The Catastrophe of the Emerald Queen (39 page)

The men still
hesitated and then one, a helmetless man raised his sword. “You
dogs think you can tell the King’s Daggers what to do?” he snarled
and hurled himself up the stairs. There was a twang and a crossbow
bolt buried itself in him. With a gurgle he was hurled back, his
body rolling down the steps with a crashing of armour until he
finally lay still at the bottom. 

“
Ye-es!!” Bue
exclaimed from his hidden spot in the main tower.

 
The
other soldiers looked at Mordalayn and then slowly, one by one lay
their swords gently on the steps and raised their hands in
surrender.

Chapter
40

The Alegrian soldiers came
forward with their swords brandished and rounded up the prisoners
and took them to the main landing, against the palace
wall. 

Mordalayn
turned to King James and motioned to the statues to release him.
They did and then, bowing in respect to the Caracalic, moved off
down the steps, making their way to their resting points on the
walls. Their positions scarred black from the shock wave. Without
hesitation they climbed back up and stood in their original
positions. Still and motionless, no sign could be seen that they
had ever moved. 

King James was still wearing
his sword and a soldier moved forward with his own weapon drawn and
took it. 

“
Kill me you
witch’s lapdog,” James snarled as Mordalayn stared at him, his gaze
as cold as winter rain. 

“
I would love
to,” Mordalayn replied quietly. “But I serve the Emerald Queen and
she set down rules that even I cannot break.”

 
James
snarled at him again and laughed, throwing his head back. “So put
me in one of your jails oh mighty nanny to the queen. If you cannot
kill me then you should know that no prison can hold
me.” 

Mordalayn
looked intently at him. “I cannot kill you without reason. You are
too dangerous to be set free” 

James then
smiled and said slowly and loudly. “I invoke right of single
combat.” 

There was a gasp from the
people around, including the captured Daggers. 

Mordalayn
stared at James and replied. “That will not change your status as a
prisoner, merely commute your execution to life in
jail.”

 
James
sneered. “If I have to spend my life in one of your stinking cells
I will smile every day knowing I put you in your grave.”

 
Mordalayn looked at him solemnly. “This is an ancient law of
our world. I will not break it. I accept your
challenge.” 

James laughed
again and cast his cloak to one side. “Very well, at least I will
have the satisfaction of seeing you die.”

 
Mordalayn drew his sword and glanced over to the soldiers.
They understood and ten men created a circle around the two
combatants. One threw a sword at James’ss feet. As Mordalayn walked
up and stood facing him the final soldier took up position. Five
others faced the captured men with their swords drawn and their
eyes full of anger.

Mordalayn
glanced over his shoulder to where he knew Bue was hidden. The boy
saw the look on the Caracalic’s face and lowered his
bow. 

James faced the Caracalic with
wary eyes, his contempt never leaving his face. He began to edge
around the inside of the circle of men, his blade held expertly
before him. 

“
You know I
am the best swordsman in Anghofio?” he taunted Mordalayn who stood
stock still and simply turned his head to watch James as he tried
to flank him. 

“
You talk too
much,” Mordalayn replied and with blinding speed he brought his
sword in an arc over his head to where King James stood. The man
parried the blow, the clash of steel loud in the otherwise silent
theatre of combat. He jerked with the impact, adjusted his footing
and then countered with a blinding side sweep. Mordalayn leapt back
and snarled, avoiding the blow with ease and then lunged forward.
James brought his own sword down and bent in the middle to avoid
the lunge that would have disembowelled him. He then struck again
and again, trying to drive Mordalayn back. The Caracalic simply
stood there and countered the ferocious blows and then stepped to
one side and brought his own sword round in an arc to James’s head.
He changed the angle at the last moment and James just managed to
leap clear as the hilt caught him in the face, the hard metal
gashing his forehead.

 
He
stood back, panting and glared at Mordalayn, touching the small
wound. Jared stared on awestruck and no one made a sound. The
circle of Alegrian soldiers remained implacable, watching the fight
emotionlessly. 

James drew
back his fingers and frowned. “It seems you have first blood,” he
said thinly. He then ran at the Caracalic and again tried to hammer
his sword down in blinding, unpredictable arcs of blurring motion.
Mordalayn simply dodged and weaved, both feet firmly on the ground
and then parried the final swing, bringing his foot up and kicking
James square in the stomach. With a whoosh of air he staggered back
and folded slightly, then threw up his sword to parry Mordalayn’s
renewed attack.

 
The men
broke apart again and circled each other. The wall of guards were
now looking less than impassive. One or two were looking concerned.
 

Mordalayn
launched himself at James again who span around as he came towards
him, then ducked down and aimed his sword at Mordalayn’s legs. The
Caracalic saw the movement in time and jumped clear. James had
anticipated his ruse being seen and simply brought his sword back
in an abrupt reversal as Mordalayn leapt over the flashing blade.
The Caracalic’s reflexes were still so good that he managed to
dodge that blow too, at least the full force of it. The blade
nicked his chest, the droplets of blood spattering into the
air.

 
The men
broke again, James was panting slightly. One of the guards made to
move forward but Mordalayn held up his hand again. “Hold! He’s
mine!” 

The man
stepped back, looking worried and stepped back into the protecting
circle. James glared at Mordalayn who ignored the blood seeping
down his shirt.  

“
You are good
Caracalic, I give you that. Maybe your forsaken queen wanted you
for more than your abilities as a wet nurse.”

 
Mordalayn snarled and launched himself at James again who
parried and the swords clashed. Both men struggled against each
other, the blades locked. “You should have joined us,” James hissed
through gritted teeth into the Caracalic’s face as they stared at
each other over their blades. “What use is a dream warrior without
a dreamer?” 

