Chapter Twenty Five: Of Thing's to Come

Dawn slowly rose over the island city of Callai and with its rise came the beginning of a new day for the elves who lived within sprawling spiderweb of Vermalia's greatest and oldest city.

The silence that had made the night was suddenly expelled by the voices of many, rising from their beds and beginning their new day. It wasn't long before the scents of the city floated up to to where she stood. The smell of jasmine and freshly made bread wafted to the Queen's nose as she stood on the balcony of her private quarters, overlooking the city.

Once upon a time the sight would have given her joy, but all she felt was an emptiness that begged to be filled. The last week had been hell for her. The discovery that the mask had been taken and that Xolumbrandir could soon follow was almost too much for her to take. She thought of Corus every night and she couldn't escape the uneasy feeling that she had sent the Knight Descendants to take care of a problem that they were neither prepared for, nor were capable of properly comprehending.

'It's fine, I sent Hilin with them. She's the best mage in my guard, she'll keep them safe.' Marwen thought uneasily as she brushed a strand of hair behind her ear and continued to watch the rising sun.

“Marwen? Are you out there again?” A voice came from within the glass doors leading into the main bedroom.

She didn't have to turn to realise it was Valant and a small smile appeared on her face as her keen ears picked up the familiar footfalls of her lover and King.

She felt his hand slide over her back and shivered under his touch.

'Corus never touched me like this'

As soon as the thought of her oldest friend jumped into her mind she gave her head a slight shake and closed her eyes, leaning into the touch and enjoying it. Valant already felt like he was playing second fiddle to Corus every time she mentioned him, even in passing. She needed to continually reassure him, even to this day, that the feelings she had felt for the human were gone. It was a lie. But a necessary one to prevent any problems between them.

While she did love Corus, and perhaps always would, she also loved the stoic warrior elf who had been her leaning post ever since the day she had killed the man. Together they had concocted the story that had protected them from the other Knight's, protected the world from a truth that it was not ready to hear.

Corus, the traitor.

It didn't have the same impact as Corus, King of the Rebel Court and master of the armies of the free.

“You've been coming out here every morning since they left, It's as if you expect Mahalis to return at any moment.” The King said jokingly as he removed his hand and leaned over stone barrier next to her, a smile appearing at the breathtaking sight of the vast city that was their capital.

Marwen shrugged her shoulders and moved her body so she was leaning against him slightly.

“Perhaps. I'm afraid that sending them to Ellai may have been a mistake. I know they had their escort but still... what if I have sent them up against something they won't be able to conquer.” Her voice trembled slightly as it reached the end of her sentence and she had to try hard to hold back tears.

She had served Corus and The Rebel Court faithfully for centuries and had seen more violence and bloodshed than she would have ever thought possible under his leadership. But still, the thought of losing Mahalis, her only child, filled her with more emotion that even the act of killing The Rebel King himself.

Valant nodded knowingly but didn't move to reply, instead they spent a few more moments basking in the glow of the risen sun.

“I believe that you made the right choice. It will do them some good to be together. You always told me that the battles, the trials and tribulations that The Knight's went through, made you all as close as family. I think that you're worrying over nothing and they will return with not a scratch on them. You wait. I can already see it.” He smiled and drew her closer to him, placing her lips against his in an attempt to banish the worry that was eating away at her heart.

Marwen returned the affection, but Valant's answer did nothing to soothe her. For some reason that she could not appropriately name, her worry gnawed at her like a wound in her chest.

“You're right, I should stop this. Besides, we have guests to greet in the throne room, I should be preparing myself for company, not shedding tears for my son who I know can take care of himself.” Marwen said and gave her husband another quick peck on the lips before moving into the bedroom, Valant following behind her as she put on her regal attire and selected some jewellery designed to stun those she graced with her presence into submission of their betters before she even opened her mouth.

“And who are we greeting today?” asked Valant as he fixed the royal blue coat he had decided to wear, continually pulling at the neck of the soft fabric in discomfort.

Marwen noticed the subtle pull as she fixed her earrings in the mirror and rolled her eyes. Despite his many years of being King of the Elves, Valant still much preferred the simple styling and armour of his life as a soldier in the Church.

“I don't know why I have to wear this stuff.” He grumbled as Marwen got to her feet and fixed his collar with a smile “It's not like I really do much as King, you're the one who knows what's she's doing, I'm just kind of...well... there.” He finished rather sheepishly as his wife finished up.

“You are King and Emperor of the Vermalia, my champion and hero of the Rebel Court. I wouldn't say that was you just being there, my love.” Marwen said her smile widening as she placed a kiss on his cheek and took a step back to admire her handiwork.

