Mindbender (10 page)

Alexander smiled pleasantly at the man and opened his cloak to reveal the hilt of the Thinblade. “Make an exception,” he said.

The guards stared at the Thinblade but remained silent.

Conner put his hand on the shoulder of the man barring Alexander’s path. “He may pass with his sword,” Conner said, “by my command.”

“As you wish, My Prince, by your command,” the guard said as he stepped back and allowed Alexander to pass with a respectful nod.

The interior of the assembly hall was constructed like a circular amphitheatre with a single podium standing on a raised marble platform in the center. Radiating away from the floor were levels of circular balconies that rose toward the domed ceiling. Light was provided by hundreds of windows cut into the dome and paned with fine, faceted crystal that caught the light and diffused it into the chamber.

The balconies were filled with men and women of rank. On either side of the room on the lowest balcony was an extended platform that jutted out over the floor below by ten feet or so. Each of these platforms held an oversized chair.

Conner stopped at the threshold of the floor and waited while the man at the podium spoke about the need to respect the autonomy of each province.

“The man to the right,” Conner said quietly as he motioned to the man sitting on the platform, “is my father, King Abel Ithilian.”

King Abel looked distracted as he watched the man at the podium speak.

“To my left is the Chancellor of the Assembly, my uncle Cassius Ithilian,” Conner said. “He’s the political leader of our nation. He’s responsible for enforcing our laws and guiding the course of the assembly, while my father is responsible for commanding the army and presiding over the courts to ensure that the Old Law remains supreme over all other laws.”

The man at the podium noticed Conner and Alexander and stopped his speech. “Delegates, Chancellor, Your Majesty, I yield the floor to Prince Conner.” With a bow he withdrew to an alcove near the exit on the other side of the chamber.

With a look, Alexander commanded Jataan and Jack to remain where they stood while he followed Conner to the podium.

“Father, Uncle Cassius, Delegates, I come with urgent news of great importance to our people and to the people of the Seven Isles,” Conner said with a kind of practiced ease that only comes from experience in public speaking. “Four days ago the Reishi Gate came to life and a small party came through.”

There was a murmuring among the delegates as they discussed the unprecedented news. The Chancellor gaveled the chamber back into attentive silence.

“Please continue, Conner,” he said.

Conner nodded respectfully to his uncle before continuing. “After speaking with our guest, I determined that we must travel here immediately so that the assembly can hear his message. It is my privilege and honor to present Lord Alexander Reishi, the Seventh Sovereign of the Seven Isles.”

Conner stepped aside and Alexander stepped up to the podium. The silence within the room was palpable. The shock and disbelief Alexander saw as he evaluated the colors of the delegates was only overshadowed by their fear. He surveyed the room calmly and took note of the muddy and dark colors of Cassius Ithilian, the Chancellor.

His gaze settled on Abel Ithilian, the King. He was a man of courage and conviction. He watched Alexander with inquisitive eyes that seemed to see right through him. Alexander wondered if he wasn’t the only one in the room with magical sight. He nodded to Abel deferentially and then drew the Sovereign Stone from under his tunic. The softly glowing large red stone came to rest on his chest and the chamber gasped collectively.

“I am Alexander Reishi and I am at war with Prince Phane,” he said clearly. The chamber carried his words to every corner. “I serve the Old Law. Phane serves only his own ambition. I have come to offer Ithilian an alliance.”

Alexander stopped and waited. A moment later the chamber erupted into debate. He ignored the delegates and focused on Abel. He was an older man, probably in his midfifties. His short dark hair was greying around the edges. His slate-grey eyes conveyed intelligence and piercing insight. His hand rested lightly on the hilt of his Thinblade. He didn’t react to the announcement but seemed to be waiting for others to raise the inevitable questions.

The Chancellor obliged by gaveling the chamber into silence. “You must understand how fantastic such a claim sounds. Can you offer us any proof of your statements?” He seemed smug. Alexander could see in his colors that he didn’t believe a word Alexander had said.

“Of course,” Alexander said without any ire. “You are wise to seek the truth before passing judgment. I will need the assistance of King Abel to offer the proof you require.”

Again the chamber erupted into murmuring.

The Chancellor gaveled the chamber silent again and spoke before Abel could respond. “I simply cannot permit such a thing. For all we know you are a very creative and well-spoken assassin come to murder our King. With the grave events that have recently come to light, we must err on the side of caution. I move that we take this man and his companions into custody until we can ascertain the truth of his claims. If he speaks the truth, I’m certain he will be gracious enough to forgive us our precautions.”

The chamber responded with a chorus of “ayes” as the delegates concurred with the Chancellor’s motion. A moment later the far door opened and twenty men wearing plate armor and armed with spears, large round shields and short swords flooded into the room. They fanned out in a semicircle and began to advance toward Alexander. With his all around sight, Alexander saw Jack flicker out of sight. Jataan was suddenly standing at his side with his hands casually clasped behind his back.

Conner stepped in front of Alexander and faced the advancing soldiers. “Hold!” he commanded. They stopped in place. Conner turned to his father. “I gave him my word as Prince of Ithilian that he would be welcomed as a guest in our home. Will you allow this assembly to dishonor our House?”

Abel smiled slightly before he stood and made his way down the staircase from his platform to the floor. Alexander surveyed the room with his all around sight and saw that the Chancellor was furious that the King had allowed Conner to countermand his order. He wondered idly at the political dynamic in this place. It was clear that every member of the assembly was ambitious and many were corrupt but no more so than any other collection of nobles he had encountered.

Abel strode up to Alexander and nodded politely to him. “You’ve made a bold claim. How may I prove your truthfulness?”

