Heirs of the Enemy (61 page)

“How did I get here?”

“I carried you,” smiled Wylan. “You were sleeping and there was no need to awaken you. As to the actual route, that will remain a secret for now. Later it will be explained to you.”

“Sleeping?’ balked the prince. “Such a journey would take weeks or months, if it was even possible. You words make no sense.”

“There are many things that will make no sense to you right now, but in time, all will become clear. Are your clothes acceptable?”

“As if they were made for me.” The prince nodded as he walked away from the window and sat in a chair facing the blind man..

“They were,” grinned Wylan. “Anything you want will be delivered to you. The finest foods, wines, books, whatever you need.”

“But I am not to leave my room,” frowned the prince. “That makes this a prison despite your words.”

“You may leave your room whenever you want. There are balconies at each end of this level, and there is a small library available. You will eventually be given free reign to go wherever you want, but not until we are confident that no one will recognize you. Perhaps the use of another name might help.”

“I have been out of people’s thoughts for so many years that I doubt if anyone would associate my name with a prince of Spino. Perhaps my boyhood name of Sam would be sufficient?”

“Maybe,” shrugged Wylan. “That is not my decision to make. Later today, I will introduce you to Baron Stikman. He is the Prince of Korocca, and he has taken over the security of this level as his own responsibility. As soon as he feels that it is safe for you to venture out, you will be permitted to go wherever you want.”

“Why are the Koroccans getting involved in this? Are they allies of Alcea?”

“They are,” admitted Wylan. “I am not sure how familiar you are with what is going on in the world, but I will give you a short version. The Federation is intent on world domination. Alcea and the horse countries are the only places not already under the emperor’s heel. It is natural for us to become allies.”

“Making Spino your common enemy.” The prince nodded. “And I am supposed to believe that I am not a prisoner here?”

“Spino is not our enemy,” insisted Wylan. “Nor is Ertak, Aerta, or any other country of the Federation, with the exception of the Empire of Barouk. The emperor has merely extended his domain by spreading the Federation to other countries. Queen Samir may be able to enforce her laws in Spino, but do you truly think she has the ability to not join in a war if the emperor demands it?”

“My mother would freely join in a war if the spoils were rich enough,” scowled the prince. “She sees the throne of Spino as her rightful perch to swoop down and take whatever she wants from her subjects. It was her greed that drove me from the Royal Palace.”

“I agree that the countries of the Federation are ruled by despots, but my words were meant differently than how you understood them. Neither Alcea nor the horse countries have anything against the people of the Federation. They have all had the misfortune of being ruled by people who do not deserve to sit upon their thrones. If we have our way, that will change in the near future.”

“And that is where I come in?” asked the prince. “You are hoping to win me to your side so that I will revolt against my mother and seize the throne? You seek to use me the same way that Brother Nicholas did?”

Wylan sighed. “Nothing is that simple. If you were able to seize the throne right now, you would not live to see tomorrow. Emperor Jaar would crush you completely and then he would take his anger out on the people of Spino. While you hid in the monastery, Emperor Jaar has amassed an army of over three hundred thousand men. No single nation can stand against that. As the Prince of Spino, you command no armies, and you will not be expected to fight against the Federation. Your sole purpose for being here, Samuel, is to protect you.”

“Protect me for what?” the prince asked suspiciously.

“Protect you so that you will be available after the war to heal your nation. That is why I spent the time to get to know you. If you are going to mimic your mother in her ways of leading Spino, you are not worth saving, but I think you are quite different from her. Am I wrong?”

“You expect Alcea to win the coming war?”

Wylan sighed again. “To be truthful, I don’t know if we can win, but we are planning for the aftermath as if we can.”

“Then why are you looking for a future King of Spino?” frowned the prince. “Surely your king will appoint someone to rule the conquered nation.”

“Alcea does not seek to build an empire. We merely want to live in peace, but to do that, we have to destroy the Federation entirely. We also have to make sure that it does not rise again from the ashes of defeat. You are but one peg in a puzzle on the path to ensuring that Zara lives in peace in the future.”

