Mantle: The Return of the Sha (18 page)

“Pike, I would like you to meet my friend, Dorian,” Lizabet said. “Dorian, this is Pike.”

Pike formed a beautiful toothless smile and, in that instant, Dorian knew that they would be friends.

****

At first, it had been a feeling of being turned inside out, or being enveloped in something that grew tighter each moment. That was Balki’s transformation, at least at first. The inflock had reached its full strength, and had proceeded to take control of him. It would not kill Balki—not really. Balki would be ever present, in complete control of his body—but not in control of things as he once had. He would no longer have authority over his decisions. He would believe that he did, but that was an illusion. The inflock was really in charge of things now. If Balki could have formed an untainted thought on the matter, he would have realized that the inflock had cloaked itself against
him
. The irony would not have been missed.

But he didn’t have untainted thoughts—not any longer. He did, however, have conscious reasoning, and on the few recent occasions when he had passed the Abbot girl in the corridors, once with her disgusting chicken, he had realized that he no longer fell ill when she approached. He still felt her presence before he would even see her, but she was no longer vile to him physically. He reasoned that the inflock’s power had grown to her equivalent, but it seemed to be more than that. He somehow knew that she was not aware of her own power. It was there, though. He had noticed her changing her course to walk a greater distance from him as she had passed in the halls. It had not appeared as though she realized that she was moving away from him, but it was clear to him that she was. Something inside of
her
knew of the thing inside of
him
.

Either way, he felt fortunate for her ignorance because he couldn’t be sure what the effects might be on his mission if she knew her own strength, which he suspected might be strong.

And soon, it would not matter. He knew the inflock’s plans now, and was in full agreement with the strategy as well as the outcome—if he were to be successful. If he agreed freely, or if he was being forced to agree by the inflock, he could not say. Under the inflock’s influence he didn’t have reason to ponder that aspect of his situation anyway. His mind was focused elsewhere—driven by another. If one were to imagine his mind as the V-shaped pattern of flying birds, the inflock would be in the lead, changing course and speed as it saw fit. Where Balki flew in that pattern, he did not know—because he was not instructed to consider it.

His instructions were clear to him now, though. He needed information from King Zander. That would be simple enough, but he would need the king alone, and recently that had become more and more difficult. Now, with all three of the kings of Mantle at Obengaard (not quite
all
of the kings, he would say), the king’s time alone was scarce.

Weddings are a time for relaxed celebration, where suspicion might be lent the bottle,
he thought.

The time of his own journey was near.

****

King Zander sat in his usual place at the Concord Block, opposite Kings Cergio and Ekkill. Normally the table would be surrounded by the judging eyes and quick tongues of his councillors, but not this day. Agreements would be reached on a strategy for defending against the Skites—or a strategy for offensive measures, depending on how the discussions went.

Although they might not be fully informed on the methods that their ancestors used in the last Mantle War, they did know their own capabilities and what would be expected. The Bores would provide the bulk of cavalry soldiers, along with horses. The Tongars would provide soldiers and ships to take positions in the Lost Waters, and near the Red Islands.

The Fories, being the only allied kingdom of Mantle with an abundance of magic, would provide the necessary charms to their collective arsenal. The Fories would offer up soldiers as well, but their numbers would be much smaller. And if one were to argue that the Fories’ contribution to the effort was minor, they would only need reminding that the Skite Kingdom would wage battle against them with the assistance of dark magic. The Fories would counter those measures.

Zander began, “Gentlemen, thank you for coming to Forris on such short notice. Now, where to begin…”

****

He began by telling them all he knew, as told by the Trees. However, when he came to the parts concerning the Crown of Forris—what it was, and its significance to the Skite king—he omitted it altogether. He would rather be certain of who had that knowledge, and saw no better way than keeping it to himself completely.

When he was done telling his story, King Ekkill told his. He had spoken with the Elder Bears, which had resulted in a very similar tale. He had spoken with the Bears only just before departing for Forris. When he learned of the nature of the Skite king’s skull and its presumed location, he personally made his way to the crypt of ice where it should have been found. Instead, he found the silver chest within the crypt, empty of its contents—stolen.

