Oath and Kingdom [The Swordbreaker Archives]

Chapter 24: Running the Gambit

The next morning, Maylorn woke up feeling like a boulder was placed on top of him.  His body was so heavy it hurt.  Amrila seemed to be the same, groaning as Vespera squawked in the windowsill.  Vespera quickly disappeared, still hidden in the early light of dawn.
The sun barely made notice, but it proved enough light to make Vespera anxious, and in turn Amrila proved the same.  She rose quickly into a sitting position, rubbing her face.  "I thought she was an intruder for a second.  Sheesh why does she have to be so loud."
"Does she often wake you like that?" Maylorn asked, never noticing Vepera's screeching so early in the morning.
"Only when she's found something," Amrila replied.  "Or if she is hungry and wants me to feed her."
"Can she feed herself?"
Amrila glared as Maylorn stretched, his body aching as he shimmied out of the bed.  "Yes she is perfectly capable.  It is more difficult to in the city though."
Maylorn yawned.  "So which is it?  Is she just cranky or did she find something."
"Larson is not alone.  There are three others."
"Any mages?" Maylorn looked at her expectantly.
"One, a lower class mage.  There is also a born mage.  One born into his powers but his level does not look very high."
"What kind of magic can he use?"
Amrila scoffed.  "He's just a healer.  From what Vespera observed, he's helping them purchase herbs for remedies they might need if they get injured."
"So, we should make a plan then, right?  What if we cannot capture all of them?"
"I do not see how we can."
"We will have to.  They already know Asher was captured.  Or at least severely delayed by something.  It is only a matter of time before they realize someone is after them."
Amrila sighed.  "I know.  They will know we are close.  If we capture them, or even get near them, they will know."
"And if we can't capture them.  Ir even if we do and they do not talk, what then?"
Amrila sighed.  "We will have to follow them, but it will be a risk.  We are likely the ones to be captured at that point."
Maylorn nodded.  "So, what do we do?"
Amrila thought, her brows furrowed as she weighed their options.  "We need to go after them.  I do not suppose you have any ideas?"
Maylorn sighed.  "You are kidding."
Amrila shrugged.  "I do not know.  Your war tactics may be of use in this kind of situation.  Four against the two of us."
"Well, we need to take Larson first.  Before he meets up with any of them.  Any idea what he is doing now?"
"Still sleeping.  The others just arrived in the city.  Vespera spotted them just outside the Southern gates.  I suppose they will be resting and eating before they travel to the Northern part of the city.  If we can separate them somehow, then we have a better chance at capturing them."
"How do we make sure Larson does not escape while we try to capture the others?"
Amrila just smiled.  "I have a way with words."
Maylorn shook his head.  He knew she meant magic.  Hopefully she did not have to use anything other than spells, he thought to himself.
"Then we should go.  The earlier the better.  If we can capture him in his sleep, that will make it even easier."
Maylorn scrambled from the bed, his muscles protesting for a minute as he stood and grabbed his sword, tying the scabbard to his waistband.
"You need some armor," Amrila stated.  "Maybe if we make it out, we can go to Raevar and they can fashion some for you."
Maylorn watched her rise from the bed and do the same, gathering her bag of supplies.  She tossed him some jerky.  "Raevar is your home, is it not?"
"Yes, it is where I am from.  Precisely why I know they will make you armor.  They will understand that even though you are an outsider, you are not the enemy.
Maylorn nodded, unsure what to think of it.  They turned toward the door and made their way into the city street below.  Amrila made her way forward, guiding them towards Larson's boarding room.
The city, though not very large, was very tightly packed.  There was very little stone work, the streets gravel and the houses wooden, many of them with rot curling the wood.  The only stonework were the statues, the government buildings, a church, and a large tavern directly in the center of the city.
It looked like a farming or logging town, if Maylorn was honest.  The only thing separating it from one was the sheer amount of residents and travelers.  There were easy paths through the city, many heading in similar directions.
They found their way to an inn just south of the trade market, cutting off the market from the government.  Luckily, there were no signs of slaves from what Maylorn could tell.  Only honest people trying to make a living.
Amrila took Maylorn by the wrist and led him behind the inn towards the room windows.  She stopped suddenly, looked around to make sure no one followed them between the buildings, and looked up at the second story window above them.
Maylorn glared at her, his expression enough to tell her what he was thinking.  Are you out of your mind?
She just rolled her eyes.  "Well, I can climb alone if you want to block off the entrance." Amrila smirked.  "Or you can stay down here and catch him when I throw him out the window."
Maylorn grumbled.  "The latter sounds rather painful and could cause unwarranted dead ends or a shitload of trouble for us."
"Either option we are in a shitload of trouble," Amrila replied.  "I suppose the first option may be better if I can figure out how to explain to the commoners."