Prince Samuel nodded. He walked back to the window and stared out at the sea and the snow.

“You are taking quite a gamble on me,” he said softly. “I could easily say that I would be a peaceful ruler and wait for your armies to return home to Alcea. What would then stop me from following in my mother’s footsteps?”

“Hopefully,” Wylan answered, “the people of Spino would stop you. Most of them live in misery now. Alcea will help you after the war to rebuild your nation so that your people can survive. I do not think they will be anxious for another war.”

“I suspect you are right where the people are concerned,” conceded the prince, “but you have major obstacles along your path to this utopia. Not the least of which is that my mother still lives, and I am not in the line of succession.”

“We plan to take care of both of those problems.”

“You plan to assassinate my mother?”

“We could probably assassinate your mother right now,” admitted Wylan, “but that would serve no purpose. One of your sisters would merely assume the throne, and they are no better than she is. Plus, it is far too early for you to take the throne. The time to dethrone your mother would be after the Federation commits its troops to Alcea, and I doubt that we will be able to get near her then. There is another plan afoot, however, that will accomplish the task. If it works, the leaders of the Federation will begin to kill each other, and that is one of the reasons why you are here in a place where they cannot get at you.”

For several minutes, a blanket of silence covered the room. Prince Samuel stared out the window, but his eyes were not focused on anything in particular. He reran Wylan’s words through his head trying to get a firm grasp of what was going on. Finally, he sighed loudly and Wylan rose to his feet.

“You have much to think about,” the Knight of Alcea said softly. “I will leave you in peace so that you are not disturbed. If you want something to eat, you merely need to ring for it.”

Prince Samuel did not reply as Wylan rose and made his way out of the suite. Wylan closed the door and moved along the corridor to Sidney’s suite. He knocked softly and the merchant opened the door and ushered him in.

“How is Prince Samuel doing?” Sidney asked as he closed the door.

“He is confused still,” Wylan replied as he and Sidney crossed the room and sat at the table with Queen Romani.

“And why wouldn’t he be confused?” the queen asked sympathetically. “You are asking a lot from that young man.”

“And the others,” agreed the merchant.

Wylan nodded and looked at Sidney. “Were you able to get a hold of Edmond?”

“Pixy just returned.” The merchant nodded. “I had expected Edmond to already be in Zinbar, but they hit heavy snows on the Zinbar Trail. The roads are impassable. He has had to abandon his wagons. He and his men are now trying to make it to Zinbar to seek refuge from the storm.”

“He abandoned his cargo?” asked Wylan.

“He had no cargo,” answered Sidney. “He dropped off a load in Olansk and was going to Zinbar to get a shipment for Giza. Most of the river is frozen so the normal ship traffic is nonexistent.”

“If he manages to get Prince Bultar to agree to come here,” frowned Wylan, “how will he get him here?”

“That is a good question,” replied the merchant. “I was assuming that they would ride to Ur and catch the monthly boat, but that is a foolish thought. I have remained inside for so long that I forget about the weather outside. I cannot remember the last time I had to abandon wagons in a snowstorm.”

“Maybe I should go to Zinbar,” suggested the Knight of Alcea. “I can take some unicorns with me and get the prince here through Tarashin. Does Edmond know about the dwarves?”

“He does not,” answered Sidney. “There has been no reason to give him such knowledge, but he would hold the secret close enough. I would not, however, let Prince Bultar in on it. The Candanarans are a moldable people. They will not actively get involved in the politics of the continent. They will merely side with whoever is in power. That is how they have always gotten along before, and I suspect that is how they plan to get along in the future.”

“Perhaps it is not necessary to include Candanar in our plan then,” mused the Knight of Alcea.

“Include them,” urged Queen Romani. “Candanar will side with the Federation until the Federation is no longer the dominant power. While they have no great army, they have enough troops at arms to be a thorn in our side, especially if they are to the rear of our army marching on Aerta. Bring Prince Bultar here.”

“I agree,” added Sidney. “Candanar controls the approaches to both passes through the Barrier. Take some unicorns and meet Edmond in Zinbar. I will look in on Prince Samuel for you.”

