Chapter 23
The next dawn found Byron in the barracks’ courtyard, alone but for his shadow. As he sparred with that shadow, his sword moving in smooth motions, a small part of him was expecting Aislynn to show up at any moment, keeping their appointment as she had every day since she had arrived, even when she was injured after the attack in the cathedral. But a much larger part of him knew that it was impossible. Byron knew that he was really going to miss his morning sessions with Aislynn if… He shook his head, unwilling to finish that thought.
He had enjoyed his morning sparring with Rupert, and he and Rupert had been good friends, but his relationship with Aislynn was entirely different. They had a lot in common, just like he and Rupert had had a lot in common, but the time he spent with her was a lot of fun. She didn’t just come to fight in the mornings; she came to spar verbally too. Her personality was so different from Rupert’s, and it colored everything she did. He knew that he was closer to Aislynn than he had ever been to Rupert. She was a much closer friend.
Byron was so lost in his thoughts that he was surprised when he heard footfalls close behind him. He was turning, thinking that against the odds Aislynn was there after all, before he realized that she wouldn’t make that much noise.
“Eryk?” he asked, caught off guard by the person before him. “What are you doing here?” Byron knew that his tone of voice was inappropriate, but he couldn’t help himself.
“It’s all my fault,” Eryk said simply.
“You’re damn right it was your fault!” Byron exploded, letting his fear and anger loose. “If you had kept the hell away from her, stayed out of the way, she wouldn’t be lying unconscious up in her room right now. You may have killed her, you idiot! You may have taken her away –”
He immediately choked off what he had been about to say. Byron was not about to admit his feelings to the other man competing for Aislynn’s affections, especially when he knew that it was the other man who would win.
After a few moments of silence, Eryk decided that Byron had stopped yelling at him, and he took a deep breath before speaking.
“You’re right, Byron, about everything. If I hadn’t been there at all, this likely wouldn’t have happened. She would have been able to hold her own for the few minutes left until Marcus and Mateo arrived. But if we assume that I would have gone anyway, things could have ended very differently if I’d been able to help. I can’t rely only on her to keep me safe. I have to be able to help keep myself safe, so you have to teach me.”
Byron took a good look at the young king, standing there before him with every fiber of his being screaming determination. Then Byron noticed that he had a sword.
“You can’t be serious,” Byron stated with a small chuckle, his anger dissipated a little by the sheer ridiculousness of it. “Eryk, I have known you for years, and I’ve seen you in sword practice many times. You are far more likely to hurt yourself than you are to help her in a fight. Heck, you could actually injure her!”
Eryk’s face fell, and his shoulders slumped in defeat. He knew that Byron was right again, on all accounts. He had given up regular sword training years ago, when he had proven himself pretty much useless, and it was only during intermittent sword practice with Branden that he even held a sword these days.
“There has to be something you can do,” he pleaded.
Byron turned away from the agonized look on Eryk’s face and went over to a bench to sit down and think for a minute. He was still very angry at Eryk for endangering Aislynn, but the fact that Eryk was taking some responsibility for what had happened, and the fact that he wanted to make sure this sort of thing didn’t happen again, showed Byron that Eryk was finally growing up. It would be a shame not to help him. He knew that Eryk loved to hunt, and that he was a fair hand with a bow, so maybe they could work with that, at least as a place to start.
“What about if we settle for teaching you how to keep out of harm’s way, and perhaps aide from a distance?” he proposed. “That way, you would be more of an asset than a liability.”
Eryk nodded eagerly, grateful that Byron hadn’t just sent him away without giving him a chance to prove himself. He vowed to himself that he would give this training every ounce of effort he could; it was important for him, and it would also be important for Aislynn.
“Well then,” Byron continued, getting up from the bench and walking back toward Eryk, “since you brought a sword, let’s start with that. Your goal is a simple one – don’t get hit.” And he launched an attack at Eryk’s head, sword coming in from the right.
Eryk, caught off guard, brought his sword up too slowly to parry Byron’s attack. The captain brought his sword to a halt just inches away from the king’s neck.
“We definitely need to work on those reflexes,” Byron stated. “You’re dead. Let’s try again.”
Eryk spent the next hour or so being run around the courtyard by Byron, using a combination of clumsy parries and desperate movements to stay out of his ‘attacker’s’ way.
Byron rather enjoyed himself, and he could easily envision Aislynn helping with Eryk’s training when she was feeling up to it. Perhaps she could sit and throw daggers at Eryk while he tried to dodge or block them, Byron thought, before remembering how good she was at that particular game. If she felt that Eryk was responsible for her current state, it likely wouldn’t be safe for the king if Byron were to let her anywhere near him.