He told of a young squire who had begun to look ill before going missing completely. He now believed that this squire may have played host to one of the three inflocks, and was likely responsible for the burglary.

The situation at Tongar’s southern border, which lay against the Skite Kingdom, he had said, was similar to that of Forris. The Outlands had been creeping farther into Tongar lands, and it had been reported to him that they too, were seeing the Dark Weed.

They held their questions until they had all spoken, and in many ways, Cergio’s story was similar to that of Ekkill’s. He had consulted with the Centaurs just before leaving for Forris, and had been given a similar tale of past wars. But in Bore, the inflock had possessed the body of King Cergio’s minister of horses, one of the kingdom’s top posts and, as it were, one of Cergio’s closest advisers. The news of this hit Zander hard and immediately. His own kingdom now laid claim to the only remaining piece. He had known that, but it hadn’t become so obvious until now that the inflock could be plotting within anyone, including those closest to him.

Unlike the disappearance of the Tongar squire, Cergio had
known
where his minister of horses had gone. Soldiers at the Outland border had found the minister’s horse, dead from apparent exhaustion. It seemed clear that the minister had ridden the poor thing nonstop until it had finally perished, before abandoning the carcass to continue on foot. It had left them to wonder at the time how the minster could survive the trip himself, if his horse would die in such a way. Now, it became obvious that, with the inflock in control, the minister’s body would have endured as long as the inflock directed, regardless of the minister’s suffering.

There had been tracks reported as well, leading into the Outlands away from the minister’s dead horse. The guards had followed the tracks for a time until they neared patches of Dark Weed. Clearly, the grass had ignored the traveler, not recognizing it as an enemy, but instead as an ally of the Skites.

The Bores had encased the skull piece in a solid block of gold, and locked it in a secret opening beneath the Noble Statue that stood in their own throne room. Once the Centaurs had told Cergio of the skull, he immediately had the gold block pulled out from beneath the statue. It appeared in perfect condition, untouched by anyone for centuries.

King Cergio had not been convinced, however, and ordered the melting of the gold block. Once melted, it was clear that the skull had been taken, although he could not say how. He assumed at that moment that the skull had been
‘pulled’
out by use of dark magic, and nothing that he had been told since had led him to believe otherwise.

Now they only had Forris, with its piece of the skull left to consider.

“Majesties, we have each told what we know to be true. Now let us work to fix it together, openly,” Zander said.

“Aye,” Cergio said, “and let us fix this mess as friends—titles set aside among us, as they have no meaning.”

“Majesties all around, so we are,” Ekkill added.

“True, and as
friends
, you might tell us of the condition of the final skull piece, Zander,” Cergio said with a tone of seriousness. Clearly he had noticed the omission in Zander’s story.

Zander lowered his head briefly, then said, “Cergio, Ekkill, I would offer you this as assurance; we have no missing squires or ministers unaccounted for, and I am aware of the location of the skull. However, I cannot say for certain of its condition or safety, for I have not inspected it.”

Ekkill’s expression turned to one of shock. “How, in all the Fathers, can you not have inspected it?” he roared.

“Ekkill, the time has not been right. I do believe that the inflock is in our midst, and might only be hampered by a lack of information as to the skull’s whereabouts. I have not had opportunity to covertly inspect it without giving its location away.”

“So where is it?” Ekkill asked, bluntly.

“Sir, if I should speak that here, there would be three of us to keep watch over. As it is, I am the only one with that knowledge, and we would all be wise to keep it that way.”

Cergio understood the logic in Zander’s position, but Ekkill was showing signs of reluctance.

“Aye, perhaps Zander is right. The whereabouts of the skull should be kept with him alone,” Cergio said.

Ekkill, who sat silent for a moment, contemplating, finally yielded. “No, we should not be told, I admit.” He didn’t look pleased about being left out, but so long as Cergio was not told either, he would concede.

They talked openly then, about numbers of soldiers and ships, horses and weapons. Bore would provide regiments of one hundred fifty thousand men, while Forris would supply nearly half that amount. Ekkill was prepared to commit three thousand ships with armies that would sail the Domin Sea to the Lost Waters and Red Islands.