“
Loyalty is
something you know nothing of,” Mordalayn spat at him shoving James
back hard. He fell into one of the guards who pushed him back into
the centre. 

“
Clear the
circle,” Mordalayn shouted and the guards, after a moment’s
hesitation stepped clear. James smiled and wiped his forehead with
his sleeve. 

“
Well, well”
he said, spinning his sword over his hand and moving back into the
larger space now given to him. He ran at Mordalayn again and their
blades clashed, broke free and then rang out again. Steel upon
steel the blades fell and rose again, a lethal blur of metal. The
panting of James was now being joined by Mordalayn’s. Jared was
worried, he’d never seen the Caracalic look even remotely tired
before now. 

James jumped
back and lunged again at Mordalayn who stepped clear and drove his
elbow into James’s face. There was a crunch and James screeched and
broke clear. 

Mordalayn paused and stared
with expressionless eyes at the traitor. James recovered and spat
out the blood that had run into his mouth.

 “
Did
anyone ever tell you why you have no childhood?” he said and lunged
at Mordalayn who parried the blow again. He didn’t answer but
continued to edge around where James stood, looking for an
opening. 

“
Didn’t you
ever wonder?” James hissed at him gasping, his hair messy with
sweat, sticking to his face. 

Mordalayn
again hurled up his sword, the blade catching James’s blade. He
still didn’t answer but the flicker of anger and curiosity on his
face was all James needed.

 “
Ever
wondered why your life began when you were 14 summers old?” James
said, lunging again and Mordalayn this time simply stepped away.
The crowd watching were now spellbound, even the prisoners were
unable to look away. 

Mordalayn stopped circling and
held his sword in front of him, the blade pointing at the
sky. 

James grinned
and seeing that he had the Caracalic’s attention he said with
finality. “If you kill me you’ll never know.” 

There was a
long pause while everyone watched and then with a blood curdling
snarl Mordalayn swung viciously at James, his blade curving again
and again. James tried to parry but the fury of the blows was too
much for him. He was beaten back and with a thud his back hit the
chest-high wall overlooking the forests of Alegria.

 
He
raised his arm to parry Mordalayn’s blow, aimed for his head. With
a cry of pain the sword was wrenched from James’s hand. The blade
span as it arced out and down to the trees far below.

 
James
stared at Mordalayn not with a look of defeat but with triumph
etched on his face. He rested his arms on the wall and stared at
the victorious Caracalic through bloody, exhausted eyes.

 
Mordalayn stood in front of James. His rage was obvious to
all watching as he slowly raised his sword and placed the tip at
James’s throat.  

“
Go ahead,”
James whispered. “Break your precious Queen’s most sacred
law.” 

Mordalayn continued to glare at
the man, the sword tips not wavering in the slightest. 

Jared stepped forward.
“Mordalayn, don’t. If you kill him like this he’s won. Don’t you
see? That’s what he wants!” 

The cat face twitched as the
emotions churned inside him.

 “
Don’t
let him make you worse than he is,” Jared pleaded.

 
James
grinned at Mordalayn as he drew back the sword. “Do it,” he
said. 

Mordalayn’s eyes flashed and,
as if there were some titanic battle going on his soul, he quivered
slightly and then slowly lowered his weapon.  

James’s face
transformed once more from triumphant smirking to enraged
frustration.  

Mordalayn sheathed his sword
and looked at two of the guards standing silently watching.
 

“
Clap him in
irons and take him to the dungeons,” he snapped with finality and
turned his back on James who looked frantically from left to right
as the guards moved in towards him.

 
As the
two men reached out to grab his arms he snarled in frustration and
reached with incredible speed for the nearest man’s sword, still in
its sheath. He tugged the weapon free and lunged towards
Mordalayn’s unprotected back, a scream of rage bellowing from his
mouth, his teeth bared.

 
Jared
watched the scene as if in slow motion, powerless to do anything to
stop it. As the two guards lunged futilely after James he brought
the short sword down towards the Caracalic. Just when it seemed
Mordalayn was doomed, he span impossibly fast, and grabbed James’s
sword arm by the wrist and twisted down and backwards. The blade
sank to the hilt in James’s chest and then Mordalayn released his
grip and took James by the collar of his silk shirt, lifting him
off the ground so that they were face to face. He stared into
James’ss eyes as the man struggled weakly in his grip, his strength
fading.  

“
Sometimes,
you should be more scared of a man with his back to you,” he hissed
and then removing one hand he grabbed James by his leg, lifted him
over his head and hurled him over the wall, out and down into the
forests, far below. 

Mordalayn moved to the edge of
the wall and watched James fall until he was out of sight. Then he
slowly turned to the astonished onlookers. 

“
He is gone,”
he said. “Let us try to rebuild our city,” and moved past them all
and towards the great doors of the palace.

Chapter
41

James’s
battered and broken body lay at the foot of a tree. The branches
his fall had torn clear from it lay around him. He could feel no
pain but knew he must be dead. Far above him he could see the
castle of Alegria, the bridge where he had victoriously taken his
men visible above him and the spire of the largest tower rising
high above the wall. 

He heard a rustling and tried
to move his head but couldn’t. A creature made its way out of the
undergrowth and stood in front of him. It was baby blue in colour
and looked like a large rat with a small kangaroo’s face. It’s tail
was fat and long, tapering away to a fine point behind it. It’s
feet were too big for it and they had claws like a lizard. Its arms
were stubby and appeared useless. It stared at James, it’s big,
brown eyes looked peaceful and serene. James managed to find his
voice. 

“
Are you the
Gryphoid?” he asked. 

“
I am,” it
replied shuffling forward. 

“
I always
believed that you came when people died,” James replied. “I suppose
that counts for something.”