walked down the newly-carpeted center aisle, passing rows upon rows of wooden pews. Several of the servants were fixing bouquets to the ends of the pews, some of them dancing slightly to the upbeat music of the practicing minstrels. At the front of the church, in the first pew deep in prayer, sat his mother, absently twirling her long black hair.
David walked up and sat down next to her. There was a deep furrow in her brow and a small bead of sweat was running down her cheek. When she took no notice to him, he gently touched her on the shoulder.
“Mother?”
Lady Ki Kalendeen jumped with a start and let out a small yell. “David! You startled me! I’ve told you not to interrupt anyone while they are in prayer!”
“Forgive me, Mother. Is there anything wrong? You have seemed very upset today.”
Arianna wiped her eyes with her gloved hand and sniffed into her lace handkerchief, embroidered with her initials. She turned to him and smiled at his concern. Leaning over, she gave him a motherly kiss on the cheek. “Don’t worry about me, David. You have enough to think about. Shouldn’t you be getting dressed? Your brother has come out looking for you twice already. He and the two Branvold boys are almost ready.”
“I can dress quickly, Mother. You had mentioned a bad feeling before. What did you mean?”
She unconsciously started to wring her handkerchief in her hands. “Something feels wrong in the castle. I’m not sure, but I think it has something to do with that large ambassador from Aragil. What was his name, David?”
“Lord General Sagaroth.”
“Something about him just doesn’t seem right. Maybe it was the way he leered at me, or the lack of respect in his voice when he spoke to your father.”
David patted her shoulder. “I’m sure that’s it, Mother. He was just stunned by your beauty.”
She lightly slapped his hand, laughing. “Oh, David. You’re sounding more like your father every day. No, there was something else, something much more sinister and disturbing.” She turned and looked up at the large circular stained glass window above the altar. Her voice lowered to almost a whisper. “Something is very, very wrong.”
A chill ran down David’s spine and he squirmed in the pew.
His mother put her arm around him. “I’m sorry, I don’t mean to frighten you. Your father will get to the bottom of it. Perhaps you can help him, seeing that you are old enough to stand in court with him.”
The voice of his brother, Alexander, angrily echoed through the large chapel. “Pudd! Where have you been! Get your stained bottom over here and get dressed for the wedding!”
All eyes turned to David. He stood up as straight as he could and spoke with all the arrogance he could muster. “Some of us had to serve in Father’s court today and help put Mother at ease. I’m sorry if my schedule interferes with your little wants, but I truly don’t have time for your tantrums.”
Several muffled giggles could be heard. A sharp smack on his bottom brought him out of his haughtiness. “David! Don’t antagonize your brother. It’s his big day today, so humor him!”
He turned and gave a short bow. “Yes, Mother.” He started walking towards the door on the side of the worship hall that led to the dressing rooms. His brother stood in his highly polished ceremonial armor, glaring at him. David walked past him with the look of conceit still across his face. “Mother said I should humor you, Alexander. So you shall hear nothing further from me.”
His smugness was shattered as Alexander grabbed a handful of the hair near his temples and dragged him into the dressing room.
“AAAAARGH! You big simpleton!”
Alexander closed the door behind him, still holding a handful of David’s golden hair. He released his younger brother, shoving him and giving him a swift kick to his buttocks with an armored foot.
“OUCH!” David landed on the floor and rubbed his bruised bottom. He glared at the smiling figures of Liam and Joshua Branvold. “So, you think it’s funny?”
Joshua, one year younger than Alexander, broke into laughter. “Yes, very.”
The smile disappeared from Liam’s face, as he remembered very similar treatment given to him by his older brother. “I’m sorry, David.” He walked over to help his friend back to his feet. David was still rubbing his backside as he picked himself up off the stone floor. A wad of clothing was thrown into his face.
“Now, if you two girls are finished, get dressed!” The clinking of Alexander’s armored feet could be heard as he paced back and forth across stone floor, hands folded behind his back.
Joshua sat down in a wooden bench next to where Alexander walked. “There’s still time, you know,” he said in an almost tempting voice. “I would be lying to you if I said that Mareth wasn’t thinking the same thing. All that responsibility, how will you handle it?” A wide grin split his face.
Alexander stopped pacing and stared thoughtfully at a stained glass window. He shook his head and resumed his metal on stone cadence. “I can’t leave. What would my father think?”
David finished pulling his laced shirt over his head. “He would get his scent hound Jake to hunt you down. He knows you are thinking about running. He said that if you disappeared he would place a bounty on your he
ad so large, that you wouldn’t even make it out of Lystra.”
Alexander turned and his blue eyes froze with startled fear. “He knows? How? Did you tell him, you little Pudd?!?”
“I didn’t have to. He found the pack in your room. He’s going to come in here before the ceremony and tan your hide. He is so mad, well, I wouldn’t want to cross his path today, let alone be you.” David rocked back and forth on his heels, trying not to laugh and becoming high on his newfound power. “I had a glass of wine with him not an hour ago, and he was talking to me about taking over the family after he disowns you!”
The sudden stopping of the pacing told David that he had gone too far and ruined the credibility of his story. Alexander walked over to him and grabbed him by his tunic. He rubbed his knuckles over the top of David’s head. “You clever little monkey. You had me going there for a minute.”
All four of them started laughing, shattering the sullen mood and relieving some of Alexander’s fears.
“You should have seen the look on your face,” chimed Joshua, pointing and laughing at the groom to be. “A bounty! Oh David, that was a classic!” Liam fell over laughing so hard, tears were rolling down his cheek.
A hard knock sounded from the other side of the door. David caught his breath barely long enough to speak. “Look out! It’s Angus McCracken coming to throw you into the dungeon!” The boys roared in renewed wheezing cackles. The door opened to reveal the stately form of the Bishop Malachi of Kheog.
“Greetings, young men. Engaged in a little youthful revelry, I see. Well, I just came from Mareth’s dressing room after explaining the responsibilities facing a young married couple, as well as some personal advice and philosophy, gleaned from my many years of study and experience….”
Liam leaned over and whispered into David’s ear. “He went to Mareth’s room over an hour ago. Can you believe he just finished?”
“I heard that, master Liam. So, as I was saying, God created Adam in his own image, and taking a rib from him, he created Eve. Thus began the first marriage. Theirs was a perfect marriage, as they had not yet sinned.” The Bishop sat his stout form down on the bench next to Joshua. When Joshua tried to stand, the Bishop grabbed hold of his tunic and forced him back to his seat. “This pertains to you too, young master Joshua. You shall be marrying one day soon, I would think. And Lady Eleenia deserves a wise husband.”