By the time Eryk was finished for the morning, which Byron determined by the fact that Eryk could barely walk due to exhaustion, Byron was reasonably certain that he would be able to teach him how to parry properly. Teaching him to keep out of the way entirely would be his first priority, however, as well as some target practice with bow and dagger. Aislynn would be able to teach him a thing or two about that, he was certain. They agreed to meet again the next morning, and Eryk made his slow way back to the castle to prepare himself for the day.
Breakfast that morning was very different for Eryk. He had skipped breakfast yesterday, caught up in the events of the morning, so this was his first meal without Branden. It felt so strange not having his friend there beside him, like a part of him was missing. Even if that part hadn’t been particularly nice or enjoyable recently. Jackob was there with Byron, and Durham, Cora and Davin joined the three of them for their meal.
Once again, the eesprid attracted Davin's attention, and Jackob’s fox was as eager to let the boy stroke her as Cheta usually was. The fox, being considerably smaller than Aislynn’s wolf, was able to escape Durham’s notice for a while, and Davin had learned from his previous experiences. He stayed close to his mother to avoid Durham’s immediate reprimand, and played with Daki under the table. The fox happily obliged by sitting close to him, but on the side away from Cora so that she couldn’t intervene. Davin wasn’t sure why his uncle disliked the animals so much, but he liked them a lot!
The meal, for the most part, was a somber affair, and nobody wanted to linger after they finished eating. It didn’t take very long for Jackob to be left alone with Eryk and Byron. Jackob had noticed the attention his eesprid had been paying to Davin, and figured that now was as good a time as any to bring it up.
“Eryk,” he began, “that young boy, Davin. Has he spent any time with Aislynn’s Cheta?”
“Yes, a couple of times, why?” Eryk answered.
“It is unusual for the eesprid to be so taken with anyone besides their other halves, and my Daki seemed to be very fond of him.”
“I’ve seen him playing with Cheta,” inserted Byron. “She had him on the ground once, licking his face and everything.”
“Hmmm. What is the boy’s relation to you?” Jackob asked Eryk.
“He’s my cousin, the son of my father’s brother. He is also my heir. Why?”
“Well, in Evendell, children who are drawn to the eesprid like he is are special, and they often end up receiving special training. How old is the boy???
?
“He’s eight,” said Byron. “What kind of special training? Like your training?”
“No,” Jackob shook his head. “Our training begins considerably earlier, and it is totally different than the training we would give Davin. You may want to consider having someone from Evendell come to test the boy, as you don’t have the right kind of people here.”
“What are you talking about?” Eryk wanted to know.
“It’s complicated,” answered Jackob. “You know about the pact that joins our kingdoms, yes? Well, it is a magical pact, having its beginnings in a spell that was cast long ago, though the effects of that spell have morphed over the decades. We still retain a special group of people who are able to cast spells like that, and I think that Davin may be one of those people. At home, they are traditionally identified by the eesprid, who are drawn to their magical talents.”
“Why haven’t I ever heard anything about that?” asked Eryk. “Davin was born here, so the talent is obviously something that can surface in Bacovia as well as in Evendell. Why don’t we have these people?”
“I’m really not sure,” admitted Jackob. “Your healers still have the ability to use magic to augment their healing salves and medications, and there used to be people in both nations with the ability to cast the more powerful spells. I suspect that the ability to train them was lost here, so they simply go unrecognized. As I said, it is the eesprid that identify the talent in Evendell, and you don’t have eesprid here.”
“Well, I can certainly see no harm in having Davin tested, and if he does have the talent, I see no harm in having him trained,” said Eryk. “Go ahead and send for your people.”
“If he was to be trained, he would have to go to Evendell. You don’t have the facilities here, and I couldn’t afford to send you all of the people who would be needed to help with his training.”
“I actually think that sending Davin away would be a very good thing for the boy,” threw in Byron. “He’s been on his own for so long, with only his mother and uncle. I think that he would benefit from an experience like that, and the sooner the better.”
That settled the issue, as far as Eryk was concerned, and the three of them moved on to other duties.
Just before Byron left, Eryk caught him by the shoulder.
“Thank you for this morning,” he said, sincerely. “And I’m sorry to add to your duties.”
“What do you mean?” asked Byron. “Helping to make you less of a danger to yourself and others is technically part of my duties,” he said with a smile.