All of this was being planned with the hopes that none of it would become necessary. But Zander sensed something in the room, in their tone. None of them believed that a conflict could be avoided. Not really. They all knew that what they were doing at that moment was planning for war.

When they discussed the logistics of announcing the impending conflict to their subjects, they all agreed that it should be done at the same time, as to avoid the news from spilling over borders, causing rumors and misinformation to spread. They would make their announcements fourteen days from the day of Cergio and Ekkill’s departure, allowing enough time for them to return home.

In the meantime, Zander’s marriage to Bella would move forward as planned. Additional guards would be added to rotations at Obengaard, and Bannister Castle in particular. Zander was quick to add that an increase in guards would happen quietly, as not to arouse suspicion. He would invoke an oath of silence among his own councillors who had knowledge of the events, and suggested to Cergio and Ekkill that they each do the same.

When they were done, feeling as though they had prepared for what they could, Zander stood from the Concord Block and said, “My friends, we will push through as our ancestors before us pushed through. I beg each of you to employ scribes to make note of what we face and how we face it, so as not to force ignorance on the descendants of our children. When we are triumphant— and we
will
be triumphant—let us celebrate and mark our victory for all to remember.”

Queen

A WEDDING CELEBRATION in Forris could be a simple affair, or an elaborate one. In any case, the ceremony itself was considered a formality that was often very brief and quite boring. It was the party following the ceremony that would mark the occasion.

Although the ceremony for Bella and Zander’s wedding would not be brief by usual Forie standards, this would be no ordinary wedding. Bella would be named and crowned queen of Forris. Once the commitments had been spoken, Zander would place the Light Crown atop Bella’s head, the same crown that Zander’s own mother had worn, and his grandmother before her.

In that singular act, she would become queen.

Fories had been making their way to Obengaard over the past weeks, and with the rooms now becoming full, they had begun setting camps on the outer edges of the city. Not everyone would be able to attend the main celebrations at Bannister Castle, but the castle had arranged for various parties to take place in and around the city, so that all could revel.

With all of the excitement in the castle, Bella had recently found the Throne Room to be a private and quiet place where she could meditate in thought and ponder what was to come. It was almost always empty of people, but in the last few days, there had been guards standing inside the room. She had kindly asked them to stand outside the door, and they had obliged, clearly believing that the future queen was not a threat to whatever it was they were guarding. Of course, neither her, nor they, knew exactly why they were there to begin with. The only change had been the addition of the queen’s throne next to Zander’s. It stood hidden beneath a velvet drape of dark green, waiting for its queen. Although hidden beneath the velvet cloth, anyone could see that is was significantly smaller than that of the king. But it sat by his side all the same, and Bella often wondered about the other women who had taken that chair to support their husbands.

The prospect of all of it was daunting to her, but even now in the early-morning hours of her wedding day she found herself in that room with the two thrones. The sun had not yet risen, but the candles in the room had been left lit, likely for the workers to set up for the events of the day. She saw that white flowers by the thousands had been draped in large bunches over the windows.

Large ice sculptures had also been placed, six on each side. They were each identical and in the shape of single rain drops. Each drop contained at its center a deep color of blue that faded as it reached to the outer edges of the drops. They looked to Bella like flames that had been stripped of their orange fire.

For a moment she wondered why they had been placed so early, destined to melt. She then realized that they would have been charmed. Everything in the room would be as fresh and intact during the ceremony as it was at that very moment, before the sunrise. When
that
sun rose, it would shine down on her as both Bella Abbot of Terra—and then as Queen Bella of Forris.

****

The Throne Room was full, busting at its edges. It looked considerably different than it had just hours earlier, when Bella had taken to her thoughts there. Chairs had been added to create additional rows in front, near the thrones, for dignitaries, mayorgoverns, and the king’s councillors. There were empty chairs reserved for Lizabet and Jonattan once their ceremonial duties had been performed. The chairs were followed by rows of wooden benches, every grain of wood hidden beneath guests. There was an aisle leading from the back of the large room up to the throne stage.

Every village of Forris was being represented, it seemed, and there were others too. The Spiers, who did not typically attend celebrations at Obengaard, sent a rather large delegation, some sitting toward the front, with others taking benches toward the back of the room.

