Vankara (Book 1) (5 page)

“Yes and if you
could refrain from calling him that to his face, I would appreciate it, Inara. 
It will be hard enough to gain his cooperation without you taunting him.”

Inara shrugged her
shoulders indifferently.  “Whatever you say, Gabriel.  But if he does anything
to hurt Emma, I wouldn’t advise standing in my way.”

Inara bent down
and picked up a contraption I had never seen before.  She put her arms through
the leather straps and buckled the device to her back.  She stretched her
goggles over the brim of her cap and placed them over her eyes.

“Contrecto,” she
said.  Two ornate human like iron arms emerged from the bottom of her back pack
placing their palms up.  Inara placed her hands on the palms and entwined her
fingers with the mechanical ones.  The sound of bubbling water broke the
silence and a pair of wings made of wire and mesh fluttered out from the sides
of the pack.  Before I knew it, Inara Irondale shot up into the sky and flew to
a trapdoor located in the navigational compartment at the front of the ship.

“She doesn’t flower
her words,” I commented watching Inara maneuver her steam powered flight
through the air.

“No, subtlety
isn’t one of Inara’s virtues,” Gabriel agreed.

I had a hard time
keeping my eyes off of Inara before she flew into the navigational
compartment.  I had never encountered a woman who was so masculine and feminine
all at the same time.  I may not have been very interesting to her but she was
fascinating to me.

“Her last name
sounds familiar to me,” I said as Gabriel and I ascended the wooden steps to
the Queen’s compartment.  “Why do I think I’ve heard it before?”

“She’s Thaddeus
Irondale’s daughter and only child.  I think the poor man really wanted a boy
so he made Inara as close to one as you can get.  When he became Chief Prime
Minister, Inara was just a child.  She and Emma were basically raised together. 
They’re more like sisters really.”

“Why did she call
me a miracle worker?”

“We told her you
were a healer and the Queen’s best chance for survival.”

“So you’re not going
to tell her the truth?”

“No, the Queen
doesn’t think it would be a good idea.  Emma isn’t sure how well Inara would accept
our planned deception.  She isn’t one to give her friendship easily and she
could very well start to act out of character around the Queen if she knows the
truth.  It might cause people to start asking unwanted questions.  Emma doesn’t
think telling Inara is worth the risk.”

“But she’s the Queen’s
best friend,” I argued.  “It doesn’t seem right not to tell her.”

“Sometimes you
have to do things you don’t want to do in order to protect those you care about
most,” Gabriel told me.

Once we reached
the interior of the Queen’s compartment, Gabriel pushed a gold button near the
door frame and the stairs automatically folded in on themselves to form a seamless
door, sealing us off from the outside. 

Just as the
airship got underway, a faint moan came from the direction of the Queen’s private
chamber.  Gabriel quickly excused himself and went into her room.  Seconds
later he came back out and motioned for me to come in. 

A solitary candle
was lit on the nightstand beside the canopy bed in the room.  The Queen lay
sleeping underneath a maroon velvet comforter trimmed in gold rope with her
head and shoulders propped up in almost a sitting position by a pile of plump
pillows.  She wore a simple white nightgown with delicately gathered lace at
the collar and wrists.   She was a hollow form of the Queen I remembered
standing proudly on the balcony of the palace the day of her coronation.  Her
cheeks were sunken in and there were dark circles shadowing her eyes.  It
looked like she hadn’t eaten or drank one drop of water in days.  A fine sheen
of fever induced sweat glistened across her pale brow.  Her long dark hair was
braided and laid limply over her chest.

Gabriel walked to
the side of the bed and bent down to touch the Queen on the shoulder.

“Emma,” he said,
speaking in a slightly louder voice than normal to draw her attention.  “Emma,
Sarah is here.”

The mention of my
name seemed to help drag the Queen out of her plague induced sleep.

Her long sooty
lashes fluttered before revealing sparkling violet eyes.  She looked directly
at me in the ensuing silence.  I had no idea what she was thinking.  Perhaps
seeing me in the flesh made her doubt the plan she and Gabriel had concocted,
but if those were her thoughts she didn’t let them show.

