Chapter Two
“I don’t care who he thinks he is! No one lays a hand on our son and gets away with it!”
The king paced back and forth in front of Jack, who remained on one knee. From the corner of his eye, Jack glimpsed the queen. Sunlight beamed through the stained-glass windows, tingeing her long, red, curly hair blue and green. She sat rubbing her forehead in frustration, her long nails accentuating her slender fingers. Annoyed, she leant on the armrest of her throne.
“Jim. Stop making it worse. Kayne is embarrassed enough. He made a legitimate challenge, and lost. Apothecary Raymond was well within his right to honor the challenge.”
“Apothecary Raymond should know better than to strike a prince.”
“And you should know better than to let your son act with such foolish impulse. It’s your fault, you know. Filling the boy with such prideful thoughts. Apothecary Raymond even reported that your son’s contempt of the most-holy bordered dangerously on heresy.”
“Nonsense. More lies from a simple man abusing his power!” The king’s voice softened as he turned to face the queen. “And have you ever noticed that when our boy gets in trouble, he’s suddenly my son?”
The queen stood and marched toward her husband with surprising speed. “That simple man is one of the most loyal Apothecaries to your precious crown. He could have killed Kayne with just one blow.” She raised her hand to caress his cheek and smiled at him. “Our son needs to realize that his status will not protect him against our enemies or from making challenges to his superiors.”
He took a step back and pointed at his wife. “There! You said it! You believe the church is mightier than the crown.”
“Nonsense. I won’t be dragged into this endless debate of yours. I’m tired of it! And I’m tired of you dragging Kayne into it. He needs to accept that he’s to wed Penelope and maintain the balance of church and state. The monarchy and church should never rule independent of each other.”
“You mean that a king should never rule without his Subjugator.”
Shannon stepped back in surprise, hurt by her husband’s words. She turned away from him, blinking back tears. “You know I have no power over you. Your mother is a citizen, and your father a Subjugator, and that makes you immune to not only my suggestive gifts but everyone else’s.”
Ashamed at his words, Jim approached his wife. “Shannon. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it like that.”
“Imagine what would happen to our world if it were ruled by someone without checks and controls. What would happen if the church failed and Subjugators were free to control the minds of others?” Shannon turned and wrapped her arms around her husband, resting her cheek against his broad chest. “What would happen if someone could influence the king?”
“Fighting again? I hope it’s nothing I’ve done.”
The king frowned at Kayne, turning his wife’s back toward their son as she dried her tears on his red cloak. “What do you think?”
“I think I need a rematch. It was a cheap punch.”
“No. It was a king hit,” Jim grumbled.
“He had an armored fist, Dad! Typical Apothecaries, hiding behind their faith to fight fair.”
The queen lifted her head, tears still streaming from her eyes. “Enough, Kayne! You made a challenge and lost. It’s as simple as that. Don’t forget, you were wearing armor too.”
“Mum, I’m sor-”
“Don’t ‘Mum’ me. You’re leaving on your pilgrimage today, young man. No excuses. And the Regent has decreed that the Apothecaries won’t be joining you!”
“What do you mean? I’m supposed to journey with one or it doesn’t count. I can’t-”
“Be a King-in-Waiting and lead others into illustrious battles?” Shannon interrupted, her voice filled with anger. “Visit the colonies in a glorious procession? I don’t think that’s a bad thing, Kayne. You need several more years of guidance before you’re ready to lead. Guidance from someone like Apothecary Raymond. Not Jack, whom you don’t listen to anyway. Once you’re married and have your first child, you’ll be reinstated.”
Jim looked at Shannon in astonishment. “What? When was this decided? That’s unacceptable. Jack, summon the Regent at once!”
“Stay there, Jack,” the queen commanded. “The church is well within its rights to withhold its servants. They neither wish, nor desire, to serve a prince who cannot respect them enough to at least work side by side.”
Jack stood, grabbing Kayne by the shoulders, as the prince moved forward. “Work with them! Do you even know what they did? They killed the entire guard! They murdered Pierce!”
