Chapter 2 - 12: The Night of Ill Omens (III)
It was still dark. The Chief of Intelligence knew he needed to strengthen his position, and to do so, he needed to inform about what had happened both the Empress and Prince Holingen: Desa Akrovia's open defiance was something expected, but the other knight who accompanied her... he didn't know his name, but it was possible that they could dissolve another of those organizations as was the wish of his Lord, the Lord of the Necromancers, the powerful Klangorn.
Now he only had to decide how to tell them. He doubted they would like to be woken up before dawn, but that didn't matter to him. He had to make it clear how necessary it was or Klangorn, who had already threatened to suffocate him, was going to truly show him his immense power.
Foto de Jevgeni Fil en Unsplash
At the top of that building, the she-owl had found a magnificent place to wait. She had a clear view of the mansion that had become the headquarters of that new Chief of Intelligence, so she could see the entrances and exits of its inhabitants and, most importantly, do so without being seen. Despite her white plumage, she went unnoticed, due to the decorations that the building had at its highest part, especially the gargoyles, as she had heard humans refer to them.
Then, she detected that oily cloud again. It seemed that that Chief of Intelligence was leaving again, so, without delay, she made a specific sound and, shortly after, she saw her companion in fatigue, an eagle owl who was very bad-tempered but who was tireless when it came to following individuals like this, especially in that very... special oily state.
In a short time, she had lost sight of them and she continued calmly spying on the house. She was sure that something important was happening: she would have to wait for the owl to have news and report properly. In any case, he had to be thankful that he was a nocturnal animal: with so much movement at night, if it had been daytime, he didn't know how he would have coped.
She closed one eye and left the other open. It was one thing to be a nocturnal animal and another to have to keep both eyes open all night.
Prince Holingen was in his chambers. He was soon to be married and he was looking forward to it with great interest: his future wife, Danira, the daughter of the Margrave of RocaStretta, was very young, very beautiful and, in addition, everyone seemed delighted with the wedding, including the interested party. But that did not mean that he could not have the occasional furtive encounter with one of those ladies, also very beautiful, but in another phase of their life, when they liked these spicy adventures so much. Besides, he was the prince and, as long as that idiot Everingen, with the help of Everin, that scoundrel, did not spoil it, he was the future heir. And nobody wanted, of course, to make enemies of him. So, in general, he had received few refusals.
Of course, he always investigated them first. The humiliation he had felt when one of those women several years ago had told him that he was considerably less chivalrous than Erevin, had made him hate his brother even more, who was only a year younger than him. Expelled from the court after something that had never been sufficiently explained to him, he had been very surprised when his mother had forbidden him to gossip about it and had ordered him to act as if Erevin did not exist. However, he had always kept in mind that she had told him that in front of his father, Toringen III, who did not even approve of that decision but who knew that he had died without knowing clearly what has happened either.
As it could not be otherwise, he had approved sending the “Sleepersmaker” to kill Erevin… if he could find him, of course. As much as his mother thought she was a great strategist, he had not made the right decision to send his brother to the Imperial Navy: she had given that insolent man, who was already emerging as a future good knight, the tools to improve greatly. The bad news for them was that he had done it and, from the looks of it, too well.
– Damned Erevin… – he said, throwing the wine glass he was holding into the fireplace.
Someone knocked at the door.
– Come in.
An imperial waiter, in his uniform, opened the door and made the customary genuflection.
– Your Highness, your mother requires you in the main Audience Chamber.
– At this hour?
He was aware that his mother would be immediately informed of the state of his room and, especially, of his bed. In fact, she surely already knew who that night’s lady had been.
– Yes, Your Highness, the Chief of Intelligence has some news for you.
He rose from his seat and answered:
– All right, tell her that I will be there right away.
The royal waiter, without saying a word, repeated the genuflection and left the room.
Holingen buttoned up his shirt and checked his breeches. No, he would have to change them again or he would get one of those lectures from her mother about how a prince should present himself to his subjects. So he opened a chest he had under him bed and choose some darker green leggings that would go well with the rest of his outfit. Of course, he couldn't expect her mother not to notice, but at least he would maintain her image, even if it was in front of that sinister character. Of course, he could think that but not say it as his mother had warned him.
He finished dressing and left his chamber. Two guards remained guarding the door and two accompanied him. It made him uncomfortable but he could not criticize because he knew that, if it were not for these measures, he would have been killed already.
They crossed the deserted corridors and arrived at the Audience Room where the soldiers remained outside while the doors were opened for him. There was his mother, impeccably dressed, although her face told him that she was tired, but she hid it very well. However, she looked at his tights with a disapproving face: he lowered his gaze and sat, uncomfortable, in the seat that had been prepared for him to the right of his mother.
Then, another door opened and the Chief of Intelligence entered the room. Tall, thin, with those eyes that made him look like a shark and his whitish skin, he was an individual who anyone would consider as trustworthy.