She lifted an
emaciated hand towards me, a silent beckon for me to come closer to her.  I
walked to the side of the bed where Gabriel still stood and looked down at my dying
Queen.

She patted a spot
on the mattress beside her.

“Sit for a moment,
please” she requested in a raspy voice.

I sat down and
waited to see what would happen next.

“I assume you’ve
made your goodbyes and are ready to leave?”

“There were no
good byes to make,” I told her.  “The plague took my parents from me.  I’m
ready to serve you as you see fit.”

“I’m sorry for your
loss,” the Queen said.  “But I am glad you are willing to help us now.”

The Queen looked
up at Gabriel.

“Give me some time
alone with, Sarah,” she requested.

He bowed to her at
the waist.  “As you wish.”

After Gabriel left,
the Queen said, “Gabriel was concerned you wouldn’t agree to come with us.  I’m
pleased to see his fears were unfounded.  He’s always spoken very highly of
you,” the Queen continued.  “He’s kept track of you over the years to ensure
your well being.  Did you know that?”

I shook my head
not finding it hard to believe Gabriel had tried to protect me even from a
distance.

“I know he cares a
great deal for you,” she continued with all sincerity.  “He has a lot of faith
in you or he wouldn’t have suggested you take my place when I die.”

“Thank you for
having faith in me also, Your Majesty.” 

“I think we can
dispense with the formalities, Sarah,” she chided gently.  “Please, call me
Emma.”

“Yes, Your Maj…Emma.”

“I wish I had the
strength to tell you everything you need to know but the fact is I simply
don’t.”  She took a deep breath before continuing.  “So, I’m going to tell you
what I consider to be the most important things.  First off, my daughter,” the Queen
had to stop for a moment to compose herself.  Her hand fluttered to her chest
pressing gently.  I could well imagine the heartache she felt in having to
leave her only child behind in such an uncertain world.

Death was
absolute.  There was no coming back from it for one last kiss, one last hug.  I
knew that truth well, having experienced the death of my own family.

“She may be
young,” the Queen continued, “but she is head strong and stubborn to a fault. 
Don’t let her get away with anything just because she’s heir to the throne. 
There are far too many people around her now who indulge her every whim.  You
cannot be one of them.  It will be your responsibility to raise her to be a
good person and a great leader.  When the time comes, she will be Queen of
Vankara and she needs to be prepared for those responsibilities.  So teach her
right from wrong just like you would your own child.  This above all else is
the most important task you will have. Do you understand what I’m asking you to
do?”

“Yes, ma’am.  I
promise you I will do my best.”

“Now, the next thing
you need to know is the history of my relationship with a man named John
Fallon.  We’re on our way to the outpost where he’s been stationed the past
seven years.  He used to be my personal bodyguard before my father caught us in
bed together when I was young and foolish.”

I felt my eyes
widened involuntarily at the news of the Queen’s promiscuousness which brought
a faint smile to her thin face.

“Don’t look so
surprised,” she scolded, her eyes sparkling with laughter.  “It may be hard to
believe, but I was quite the temptress in my younger years.  Though my tryst
with John is something I deeply regret now.  My father over reacted at the time
and exiled John to the Iron Wall Outpost.  I can’t tell you how much I’ve
regretted what I did.  It cost me an excellent advisor and friend.”

“Why didn’t you
bring him back to Iron City when you became Queen?”

“I tried but he
wasn’t interested in coming back.  He said he couldn’t trust me and that he
didn’t trust himself around me.  I tried to apologize but he can be a stubborn,
selfish oaf when he wants to be.  So, I left him where he was.  I didn’t want
to cause him further humiliation just to satisfy my desire to have him back by
my side.”

“Why are we going
to see him now?”

“You’ll need him. 
He and Gabriel will be your strongest allies and counselors.  Gabriel knows how
to work the political scene in Iron City, and John has more common sense than
anyone I know.  He’s also a skilled strategist, so if there is ever a war he
will advise you in what needs to be done.”

The topic of war
brought me up short.  I hadn’t even considered that to be a possibility.  Well
over a hundred years had passed since Vankara was involved in a war.  It seemed
like an unfounded concern.

“You’re not
expecting us to go to war, are you?”