Alexander smiled in return. “Stab me with your Thinblade.”

The assembly gasped. Jataan took a step forward. All eyes were on Alexander. He placed a hand on Jataan’s shoulder and shook his head slightly to stay the battle mage, then he stepped forward and stood with his hands held open and palms up at his sides.

“Draw your sword and stab me,” Alexander commanded.

“You are unarmed and pose no threat to me,” Abel said. “To do such a thing would violate every principle I hold dear.”

“I know and I’m glad of that,” Alexander said. “I make this demand only because I cannot be harmed by any of the Thinblades and quite honestly, you are the only man here that I need to convince.”

Abel hesitated and then shook his head. Alexander sighed and tossed his cloak back to reveal the hilt of his Thinblade and then drew. With a fluid movement quicker than anyone could react to, he swept his blade around and sliced a chunk the size of a man’s head off the marble podium. It slipped to the ground and broke into several pieces. The crash reverberated around the sudden silence in the great chamber. Alexander held up his bare arm for all to see and brought the Thinblade down forcefully against his forearm. It bounced away without even touching. The room gasped.

Abel gave him a strange look. “I believed that all of the Thinblades were lost except mine,” he said.

“Three remain,” Alexander said as he returned his sword to its scabbard. “A week ago, I was the King of Ruatha. When I recovered the Sovereign Stone, I discovered that the Reishi are descended from the House of Ruatha and so I am heir to both Houses.” He fixed Abel with a firm look. “Draw your sword and push it through my hand,” he commanded as he held up his left hand.

Abel dismissed the soldiers arrayed around the room with a gesture, then turned to Alexander. He considered for a long moment before he drew his Thinblade. It was identical to Alexander’s in every way save the bond to his bloodline. He gently and carefully raised the point to Alexander’s palm and slowly pushed against it. The blade stopped like a steel blade against stone. Alexander reached out and slapped the edge of the blade, but it didn’t cut him. He held up his hand to the assembly for all to see.

The room fell dead silent until a delegate stepped forward. “Even if we accept that you are heir to the Reishi line and have found and bonded with the Sovereign Stone, we have no reason to accept your rule.”

Alexander smiled and stepped up to the now damaged podium. “I have not come to demand your fealty. I have come as a servant of the Old Law in the hopes that the people of Ithilian serve the same master as I.”

Another delegate stepped forward. “The Reishi were the cause of the war. Your bloodline brought darkness to the world for two hundred years. Why should we trust you to serve the Old Law when the last Reishi Sovereign betrayed it so completely?”

Alexander turned to the delegate and nodded deferentially. “It is true that Malachi Reishi betrayed the Seven Isles and enlisted the aid of the netherworld through the dark magic of necromancy. It is equally true that his son Phane has followed the same path of personal ambition and power lust as his father. For two hundred years, they waged war on the innocent people of the Seven Isles and they deserve your contempt for that. It is also true that the Reishi presided over eighteen centuries of peace, prosperity, and advancement like nothing ever seen before or since. If you wish to judge the Reishi honestly, then you must take into account both the accomplishments and the crimes of the entire Reishi Empire.”

Yet another delegate stepped forward to speak. “We have no wish for war. If we choose neutrality, will you honor our choice?”

“I will, but Phane will not,” Alexander said. “He will never stop until all who draw breath serve him. You will not be spared this war. The only question you have to answer is this: Will you ride out and meet the enemy or will you cower in your beds until the enemy sets fire to your homes?”

Another delegate from across the chamber spoke. “His words are true. We’ve already received Phane’s demands. When we refused, he abducted Princess Evelyn and demanded that we acknowledge the secession of Grafton Province.”

Alexander looked to Abel. “Is this true?”

Abel nodded with his jaw clenched. Conner took a step toward his father and they shared a look of fear and loss.

“We were discussing our options when you arrived,” Abel said. “Evelyn was taken two nights ago. Yesterday we received a message that she would be held in Grafton as insurance against an invasion. I have reports that Grafton is being reinforced from the sea by armies from Karth and Andalia.”

“Phane controls Karth outright and the House of Andalia has sworn allegiance to him,” Alexander said. “Andalian Lancers are in control of the southernmost territory of Ruatha, and an army of ten legions moved through the Reishi Gate from Karth to Ruatha five days ago.”

“It would seem that Phane is moving much more quickly than we expected,” Abel said. “Perhaps his impatience will be his undoing. His resources can’t be unlimited. He may be overextending himself.”

“We can hope,” Alexander said, “but I doubt it. His army on Karth is vast, and Andalia has long ruled by force. I’m afraid that our enemies have more soldiers than we do and there are other concerns as well. Phane is not the only threat.”

The delegates were listening with rapt attention to the discussion. Alexander realized that there were some details he wasn’t ready to share with the general public. He knew that the delegates were probably loyal to Ithilian but they were nobles, so they really couldn’t be trusted with information of great importance.

“What other threats do you speak of?” Abel asked.

Alexander took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Zuhl has invaded Fellenden with a massive army. I don’t know his purpose but I doubt it will help us.”

Abel thought about it for a moment and then looked around like he suddenly remembered he was standing in the assembly hall. “We have much to discuss. I would be honored if you would join me at my table this evening. Perhaps a meal will lessen the weight of our burden somewhat.” He turned to his brother. “Cassius, I would welcome your presence as well.”

With that, they left the assembly hall, surrounded by a royal guard of twenty well-trained and well-equipped soldiers. It was a short walk to the keep. Abel spoke of his city and the style of architecture used in its construction. It was clear that he wanted to wait until they were safely within the walls of the family keep before speaking of anything of importance.

Chapter 8