The fairies, while not appearing quite so organized as the others
(but they were, of course)
, fluttered in the large open space above the crowd, changing their positions in the air with swift clarity. Occasionally, one or two would rest gently on one of the three large iron candle cradles that hung from the ceiling over the vast room.

Kings Cergio and Ekkill had been provided thrones of their own, which sat empty on the dais just to the left of Zander’s. They were smaller than Zander’s throne, but larger than the throne that Bella would soon occupy.

Lizabet, who had been watching from around the corner of the entrance, waiting for her turn to enter, had noticed trumpeters—two on each side, who were now lifting their instruments. She mentally braced herself for the impending bursts of sound.

They let out only four blows of the trumpet, two long and two short. When they finished, the crowd quickly became quiet. The silence was so immediate and so complete, that only the very light flutter of the fairies’ wings and the moaning of the wood beneath the guests could be heard.

At that point, Arthur Steed came in from behind Lizabet and walked down the aisle, coming to a stop in front of the thrones and turning to face the crowd and the doors. At Obengaard, Arthur Steed was second in authority to King Zander and was often referred to as the “King’s Shadow.” As such, he would perform the ceremony—which was only to say that he would coordinate its proceedings. The king needed only to make his commitment known before witnesses, declaring Bella Abbot to be his wife. Bella, for her part, would only need to do the same in return. Zander’s placement of the Light Crown on Bella’s head would make her queen, followed by Arthur Steed’s declaration, which would acknowledge it.

At the top of his deep voice, Mr. Steed made his first announcement.

“His Majesty, King Cergio of Bore.”

With that, the crowd rose to their feet. King Cergio came from around the corner and proceeded through the doors. He walked up the aisle and took the throne farthest from Zander’s. Unknown to others, they had agreed among themselves that Cergio would take the far seat if he were to be announced first. This was meant to appease Ekkill, who would feel slighted at the notion of being announced second.

Once Cergio had taken his seat on the stage, Mr. Steed made his second announcement.

“His Majesty, King Ekkill of Tongar.”

Just as Cergio had, Ekkill proceeded to take his seat. The crowd remained silent, and the trumpeters repeated their four notes. Mr. Steed then made his third and final announcement.

“His Majesty, King Zander of Forris.”

Zander came from around the corner as the others had, but he stopped where Lizabet continued to peer into the Throne Room from around the door. Leaning down to her, he whispered into her ear, “Thank you, young Lizabet. You have saved me in every way.”

Lizabet looked at him with a bright smile. He stood straight again, and then walked through the double doors. The men in the audience bowed their heads, and the women curtsied as he passed down the aisle. When he reached the stage, he did not step up, but instead he shook Mr. Steed’s hand and took his place next to him.

It was Lizabet’s turn now. She nervously stepped out from behind the door and walked down the aisle, dropping handfuls of flowers of all colors on the floor as she went. When she reached the stage, in an unscripted gesture, she shook Mr. Steed’s hand as Zander had. Arthur Steed’s normally serious expression had visibly lightened a bit when Lizabet had curtsied just after the handshake. Zander noticed, and amusingly thought,
She’s gotten to Steed. Not even he can avoid the reflective nature of her smile.

Once Lizabet took her place across from Zander, Bella entered. She was escorted by her brother Jonattan, but Zander thought it was unlikely that anyone would notice his presence.

Bella’s dress was made from the whitest silk and lace that he had ever seen. The lace that lay over the silk had been covered in small silver butterflies. At first he had thought that the butterflies had been created from silver silk. But as she got closer, he could see that each of the wings had been made from solid silver, with each of the bodies represented by a single large diamond.

The collar of the dress was made up of white feathers the length of a forearm that jutted out, and then fell into a curve over her back, with Bella’s curls hanging just above them.

The crowd gasped at her magnificence. And she
was
magnificent, especially to those women in the crowd who, as young girls, had dreamed of being a princess or queen. She looked perfect in the role.

When she stepped up to Mr. Steed and Zander, Jonattan kissed her on the cheek and Bella then leaned down to kiss Lizabet as well. Both took their seats in the front row, and Mr. Steed began.