Queen Emma sighed
deeply.  “You can never tell what’s going to happen, Sarah.  Especially now
with a third plague killing so many people around the world.  I want to help
prepare you for any eventuality, no matter how distasteful it might be.  Almost
every other country has its eyes on Vankara.  Since we’re the only ones with an
automaton work force, they’re all jealous of us and how well we have been able
to weather the loss of people due to the plagues.”  She took a deep breath. 
“Now, you need to know a few things about ruling a country…”

The Queen and I
talked for what had to be almost half an hour before she became too tired to go
on.  She mostly spoke about the policies which were supposed to be voted on in
the next session of parliament which was to start in only a few days.  I
listened as intently as I could but some of it just didn’t make a great deal of
sense to me.  Apparently my confusion was plainly written on my face.

“Don’t worry too
much about the specifics.  I just want you to at least have a small
understanding of what’s going on in case someone asks you a question.  You’ll
have time to get used to things.  Gabriel and I have already decided to tell
people my sickness caused a lapse in my memory so everyone will just assume you
have temporarily forgotten certain details.  No one except Gabriel, and now
you, knows I have the plague.”

Queen Emma closed
her eyes for a moment.  I could tell she was losing what little strength she
had saved up to speak with me.  I thought I heard a faint wheeze to her breathing
but wasn’t completely sure.

“Maybe you should
rest for a while,” I suggested.

She nodded, barely
able to lift her eyelids to look at me.  “I think you’re right.  I need to save
some of my strength for my talk with John.  If I know him at all, I’m sure he
won’t make things easy for me.  Why don’t you go out and enjoy the scenery with
Gabriel?  He could use someone to talk to.  All I’ve done this trip is sleep.” 
She closed her eyes again, almost instantly falling back into what I hoped was
a peaceful slumber.

I stepped out of
her room and quietly shut the door behind me.  Gabriel was standing at the bank
of windows along the wall where the outer door was.  He turned towards me at
the sound of my entering the room with an unasked question on his face.

“She’s sleeping,”
I told him, coming to stand beside him.

“Good.” He gave a
small, satisfied nod and directed his gaze out the windows once more.  “She
needs all the rest she can get.”

We were silent for
a moment, the imminent death of our Queen troubling both our minds as we
watched the Outland’s desert terrain pass underneath us.

“How much longer
do you think she has?” I asked.

“Not long,” he
sighed.  “We’ll know the time is close when she starts to have trouble
breathing.”

As I looked out
the windows, something caught my eye in the far distance.  I could just make
out a thin unbroken line on the horizon.  It was the Iron Wall.

There were vankarans
who thought the wall should be taken down.  They felt it was a primitive
reminder of a less than civilized time in our history.  But neither the vankaran
government nor the fae seemed ready to bring down the physical barrier which
had divided us from one another for well over two hundred years.  Each side
seemed content to continue to live like the other didn’t exist.

I looked back at
Gabriel.  I could tell by the familiar knitting of his eyebrows he was worrying
over something.

“Do you think this
John Fallon will give us much trouble?” I asked.  “The Queen seems to think he
might not be willing to help.”

“It’s hard to say
what John’s reaction will be,” Gabriel admitted.  “I haven’t seen him since
Emma’s father sent him out here to this God forsaken hell hole.”

“Do you think
he’ll at least listen to what she has to say?”

Gabriel turned his
head towards me with a grim closed-lip grin on his face.  “He won’t have a
choice.”

The airship landed
just outside the outpost near the Iron Wall an hour later.  From years of
neglect, the outpost was rusty in spots and looked more like an abandoned
building than a station for the Queen’s guard.  It was too bad the mages from
the College of Magical Sciences didn’t cast the same spell on the outpost that
was on the wall itself. 

When the wall was
erected, both sides wanted to ensure it would stand solid over time and each
charged their most talented mages to come up with a spell which would make the
wall impervious to nature’s elements and man’s tampering.  The same spell was
cast on the palace in Iron City to keep it looking as new and shiny as the day
it was built.  From what I was told, the spell cost each mage involved all of
their power, taking away their magic forever.  It was a shame.  So many things
were made of iron and had to constantly be repaired in Vankara.  It was
fortunate there was a plentiful supply of the metal in our country.