Shannon walked down the steps and faced her son. “They were no longer human, Kayne. I loved Pierce too. He was like the second son I never had.” She embraced Kayne. “You need to let him go. Pierce knew the risks. The last thing he would have wanted was to live as a slave to the Necromancers. I searched the memories of Apothecary Raymond. I know what he did.”
“So you saw the Dark Queen? Then you know she healed them all.”
Confused, Shannon looked at her son in shock. “What are you talking about? Who’s this Dark Queen? The men were lost to us. Raymond did what had to be done. For once in your life be an obedient son, and go and get ready to leave.”
Queen Shannon slammed the door as she left the hall, leaving the men in silence.
The king looked at Kayne and shook his head. “See what you did, son? You made your mother cry.”
Jack stifled his laughter and looked at the ground. Kayne shrugged, walked up the steps, and sat on the queen’s throne.
“So, what if we find one of those gold Apothecaries? Would that count?”
The king laughed and sat down beside his son. “Ah, those were the days of legend. If you find one, you have my permission to ask. I doubt they would say no. Their disagreement was with the Regent, not the state.”
“Disagreement? Is that why the Regent called them traitors?”
Surprised, he looked at his son. “Traitors? No, no, no. They weren’t traitors, and he didn’t call them that. He just hated the way they disagreed with everything he said, and did their own thing anyway.”
“Isn’t it time someone fills me in? Just yesterday, Jack was alluding to the old church. What’s going on?”
Jim stared at Jack, raising an eyebrow at him. “Did he now?”
Jack shuffled his feet, uncomfortable under the king’s gaze. After a time, Jim nodded to himself, reaching a decision. With a single gesture, the guards at each of the six arched entrances left the room, closing the thick wooden doors behind them.
“In the past, there were no Bishops, just Apothecaries, Ministers, and Paladins.”
“Paladins?” Kayne asked, the subject peaking his curiosity.
“In fact, legend has it that one day the Paladins will return to restore the original faith and unite the people once more.”
“Do you believe in the legend?”
“Yes, son. I also believe in the church, just not in its present form.”
“And what’s that, Dad? A power-hungry organization?”
“Kayne.”
“Sorry.”
“Once, the Apothecaries and Ministers wore golden armor. This signified their belief in light and truth. The Paladin’s was a dark silver. Some say it reflected their role as warriors, who walked the line between good and evil deeds on the battlefield. Between darkness and light. You see, the ancient church believed in a different god. Not this snake god, but a man like you and me.”
“What happened to the ancient church?”
“You know the story. There was an Apothecary who refused to give up his love for an Aazronian witch. A battle ensued in the central temple. The anchor, which bound our worlds together and kept us from floating away into space, was housed there. The golden Apothecary shattered the great anchor. That single act threw our worlds into chaos. The Ministers prayed to their god for help, but their prayers went unanswered. As you know, one of our worlds, Terra,
was lost in the turmoil. The remaining worlds would have followed Terra’s fate, if not for Ophidia, who brought stability to the other worlds. Feeling abandoned by the god of light, the church turned to the snake god.”
“So where are all the golden Apothecaries?” asked Kayne.
“According to rumor, there’s only one golden Apothecary left, though I’ve never seen him. Most renounced their ‘faith’ color when Ophidia taught that gold represented humanity’s greed and pursuit of wealth, power, and desire. They donned the black in honor of Ophidia. She represents the vast wisdom of the universe, and its dark, endless distances. Even now, she bestows her power upon the faithful from time to time.”
“Have you ever seen her?”
“Yes, son, and it’s something I never wish to see again.” Jim gave Kayne’s shoulder an affectionate squeeze. “Come on. I’m hungry, and you have a pilgrimage to begin. One that will count in my eyes.”
“Thanks, Dad.”
“Oh, and seeing as the position of guardian is now available, Jack will accompany you. But on one condition.”
Kayne brightened at the suggestion. He looked at Jack and grinned. “And what’s that?”
“No more challenges!”