“Majesty,” he began, nodding at Zander.

Turning toward Cergio and Ekkill and then back to the crowd, he continued, “Majesties, delegates, and guests, we are here to bear witness to the commitment of His Majesty, King Zander, to Arabella Abbot of Terra.

“Will you bear witness to this commitment?” he finished. The crowd replied in unison, “Yes, be it so.”

Mr. Steed took a step back and Zander kneeled before Bella, taking her hands in his. Bella hadn’t expected this, and was nearly overcome with emotion. Zander looked up at her and said, “My dearest Bella, from the moment that my eyes met yours, I knew that you would change everything. By all of my Fathers, I commit to you as husband from here forward.”

It was short, as she had expected, but now it seemed as if the whole affair was moving at the speed of wind. She took a deep breath and stood motionless for what seemed to her like an eternity. Finally, with a tear forming at the corner of one eye, she knelt down so that she was face to face with Zander.

“My dear Zander, you have changed me for the better. You have opened my eyes to the world. I love you and commit to you as wife and queen.”

At that moment, still kneeling before each other, they kissed for the very first time as husband and wife.

When they stood up, a young boy approached with a wooden box and handed it to Mr. Steed. Mr. Steed held the box out in front of Zander while opening its lid, revealing the Light Crown. It was a petite silver crown laid over with diamonds. The spires of the crown were made with thin silver strips that rose up from the base to form swirls of diamonds.

The crowd gasped at the sight of it, which was to be expected, since only the older of the Fories would have ever seen the crown. After all, Forris had not had a queen since the time of Zander’s mother.

King Zander carefully lifted the crown from the box. He looked Bella in the eye and smiled as he placed the crown atop her head, then promptly kissed her.

Arthur Steed stepped forward and said in his bellowing voice, “Arabella Abbot, daughter of Emit and Abigail, you are here made Bella, Queen of Forris, wife of Zander—mother and daughter of Forris and her people.”

The audience, who had been silent to that point, erupted in cheers so loud that it startled Bella back to reality. In the intensity and joy of the ceremony, she had entirely forgotten that the crowd was even in the room.

At this point, flower petals began falling from directly above, and nearly every one of the guests looked up to the rafters of the room. Before their very eyes, the moisture in the air was coming together to form very thin ice in the shapes and sizes of rose petals, which then floated gently down to them. It was a spectacular scene conjured up by the watercalls.

Lizabet held out her hand, catching one of the petals. It was cold to the touch, but did not melt. She held it out in her palm and ran her finger over the surface of the ice, expecting it to turn to water. When she was sure that it would not melt, she dropped it to the floor where it instantly evaporated on contact, returning to the air of the room.

When the crowd quieted, Zander took Bella’s hand and led her down the aisle. They had not bowed to Bella when she had entered, but now the bows and curtsies of the guests would be meant for both of them.

****

When Bella and Zander stepped out onto the main balcony overlooking the courtyard, Bella’s breath was taken. There were Fories everywhere—the courtyard was filled, as well as the balconies and rooftops. A sea of people, she thought.

They stood for a moment, hands clasped and raised over their heads. The crowd had begun chanting “
Bella”
in unison. Zander took a step back and motioned with his hands as if presenting her to the people. The volume of the crowd rose, and when he kissed her, the sound of the cheers was deafening.

After the crowd had made their cheers, Zander motioned for Jonattan and Lizabet to join them. The crowd raised the level of their praise even higher. They knew who Lizabet was; not only was she the queen’s own sister, she was also the girl who had saved the king’s smile. Lizabet realized at that moment that she was loved before they even knew her…they all were.

****

The whole of the kingdom rejoiced. Every village and every rural outlying post reveled in the king’s marriage. They had a queen, the first that most had known, and the memory of a queen in Forris had faded for those who
could
remember Zander’s mother.

No party was greater, though, than those at Obengaard and Bannister Castle. Zander knew that they would likely be going to war soon, and he intended for the celebrations to be lavish. So when Arthur Steed had approached him with concerns of cost, and asked for authority to spend on this or that, Zander had finally stated simply, “My answer is ‘yes’ to every question. We will pinch coin for nothing.”