"Just tell them you are a bounty hunter.  Works in most situations.  I have the bounty if you need it."
Amrila shook her head.  "I will have you explain it then.  They are more likely to believe you."  She shooed him away, jumping up to grab the top of the first floor window.  There were no residents inside to see her legs dangle through the window briefly before she hoisted herself up. 
Maylorn made his way to the front where he found a place to lean on the wall just outside the doorway and peer through the windowsill.  He could see many people inside eating and conversing.
Maylorn stepped inside, making his way toward the counter.  He pulled the bounty from his pocket, greeting the innkeeper.
"Hello, sir.  How may I help you?" The old man's voice rasped with age.
"I was wondering if you saw this man," he held up the bounty.  "He is wanted for the murder of children."
The innkeeper opened his mouth to reply, but the sheer shock of what Maylorn said shook him silent.  Seeing how unhelpful the man would be, he stepped towards the entryway to the boarding rooms.
The innkeeper did not even protest as Maylorn waited there, watching.
Larson emerged from the staircase, sliding down as if he missed a step and tripped, but regained his footing on the last step before propelling himself into the middle of the hallway.
Maylorn charged at him, slamming a fist into Larson's stomach before turning him and wrapping his arms around him.  He grunted, unable to speak from the pain as Amrila jumped from the staircase after them.
She briefly hesitated at the sight of Maylorn's tight hold on Larson, but quickly made her way towards them.  Larson spat something in a language Maylorn did not understand before Amrila shoved a fist into his face, nearly hitting Maylorn in the same swing.
She spoke in the same tongue, pressing a finger into the new wound over his nose.  Maylorn could see the traces of an odd green powder on her finger as Larson quickly stopped struggling, then went limp in Maylorn's arms.
Maylorn looked up at Amrila.  "Are you going to expect me to carry him?"
Amrila grumbled.  "He's functional.  I only gave him a small sedative."  She flicked him in the nose.  He did not flinch, but eventually shifted some of his weight.  Amrila stepped to the side of him, pulling Larson out of Maylorn's grasp and into a more comfortable position between them.  With the weight lessened, Maylorn could maneuver them back out towards the street.
They made it out of the inn, eyes watching them.  Amrila watched back, uncertain until she saw the innkeeper shrink behind the counter.  "What did you tell them?"
"He murdered a bunch of children." Maylorn snorted.  "Figured it was not technically a lie.  He was involved."
Amrila smirked as soon as they passed the threshold.  She nudged Larson's head and he moaned, his feet suddenly moving as if he was trying to walk.  "I guess that works.  It did make things a little easier than I was expecting.  Except I thought I was going to knock you out too."
"Thank you for not doing that," Maylorn grunted as Larson pushed his weight on him.  Then he suddenly shifted back to normal, groaning.
"And the sedative I gave him just makes him look drunk.  I will have to give him a higher dose when we get back.  That way he will be knocked out for most of the day."
"We should buy a separate room.  Keep him from the others so they think he got away." Maylorn suggested.  "And possibly find a contact who can take all of them when we leave."
"Already done.  We have someone coming to take them.  Unfortunately, it will be a few days before they get here, so I will have to sedate them again."
Maylorn sighed, struggling to hold onto Larson's large body.  He was similarly built to Maylorn, making it just as difficult for Amrila to try and hold him up.  Luckily, they were both tall enough they did not have to hold his entire body weight.
Once they reached the inn, they made their way behind towards their room.  Luckily, being on the first floor, they did. Not have to struggle to shove him through the window.  Maylorn shoved his way in too, Amrila deciding it was best to go around to the front, so the inn keeper would not be so suspicious.
When she walked in, she held out a bowl to Maylorn.  "The room is all set." She set a third onto the table as she sat down with her own.  She caught Maylorn gazing at the extra bowl.  "I am not one to deprive people of the necessities."
Maylorn looked up at her.  "Means you are one of the good ones.  But we will probably have to intensely  interrogate him."
Amrila nodded.  "I know."
Maylorn stared as Larson lay on his stomach across the floor.  Maylorn bound him tightly, knowing he could escape with sheer strength.  Larson looked up at him, but did not seem aware of anything, his eyes glazed over.
"Vespera is watching the others.  I think it is best we wait to capture them until they rest and make their way to the northern part of the city.  Larson's sedative should wear off soon anyway, and we can question him briefly before I knock him out."
They ate quietly as Larson began to awaken, grunting as he shifted his head to face them.  Blood dripped from his wound and his nose, staining the floor.
"It should only be a few more minutes before he is aware of what is going on and can speak," Armila stated.
Maylorn watched him, finishing his meal.  He sat Larson up and fed him a little, knowing it was better to feed him while still partially sedated.  That way they could quickly switch to interrogation when he was fully awake.