– Your Imperial Highness – he said, making the appropriate bow, including a genuflection, to the Empress. Then he looked at him and did the same.
– A rather inconvenient hour, Strugar. I hope it is urgent.
He smiled, showing that sinister, cadaverous smile.
– Oh, Your Highness, of course it is. Desa Akrovia and another knight, who I believe is also from another Military Order, have freed the previous Chief of Intelligence…
Holingen was about to say something but the Empress raised her hand.
– And how could that happen?
– They had help, although I don't know the people who helped them. I don’t even know if one of them is a human. I would have told Duke Guonlorth but I know he's not in Bonardia…
That visibly angered Holingen. The Empress also wasn’t pleased, although she was better at hiding it. If the flow of information was going to someone else… that meant that that person was more important.
But the Empress, without letting her obvious discomfort at that statement show, asked:
– And what do you plan to do about it?
He smiled.
– I don't think I'm the best option, Your Highness. After all, they entered my house. It could be seen as a simple conflict with me, when, if I remember correctly, it was Your Highnesses who ordered me to detain him. Besides, I can't stop Desa Akrovia and she knows it all too well.
The Empress knew he was right: in fact, they should have been the ones to say it. So she replied:
– Thank you very much for your collaboration, Strugar. From now on, we'll take care of this matter.
She waved him off, so he couldn't stay any longer. He backed up to the door, saluted, and, once the soldiers had opened it, he left the room. He had to quicken his pace and continue down the corridor. It would not be good for them to see him standing there listening. But he wouldn't have minded doing so, he thought, smiling widely.
– We must stop Desa Akrovia.
– I agree, but we don't know who that other man who was with her is. Besides –said the Empress as she moved around the room: her nervousness was evident–, I didn't like the insinuation that he hadn't told us anything about this matter if that abominable being, Guonlorth, would have been here.
They both fell silent: they both knew that they were the ones who had brought him to court and who had trusted him to achieve their goal: expel Everingen and pursue Erevin.
–First things first: we will investigate who the man who helped Desa Akrovia, but we must stop her now. Not wait until tomorrow.
The prince stood up and walked towards the door.
–And who are you going to send?
He turned around:
– I'm not going to send anyone, mother. I'm going myself.
And without even saying goodbye he left the room.
The Empress turned to the window: everything was still quiet. Nevertheless, she smiled: if they managed to get rid of the hated head of the Order of the Orantes, they would have achieved an important victory in the right direction.
Suddenly, she put her hand to her head. Yes, there were only a few days left. Tomorrow she would have to prepare everything to go to her retreat. She could not delay it any longer.
The castle of the Order of the Orantes was almost deserted. For several weeks, Desa Akrovia, aware of the order of her Community’s dissolution had already been given and of its consequences, had ordered all her sisters to split up and leave for different parts of the Empire. Some were even on their way to other countries, where they would continue to live in community, but now with the simple mission of carrying out charitable activities for those who needed them. Only a dozen sisters remained there with her, who were in charge of carrying out their tasks facing the public, greatly reduced now that they had been relieved of the security of the imperial complex, and of the ordinary tasks of the community. But that night, after liberating Mirondar, she had given the final order: they had to lift the camp and leave the city before it was too late, through the network of tunnels that they had built underneath over the centuries.
Silently she prayed to the One and to all his messengers, thanking them all for the discretion the sisters had, from the beginning of the community: nothing has been said of any of these works to anyone other than certain members of their own order.
She heard footsteps outside and the novice who was in charge of the main door opened the door and said to her with a bow:
– Desa, it seems that Prince Holingen is outside and wants to see you.
She simply stood up and rang a kind of internal bell calling all the sisters to present themselves at the main door.
Foto de Rob Potter en Unsplash
Once there, she simply said:
– Sisters, the time has come that we have tried so hard to prevent. But we are prepared. You 5 are the first: go down to the tunnels and prepare yourselves for when we have to go down.
The 5 she had pointed out, who already were armed and wore their cloaks, began to walk down the corridor.
She then addressed the others who remained:
– You three, count to 50 and open the door. As soon as they are out of sight, you do the same as them. You 4 come with me.
Through the long corridors, now cool because it was night, they arrived at a large room that had served as a dining room, assembly hall, etc. It was cozy and, due to its size, it was possible for the entire community to fit in there.
– I need you 4 to enter the tunnel behind the chair and wait for me. I don't think we'll be long: he's coming for me and I have no interest in letting myself be caught.
They obeyed and Desa Akrovia sat down on the seat that had been hers and, before her, of the previous Mother Abbesses of that community since the construction of that Monastery. She smiled: many sisters complained about the humidity of certain parts of the building, which was normal because of the cistern and spring that was underneath, but now that was going to be a very minor concern. They were going to become fugitives and that was going to be difficult to accept, but there were not many alternatives for them now.