* * * *

The winds howled through the streets of Tagaret, blowing the snow into huge drifts that blocked the streets and alleyways. At the western gates of the city, a Red Sword sergeant stood in the tower with a scarf wrapped around his face, leaving only a slit for his eyes. He stared into the blinding blizzard and watched as the wind swept towards him. Like waves upon an ocean, the wind was blowing the drifts across the open fields towards the gates.

“Close the gates” he shouted.

“If we close them,” came a shouted reply, “we may not be able to open them again.”

And if they are left open, mused the sergeant, they would not be able to be closed. It was a rough call and one he was not prepared to make.

“Close the gates,” he shouted again, “but prop one open a bit so we can get outside. And send someone to inform General Gregor. I need to know how the general wants the gates left.”

The soldiers scrambled to obey the order. One man was chosen to report to the general, and he took off running, swerving to avoid the largest drifts and leaping over the smaller ones. When he reached the gates in the next wall, the situation was not much better. They also had chosen to prop one door open, and the soldier had to climb over a drift to get through the gates. Once through those gates, the situation changed a bit. The soldier found that he could use the buildings to block the wind. He took shelter for a moment in the lee of one building to catch his breath and then took off running again. While the buildings protected the soldier from the worst of the winds, he still had to cross a lot of streets to reach the Royal Palace, and each street crossing was akin to a howling wind tunnel. More than once the soldier was lifted off his feet and tossed into a snowdrift, but each time he rose and pushed on towards the palace. By the time he passed through the gates of the Royal Palace, the soldier was exhausted and nearly frozen. A Red Sword sergeant rushed to the gates to learn what the problem was. The runner reported the situation and then collapsed. The sergeant began shouting orders. Three Red Swords raced from the barracks to answer the sergeant’s call.

“Two of you get this man to the infirmary,” shouted the sergeant as he peered through the snowy sky towards the city streets. Unsure if he had seen another soldier making his way towards the palace, the sergeant turned to the third Red Sword who had reported from the barracks. “You get word to General Gregor that the gates need to be left either open or closed. Return with the answer as fast as you can.”

Lloyd Becker nodded and raced towards the palace. He entered the palace and made his way through the corridors to the office of General Gregor. When he arrived there, a door guard stopped him.

“I need to speak to the general immediately,” announced Lloyd Becker.

“He has not arrived at the palace yet today,” answered the guard as he looked at the snow covering Becker’s uniform, “and from the looks of you, I can see why he is late.”

“His orders are required for the city gates,” replied Lloyd Becker. “The guards need to know if they should be closed or not.”

“I can’t help you,” replied the guard. “Perhaps you should see the king.”

Becker smiled and nodded. He turned and walked away, feeling excited that his chance had finally arrived. As a new Red Sword, he was not permitted in the residential section of the palace, and the demonkin had been waiting for an excuse to wander those halls. The blizzard provided the excuse he had been waiting for. Becker climbed the stairs and headed for the king’s study. When he reached the residential section, two Red Swords stopped him.

“You are not authorized in this area. Are you lost?”

“No,” answered Lloyd. “I am supposed to be getting a decision on the city gates from General Gregor, but he has not arrived at the palace today. This blizzard is the worst we have ever had. The city gates will soon be stuck for days, and guards need to know whether they should be left open or closed. I need to see the king.”

The guards hesitated.

“Look,” Lloyd continued, “I don’t personally care about the gates. I am assigned to the palace grounds, but someone has to make the decision. If you will not allow me to see the king, at least carry the word to him yourself. With any luck, the king will give you the order to report to the city gates with the answer.”

The guards looked at the snow covering Lloyd’s uniform and the puddle forming around his feet. They looked at each questioningly. Eventually, one of the guards spoke to the other.

“You escort him to the study. He will leave his sword here with me.”

The other guard nodded as Lloyd drew his sword and placed it on the floor. The chosen guard escorted Lloyd through the residential section to the king’s study. Two more Red Sword guards stood outside the door.