“No, that’s not what I meant. I banished Alexius from court yesterday, for her role in the attack on Aislynn. I’m going to need a couple of guards permanently assigned to whichever of the country estates she chooses for her exile.”
Byron thought about that for a moment, and then nodded his head. “That won’t be any trouble,” he said. “I’ll send a full squad to escort her out to the estate, and leave two behind to guard her. It will be a good assignment for the men who are getting on in years, or those who are recovering from injuries. Don’t trouble yourself about it, your Majesty. When is she leaving?”
“Today would be best, but tomorrow could work if you need more time to get your men organized.”
“No, today will be fine. I’ll pick the men right now, and they can leave the city this afternoon.”
Eryk nodded his thanks, and Byron left to get everything arranged. He turned to Jackob, and the two of them left the dining hall, heading upstairs toward Branden’s suite to check on his progress.
The healers were closely monitoring Branden’s condition, and there was one in the reception room of his suite when they arrived. He rose, bowing low to the kings.
“Good morning, your Majesties,” he said. “You will be happy to know that Lord Branden is awake this morning, though he is not feeling very well.”
“What can you tell us about his condition?” asked Jackob.
“Well, for one thing, we do not know exactly what the seeds are. They must come from a plant that’s found only in the north. We have been able to determine that the seeds Lord Branden has been taking are a very powerful painkiller, certainly more powerful than what he was getting from us.
“According to the report we received from you yesterday, the Madelian emissaries stated that his first exposure to the seeds was apparently accidental, merely a case of the guard sharing a medication when Lord Branden was in need. The fact that this worked better than his previous medication likely explains why he continued to take it. Unfortunately, we have also determined that there are some rather severe side effects, most of which you have undoubtedly noticed. The seeds seem to take fears, suspicions and aggression, and augment them.”
“So Branden was not in his right mind when he attacked the princess?” Eryk asked, a touch of hopefulness in his voice.
“Not exactly, your Majesty. If you consider the effects of the seeds, combined with the reduced inhibitions associated with excessive alcohol, then no, he was not in his right mind. However, it is important to note that as far as we can tell, the seeds are not hallucinogens. That means that all of the thoughts and feelings he had were simply magnified by the effects of the medication, not created by them.
“It was still Lord Branden who said and did those things, acting on thoughts that were buried in his psyche, but he likely wouldn’t have said nor done any of those things if not for the seeds.
“It has been more than a day since he’s taken that medication, and we’ve helped remove the poison of it from his system with leeches, so he’s likely more like his old self now than he’s been in days.”
Eryk thanked the man, and walked over to the window. He stood staring out over the castle, mulling over the information the healer had given him. He couldn’t decide if this was all deliberate or merely a case of a bad decision with terrible consequences. He had to talk to Branden, to get the story from him, before he could make any decisions about what to do with him.
When Eryk entered the bedroom, quite the sight greeted him. The healer had said that Branden wasn’t feeling well, and he certainly couldn’t disagree with that statement, considering Branden’s skin was an interesting shade of green. The lovely deep purple of the knot on his temple also complemented the green of his skin, and Eryk guessed that between the hangover and the concussion, Branden likely felt horrible. Serves him right, thought Eryk, angrily. He didn’t say anything though; he just stood there waiting for Branden to begin.
“Eryk, I’m so glad to see you,” he began uncertainly. “I…I don’t know what to say. I could say that I’m sorry, but I know that it wouldn’t be enough.”
Eryk said nothing, but simply gestured to Jackob, who then entered the room.
“Branden, I’d like to introduce you to his Majesty, King Jackob of Evendell. He’s acting as my chief advisor while you are incapacitated.”
It took a moment, but Branden pieced the information together and turned an even sicklier shade of green. If this was the King of Evendell, then that meant this was Aislynn’s father. The same Aislynn who he had attacked the day before, and the same King who had acted as Tarren’s bodyguard for years. Branden sank back into his pillows, shrinking away from Jackob with a look of horror on his face. Eryk smiled cruelly.
“We’d like to hear your version of what happened yesterday,” he said. Branden swallowed, and took a deep breath.
“All I ever wanted was for us all to be together – you as king, me as your advisor, and Alexius as queen. It would have been perfect, but then she came and threw everything out of kilter.”
“What I don’t understand is how you could turn on me like that! We were friends, Branden.” The hurt was evident in Eryk’s voice.
“I don’t know when things got out of control, but the more time you spent with her, the angrier I got. I was mostly angry with you, because you were messing everything up. You wouldn’t listen to me when I tried
to talk to you, but I was also angry with her, and she seemed to be the easiest one to get rid of. I admit that I didn’t quite think that one through.”