When he finally did, blinking his eyes to rid of the daze, he began to writhe, trying to free himself.
"You are not getting away, Larson.  You can try all you want," Amrila blatantly spoke, pulling the chair closer to him.  Maylorn sat in the other chair, between Larson and the window in case he tried to escape.
Larson spat, leaving some particles of food and blood on the floor.  "Do not expect me to cower, witch.  I know all of your tricks.  You ain't getting a word out of me."
Maylorn glanced at Amrila.  "And I thought I was uneducated."
Amrila glared back briefly as warning before turning to Larson again.  "Unfortunately you do not know all of my tricks.  If you did, you would have countered that sedative before you ran.  After all, I found it in your room."
Larson grunted.  Amrila held up a vial, the same green powder she used on him within.  "You took this from Haendar's barracks when you left.  Their entire supply."
"They had no need for it.  The wars are over."
"And yet, you seemed to have a need to steal it.  So what did you need it for?  Sedating children to sacrifice them to demons?"
"Demons do not like them already dead."
Maylorn's skin tightened with goosebumps.  He could see the sheer hate in this man.  He did not give up his true heart, though.  He needed more of a push to do that.
"Were your own children among them?" Maylorn asked.
Larson could not see what provoked the question, as he knew many did not know he had children, and yet this stranger seemed to know him.  Maylorn could see the surprise hidden in his and Amrila's gaze.
Maylorn knew when a man was a father.  In all the days he fought alongside them, he could see it.  They were more willing to fight, but unwilling to give reason in the right circumstances.  Maylorn could see it as protecting their lives and their homes.
They would not sacrifice their children over themselves.  At least, most of the time.
The ring on his finger gave it away too.  A pledge to a woman.
"Yes." Larson's voice lowered like a growling animal.
"You want to see them again?"
Larson studied Maylorn, trying to see him for who he truly was.  Maylorn, unlike many, seemed to wear it on his shoulder.  Larson, without lack of trying, did not seem to find it.
"Your master cannot give them back to you.  No matter what you believe.  Tennet is not a prophet."
Larson chuckled.  "Do you really think I see him as one?  No.  I owe him a debt.  In my service, I have found a liking to his cause."
"And what, exactly, do you like about it?" Amrila seemed shaken, finally returning to the conversation.  She seemed more tense than before, understanding the cruelty of this man and the mages at work.
"The uncertainty.  The need to understand things we do not know from history.  We discover things previously unknown."
Amrila sighed.  "They are not unknown, Larson.  You may believe that way but these things have been done before.  Every time someone tries, they die.  These things can only be accomplished by the demons themselves, and dragons and spirits.  The fae are the only beholders of this magic.  We cannot take it for ourselves."
Larson smirked.  "But what of the Numen?  Rumor is, they can conjure this magic at will.  If they can, it is only a matter of time before he comes upon it, and teaches us how to use it."
Amrila glowered.  "But that would require him to follow your conquest.  Do you suppose he will catch up to you before all of you die of your trials?  I am aware you have already lost some followers to your work."
Larson's eyes seemed to strike through her, blades rising to battle.  "That just means progress.  Beginning to understand-"
"You are not beginning to understand anything.  That's how it goes.  All of you will eventually die.  Whether one by one or all together, that is your fate."
"I am to die either way.  Whether by your hand or my own.  As it seems, the latter is less likely now.  It is a shame.  I would have liked to see the demon rise to bring me back to my family."
"Your family will not meet you at the gate," Amrila replied.  "Do you not see it?  They were devoured, and will never see you again."
Larson sighed.  "You only believe that because you have not seen it yourself.  You have not seen what I have seen."
"And what have you seen?" Maylorn stared at Larson.  "What did you see when you stared death in the face."
"I saw another life.  One much different than this one.  One that shows the truth, rather than seeking it in a lifelong journey that ends in nothing but despair and questions unanswered."
"But that is what life is about.  Discovery of unknowns, but realizing our understanding is nothing but the surface.  Life does not need to be written for us, but by us.  Otherwise, what is life but endless suffering for nothing?"
Larson did not speak, thinking over Maylorn's words.  He seemed to understand Maylorn's deeper understanding.  How Larson failed his family already, and therefore even if he could see them again, they would not want to.  Betrayal at its best.
"They are going to the ruin of Elisier.  The last known place where the cultists made their stay.  They will be looking for information on how to proceed."
Amrila looked surprised.  "Elisier?  That was a high elf city.  Why would necromancers reside there?"
"The belief that the Star Knight was a high elf.  At least until more was discovered about the prophecy."
Maylorn gave the idea some thought.  Amrila looked just as confused.  "And now they believe it is a human.  A young princess nonetheless.  Why?"
"Do you know the Brightstar legacy?"
Maylorn shook his head.  "I am aware they have ruled Callmandonia since it was discovered.  But what would that have to do with anything?"