“To answer your first question I believe it is the ambassador for Paltos. He will no doubt be here to talk about Abhor again.” Marwen mused as she fixed the tail of Valant's tunic and wrapped her arm around his before they both began to head for the large doors that entered their private suite.

“Ah, that makes more sense then. Why is it that they never want to discuss matters of state but rail us to no end about the Old Wolf?” Valant asked curiously as he and his wife exited his apartment and greeted the five royal guards that awaited them.

Each of the guards were of the Royal Protectors, each one was chosen by Valant himself and vetted by thoroughly in combat and the arts of magic.. Each and every one of them were some of the greatest warriors on the continent and they took their jobs very seriously.

One of the guard stepped forwards, his chain-mail and leather armour clinking only slightly as he did so and laid a hand over the tree and sword symbol that was placed over the piece of cloth on his chest.

“Your Majesties, we'll be escorting you today, I hope each of you slept well.” This elf was directly under Hilin's command and one of her best lieutenants, hand picked by the captain to be the head of the royal family's personal retinue during her absence.

“Thank you, Malthas, we'll be heading straight for the throne room then to breakfast I think. Could you send a runner to prepare something for the King and I while we attend the Palton Ambassador .” Marwen replied politely.

“Of course my Queen, at once.” With but a twitch of a finger one of the guard broke off and made his way at a fast walk down the hall.“This way, please” He said as he bowed and indicated towards the opposite direction from the messenger.

We both indicated with our heads and began to make our way towards the throne room with our guards in tow.

“I don't even get to eat breakfast before listening to the old wolf kind drivel on. Perfect” Valant complained as they continued their journey.

Marwen gave out a laugh, a beautiful sound, that reverberated through the halls and made the King's heart quicken.

“I would have liked to eat breakfast before hand but the messenger who came earlier said that the matter was of the utmost urgency and I don't want to offend him.” Marwen replied as they made their way down the hall. The pure size of the citadel was truly something wondrous and it had been constructed with a labyrinth like design to confuse and bamboozle any enemies that actually managed to enter. Even Marwen had not seen the entire keep and she had spent over five hundred years living within it's halls. The path to the throne room would take them twenty minutes to traverse and that was at a light stroll. It was rather annoying having to move back and forth between various parts of the castle each day but it did give one time to collect one's thoughts before greeting an important guest. It also gave Valant and Marwen time to speak to one another as it was rarely easy for them to converse during a normal day. Their individual duties kept them separated much of the time so they relished the chance to converse when it appeared.

“I wonder what could be so important... what if Abhor has finally left that cave of his, perhaps he has finally decided to stop grieving for Corus and involve himself with the affairs of his country?” Valant asked.

Marwen sighed “I hope not. Paltos has become more united than ever since the church was destroyed and I believe that should he interfere, Abhor will want to once again throw the country into disarray. He did it before, until Corus managed to stop him.”

She remembered that day well. Marwen, Corus and their most recent addition Heilvol had been told that there was a clan chief in Paltos who was slowly killing off the other leaders of Palton tribes by challenging them to single combat. His plan was to use these new unified tribes to attack the surrounding countries and bring them under his direct control. Abhor had been a tyrant, merciless and intelligent. It was an accident that caused Corus to end up fighting Abhor, something so silly as to forget to offer food from a hunt to the clan chief. He had taken great offence, or had acted like he did, and forced Corus to battle him in single combat.

The battle had lasted for less than a minute.

“So what do you think?” Marwen was drawn out of her walk down memory lane by Valant's voice.

“Abhor is still grieving, I know he is. Corus was his Alpha and clan chief, the only person to defeat him in single combat besides Cinder. He may have left his cave despite this, who can know. I'm curious to find out.”

It took them only a few minutes longer after they finished their conversation before they arrived in the throne room. It's vastness, even as a child, had always taken her breath away. She had often sat and watched her father talk with the multitudes that passed through the doors each day with a smile on his face. She understood the burden he had carried all too well now.

The two monarchs took their customary seats on the uncomfortable perches atop the dais at one end of the huge room and, with a wave of her hand, Marwen indicated to the waiting herald at the far end to bring in the ambassador. The herald gave a deep bow before darting out of the room as fast as he could.

Moments later, the herald returned looking slightly harried.

“Your Majesties! May I present his lordship Jawa of Clan Coldue, ambassador of Paltos and kin of Knight Abhor, Lord of Beasts!”

Without further ado, a large man emerged from around the corner of the large doors and began to slow walk towards the dais.