Metallic footsteps were heard against the stone tiles. The prince's men were approaching. Finally, he entered and saw her sitting. He didn't expect to see her, but even less did he expect to see everything... deserted. She stood up and bowed her head:
– Your Highness, what an ungodly hour to visit this community, don't you think?
He looked from side to side and, surprised, answered:
– Where are the sisters?
– At this hour? I imagine they are sleeping, as I would normally be at this hour as well.
– I am not here for ceremonies – he said, extremely irritated. Then he began to move, nervous -. Both my mother and I are tremendously offended by all the times you have shown that you didn’t support us.
– My job has never been to support you or any other member of your family, Your Highness. My role was only to provide security for the people, mainly women, of the Imperial Court. That is why this order was created, although now we have some other minor tasks since you relieved us of that main one.
– Security is going as well as ever.
– And we are happy not to be needed, because then we can dedicate ourselves to other things for which we can be needed. Besides, we have to defend our own security, which is very threatened precisely by the accusations you have just made by certain new allies you have sought out – the criticism was obvious and Prince Holingen became even more irritated.
– If you cannot criticize us, why do you do it now? – he said, smiling as if he had caught her in an unforgivable incoherence.
– Let us leave the ceremonies aside, as you said. I know that your august mother has given the order to extinguish this Community and that you have come to carry it out. I also know that you have put a price on my head and that of other mothers, whose only crime has been to fulfill the obligation to which we bound ourselves when we swore perpetual vows.
– Of course: whatever rank you have, you are an Order of the Empire and therefore you must obey. And yes, it is true, here is the order to dissolve this community. I do not like this building for me, but it will serve someone well.
She, without being the least bit annoyed, smiled:
– You should warn them about the damp. As for obedience, I am sorry that you are so misinformed. In the vows, we don’t swear obedience to the Imperial Crown, even though we have taken care of its members for more than 450 years since the times of the Kingdom of Sinardia. What is more, obedience is sworn to the One and to its Temple as a symbol of its presence in this world and to the Grand Patriarch only as a representative of the previous ones.
– These are all matters that I, as heir…
– You better not rush, Your Highness.
Something had come to the window. It landed and then calmly flew in: a white owl landed on Desa Akrovia's gloved hand.
– This is your last challenge to our authority.
– As I say, you'd better not be hasty, Your Highness.
Without being noticed, she then moved a piece of the chair and simply disappeared from the room.
Prince Holingen could not believe what had happened: he had just lost the most defiant, unbearable and shameless woman he had ever met. One of the soldiers returned:
– Your Highness, there is no one left in the Monastery.
The prince shouted, knowing that it was even more difficult for him to stop not only those sisters, but Erevin, who he knew had been one of his most important allies.
Foto de Alexandru Silitra en Unsplash
Desa Akrovia entered the tunnel, which had two exits: a narrow one and a wide one. She chose the wide one, but when she looked out, she saw some large shapes moving through it. A hand touched her shoulder and she turned: it was Sister Nate Gratiana:
– Desa, do not go through there: we have seen at least three giant snakes. They have let them loose in the tunnels.
– Then, there is no choice but to go down the narrow tunnel. We must be very careful: these snakes do not belong to the Prince, even if he could have brought them.
They continued walking in almost total darkness, until they reached a kind of room behind which was the spring and the channel that passed under the monastery.
– Well, obviously we cannot take the door to the passage to the imperial castle. But we do have to put something so that they cannot enter through there, although I doubt they will do so if it has not occurred to them already. Let us take the exit to Ko-Or-Natu. From there, we will have no trouble finding transportation to any destination. We will have to wait a few hours, but not so long that it will be daylight and we could be easily detected.
Malaban and Nragar had left the Orantes monastery and had strolled around the city, undisturbed. They had decided that it was a good time to go to Ko-Or-Natu to take the boat and leave for Naras. But, just before leaving through the southern gate of the city, they saw that, before them, there were some imperial soldiers and Malaban, suddenly, threw Nragar into the door of a building that was deep enough to hide them.
There, he felt that the oily shadow that he had already perceived twice (once at the inn and once at the house of the head of Intelligence) was going down the street towards the same city gate through which they were planning to leave. The shadow stopped for a moment, but, just like the previous time, he could not detect them. But he knew they were there… but, as he continued without being able to know where they were exactly, he continued on his way.
– Nragar, we have to follow those soldiers but without being seen. Let's see, I need a cart, preferably with hay.
After a while, they had bought a cart, horse and hay from a farmer for a good price for both of them. Malaban took the reins, while Nragar hid in the hay.
Ahead, the shadow sensed that something strange was happening, but when he turned around, he saw only a humble hay cart and did not worry anymore.
If you want to read some of the previous chapters, the index is here.
This chapter was previously published in WP.
Nice! Such a story could become a fantastic role-playing adventure :-)