"Their crest.  It is eerily similar to the spells that hold demons.  Some of the greater summoning stars.  It has twelve points."
"The ruler of the high elves of Elisier have a similar crest.  But so does half a dozen noble houses in history.  So why the Brightstars?"
"One of the depictions show a woman knight.  A woman with fair hair.  Much like the entire Brightstar family."
"And from what I understand, the language directly translates to Brightstar." Amrila stated.  "So now that we have cleared that up, what's the difference between the scholars and the cultists after the princess?"
"We are not looking to make the prophecy come true.  At least, we are not going out of our way to set it in motion.  We are using it to enhance our knowledge of magic and its ancient connection to the worlds connected to our own."
"You mean the dark realm?  Why are you looking for it?"
"Not just the dark realm, but others as well.  And other worlds like ours.  Would you want to know why demons and spirits can easily shift from our plane of existence into their own?  And Oressai is a perfect example.  He is not from the dark realm, but some place unknown."
Maylorn glanced between the two of them, lost.  He could tell it was something the scholars had knowledge of, but he never heard the name before.
Amrila brushed off the notion, but it brought another thought to her mind.  "You are looking to find the realm of the gods then?"
Larson did not reply at first, considering.  "From what I understand, that is Tennet's final goal.  To find out why we exist.  He also understands he is unlikely to find it in his lifetime.  He wants to further understand what connects the worlds together, and how to move between them."
"And what about the prophecy makes him believe it is possible?"
Larson exhaled a long breath, his gaze hardened.  "You will have to ask him yourself.  I just want to see my family."
Maylorn knew Larson had enough.  Though they had not gotten all of the information they needed, they did get the general idea behind Tennet's sudden betrayal of the scholars and the connection with the prophecy.
Amrila seemed to understand Maylorn's thoughts and shifted to pick something up from the table.  A vial, but it was not the same powder as she used before.  Instead, the contents consisted of a clear, thick liquid.
"Is that what I think it is?" Larson shifted backwards.  "You are not going to kill me, are you?"
Amrila smirked.  "That would make things a lot easier.  I am surprised you know what this is.  But no, I am not going to kill you.  If you were educated on this particular elixir, you would know a diluted version would act more like a sedative.  This will knock you out for at least twelve hours."
Larson seemed to accept it, knowing it was too late for him to go back.  Amrila brought the vial to Larson's mouth and he drank some of it."
Amrila watched him quiet, becoming still as the sun began to shine brightly through the window.  It was nearly midday now, and they still had work to do.  Larson quickly shifted to one side, sliding down to the floor as he fell asleep, the sedative working.
"Was it your original plan to sedate him when you captured him?"
Amrila shook her head.  "There is an illusion spell that can make anyone do what you ask.  That was my original plan.  When I snuck into his room, I found the vials of powder in a bag beside the bed.  It was easy for me to grab them while he was still asleep and use it on him instead."
She held out a pouch.  Maylorn took it and looked at the contents.  There was half a dozen vials of the green powder.
"Each vial contains enough to kill two full grown men.  One vial can have at least twenty uses to it."
"Why would he have so much?" Maylorn looked up at her.
"That was not all of it either.  There were more empty vials then full ones.  My guess, he grabbed all of it to use as an escape.  He knew people would be after him that could use magic.  Strength and cunning is not always going to save you from magic."
"Did you find anything else in that room?"
Amrila shook her head.  "No.  Just a bag of clothes and a half-eaten meal.  That could be a good sign though.  It means we are close to the main group.  He probably thought he could catch up to them even with a delay."
"Could that also be a bad thing?  We are not prepared for it at present."
"I suppose.  I do not think they would be turning back any time soon.  Elisier is not the easiest place to get to.  There are cliffs surrounding it, and the path leading up to it has since gone to the earth."
"Do you still have eyes on the other group?"
Amrila nodded.  "They will be leaving the inn soon.  I think our best option is to capture them out in the open.  Preferably in the market where it is least expected."
"Why?"
"There are three of them against us.  If I cannot sedate them like I did Larson, then it will make our jobs more difficult.  It is easier to sneak a dose in crowded areas when their attention is elsewhere."
"Do you have a plan on how to sedate them?  I don't know if I trust myself with that powder."
"I should be able to knock them out if you can hover around and drag them out of the street until we figure out how to bring them back here."
"I might be able to carry one of them.  If they are small enough."
Amrila nodded. "With what Vespera showed me, you might be able to carry two of them.  The other I will have to limit sedation, possibly even just use a coercion spell.  So they can walk without assistance."
Maylorn looked up at her in surprise.  "Honestly, i would like to see that at work."
Amrila offered a knowing smile.  She stood, preparing for their next adventure of the day.  Maylorn followed her out the door.