“So you just added her onto the contract, figuring that you needed professional help? How did you even get involved with the Madelians and the Black Scorpions in the first place?”
“I met up the Madelian guards one evening when I was out in the city. I was feeling angry, like usual, and went to have a drink. While I was there, one of those horrible head pains started, and the guard offered me something that really took the edge off. Things just built from there. But I have no idea who the Black Scorpions are. And what contract?”
“You hired the assassins, didn’t you? The ones from the Black Scorpion guild. And you had them try to kill Aislynn to make it easier to get to me. One of the three men with you yesterday was a professional assassin, Branden.”
“What? I would never… How could you think that? The first assassination attempt happened before Aislynn even got here, and it was only Aislynn I had a problem with. Why would I want you dead? You’re my best friend, for crying out loud.”
“That was what I wanted to know,” Eryk said, totally frustrated by the circular conversation. Jackob, seeing the level of aggravation building between the two young men, decided that it was time for him to step in.
“So let me see if I have this all straight,” he said. “The first assassination attempts happened before the two of you started having issues, and you, Branden, had nothing to do with it. However, after my daughter arrived and started to put holes in your perfect little plan, you became resentful toward her and wanted to get rid of her. Around the same time, you also started taking some unknown medication from people who represented a hostile country, and you actually continued to take that unknown medication after that first time.
“While under the effects of said unknown medication, you actually got to the point where you decided to try and kill a trained assassin so that your friend would choose to marry your sister. The fact that one of the men with you was also a trained assassin was merely a coincidence. Does that about sum things up?”
Branden nodded, blushing.
“Well, your Majesty, I’m not sure how to advise you in this particular case, but it seems to me that your former chief advisor is an idiot.” And Jackob turned and left the room, leaving Eryk to deal with his friend.
“So what’s going to happen now?” Branden asked.
“Well, I banished your sister from court yesterday, so there is absolutely no chance that I will be marrying her.”
At Branden’s startled look, he explained.
“You told her all about your plan to kill Aislynn, though I have no idea if you remember doing so. She decided not to act on that information, making her an accomplice to an attempted murder. If she were not nobility, I would have had her hanged.”
“Attempted murder? I was drunk, and she’s…well she is what she is. There’s no possible way that could be construed as attempted murder. I didn’t stand a chance.”
“She still hasn’t woken up, Branden,” Eryk said solemnly. “Weren’t you listening? When you went to her room yesterday, you brought three Madelian guards with you, one of whom was actually an assassin from the guild who was contracted to kill me. The same guild that killed my father. After she knocked you out – which was really good of her, because I would have killed you – Aislynn had to fight all three of them.
“She’s lucky to be alive at all, and the healers aren’t certain if she’ll ever recover. If she dies, Branden, it’s a murder charge against you. Murder of a foreign princess, which will have huge political consequences, because regardless of what her role is here, she is still a princess of Evendell.”
“Eryk, I swear I didn’t know,” Branden said, desperate to prove to Eryk that it had all been a stupid, brainless mistake. “I had been drinking with them, and I knew that they followed me… Heck, they had been egging me on to go and deal with her. I didn’t know that they would pick up the attack when I fell, and I definitely didn’t know that one of them was an assassin.”
“Jackob’s right, Branden. You are an idiot.” Eryk turned to leave the room, but Branden stopped him.
“Eryk,” he called. “I will do whatever it takes to make this up to you, and to her. Please, give me a chance. I wasn’t thinking straight, or acting straight. I won’t say it wasn’t my fault, but… You know me Eryk and you know I wouldn’t do something like this. Please.”
“You’re very lucky that the healers agree with you. They have told us that you were not acting like you normally would have, that the effects of those seeds were making you aggressive and building up your fears and suspicions. But how am I supposed to trust you, Branden? What’s to say you won’t do something like this again?”
“I swear that I will only ever take the medicines the healers give me, and I swear that I will do whatever you ask. I understand if you don’t want me to be your advisor anymore, and I will understand if you banish me along with my sister. I deserve both of those things. But if you let me try, if you let me make this up to you both, I will be the best advisor that this kingdom has ever seen, and I will walk Aislynn down the aisle if that is what you want me to do. I promise.”
“I don’t know, Branden,” Eryk said. “I need to think. I just don’t know right now. I suggest you pray that Aislynn wakes up though, because she may be able to save you.”
Eryk walked out of the room, meeting Jackob and their guards outside, and leaving Branden to think about what he had said.