Duty

Chapter 65 Trust

King Marcos tried hard to remain calm as he studied his lords that had gathered in the council room. He didn't like spying on his own council, but they had given him no other choice.
He had told king Darius to stay out of sight. If they wanted this to succeed, he needed to see his council's reaction without dragging Tirèze into this. He would inform his council of the attack on Boncini, but leave out the part Darius and Salvire had played. For once, king Marcos had given king Darius access to one of the spy holes to look into the council room. At least Darius Tirzé would keep an objective eye.

Taking a deep breath, king Marcos looked at his son and nodded once. Together they entered the room.

His council drew to attention. Before he had entered they had been leisurely talking amongst themselves while wondering about the reason for this sudden summon.

Matís was the first to voice the question. "Your Majesty, what is the reason for this unexpected gathering? We cannot leave our lands for long. There has been severe attacks at the Northern border recently."

King Marcos fixed his gaze on the man and slightly narrowed his eyes. "I'm sure you have capable commanders that are in charge of your troops. Surely your absence from home won't affect their duty too much."

Giano Matís gritted his teeth at the slight.

"Why are we here?" Quintus Strega asked.

"We are here," king Marcos said stiffly, "because it seems Balor managed to breach our defenses. An attack was made by Balor recently on Boncini near the East border."

Startled whispers went through the room and the lords exchanged glances of disbelieve.

"Boncini?" lord Strega spoke startled, "is the lady Vara alright? And lord Iason?"

The king looked around the council for a moment before answering. He tried hard to read the expressions of his lords, but it was difficult to determine what they were thinking. Who knew more than they let on? Who was slightly nervous? "They are alive," he said finally, deciding not to give more information for the time being.

More murmurs ensued.

"What we need to determine now is how they managed to slip past our borders," king Marcos continued, "they effectively blocked the roads to the South and West to cut Boncini off. We do not know how Balor managed to slip past our defenses or where."

Lord Quintus Strega frowned. "If they crossed that far inland, they must have been spotted at some point. They couldn't possibly have gained that much distance without drawing attention, no matter where they entered Zeir. Unless they came from Tirèze. They could have used the mountain trails."

Cyrus narrowed his eyes at the man. "You are quick to point fingers, lord Strega."

"What other explanation is there, prince Cyrus?" Quintus cast back, "you can't possibly think one of us escorted them there."

"We don't think anything," king Marcos interrupted, "perhaps they slipped by in small numbers, disguised themselves, or found weak spots in our defenses. Our priority now should be to find those weak spots. Has anyone seen or heard something suspicious the past few weeks? An increase of travelers? Strangers in the area? Anything out of the ordinary?"

It was silent for a moment in which the lords exchanged glances and shook their heads.

"My king," lord Horas spoke, "has the lady Vara said anything? My son told me she is quite observant. Perhaps Balor mentioned anything? Did she see where Balor came from?"

"No," king Marcos answered, "they came under the cover of night. They attacked our fortification as well. We lost many soldiers."

"Our soldiers are already defending the border," lord Vertus said, "even though we are closest to Boncini, we cannot spare the men."