Obviously of Alpha stock from the way he walked, Jawa of Clan Coldue was a large and grizzled man, his mouth seemingly fixed into a permanent grimace. He was wearing some kind of animal hide with a long snowy white cloak attached at his throat. The colour of the cape almost matched the almost bleached nature of his hair and long beard. Three scars ran down his cheek and he seemed to walk with a slight limp.

Jawa had been the Palton Ambassador for Vermalia even before Marwen's father had died, the old man had been a stoic advocate for the dissolution for the church which seemed to be the reason he had retained his position. Rumour had it he was Abhors uncle, but Marwen had never liked to pry. He had once been clan chief but after he had become ambassador Abhor had taken over as head of the largest Palton clan, Coldue.

Jawa gave a deep bow as he reached the steps of leading up to the thrones, showing respect for his superiors in both title and combat. “Your Majesties, thank you for receiving me so early and before you would officially accept audiences. I promise you that the information that I have is worth the wait.”

The monarchs stirred in their thrones “So what is so important your lordship? Forgive me, I have yet to break my fast and I get rather impatient when I'm hungry. Or so my wife tells me.” Valant said with a smirk, throwing a look at Marwen who did better and hid a smile behind her hand. Jawa of Clan Coldue did not smile.

“The information has to do with your fellow Knight and my kin, Abhor. We discovered a fortnight ago that he left his home at the Solace Mount and seemingly disappeared. His attendants, the many pilgrims who come to be near him daily, no one saw him leave”

Marwen raised an eyebrow. “That doesn't sound like Abhor. Were you able to locate him?”

Jawa nodded “Yes, my lady. He arrived at the camp of Clan Coldue several days after his disappearance, covered in blood and carrying several bodies with him.”

A rampage? No that's not Abhors way. He may be violent when the need arises but Abhor never killed for sport. It always had a purpose. Cinder held her hunts to drink and enjoy herself but to Abhor it was an almost religious activity that brought him closer to the beast gods.

“I'm going to assume he did not kill these people without cause?” Marwen asked carefully. If she said the wrong thing Jawa might assume she was saying that Abhor had killed them for nothing. A dangerous move considering the weight that Abhor carried in Paltos.

Jawa nodded again “You are correct, your majesty. It seems that Abhor caught the scent of some undesirables passing through Paltos. They were apparently mages, they wore religious iconography we didn't recognise but very little to put together a clear picture of who they were or their goals. They attacked Abhor on sight, forcing him to end their lives.”

Strange... religious types that bore no identifiable insignia? That immediately removed the idea of The Vitrissian Monks, they always wore the heavy chains that marked their order and were always without shoes.

“Are you sure they weren't from the order of the Vitrissian Monks? They are the only cult I know of to operate in the region?” Valant asked, unable to come to the same conclusion as fast as his wife did.

Jawa shook his head and grunted “We are fully aware of all movements of their filth on our soil. if they were monks Abhor would have left them alone. He didn't.”

Marwenna and Valant nodded throwing a look at each other before aiming their combined gaze towards the man slightly below them. Despite the stares he was receiving Jawa didn't flinch, he had faced many powerful beings in his day and it would take more than the two mages to make the man uneasy.

“So Abhor seeks our assistance?” Valant asked

Once again Jawa shook his head “I'm afraid not you, you Majesty. Lord Abhor wishes for the Knight Marwen to come to Paltos, he has sent similar requests to the other ambassadors of The Red Citadel and The Maelstrom Isles. He wishes for the remaining Knight's to gather. But for what purpose, I can only guess.”

Marwen felt herself become slightly uneasy. Abhor wishes for them to meet? Why? What has he discovered that could be so important? For a brief moment she contemplated the idea of him knowing the truth about Corus' death but immediately dismissed the idea. If he knew, the Old Wolf would have come to Callai himself and attempted to kill both her and Valant. While she was definitely more than the Wolf Knight's equal in magic, close combat was Abhors forte and his massive beast form gave him a huge advantage. It would not be an easy battle, even if Valant aided her.

“Did he say anything else?” Marwen asked curiously, shifting slightly on her throne as she leaned forwards.

“All Abhor would tell the messenger is that he had found some sort of manuscript that had left him... disturbed. He also said that one of the Cultists had been muttering a name before he died.”

“And this name was?”

Jawa cleared his throat “It appears that this man kept saying 'Samedus Exovan'.”

Suddenly, Marwen found herself unable to speak, the feeling of uneasiness increased a hundredfold and washed over her skin like a dirty rag cloth. Her vision seemed to lose colour as the world turned grey. She looked to her left and found that Valant was frozen in time, his face as still as a statues as his gaze was still fixed on Jawa, who was also frozen.

She knew this feeling.

She had felt it before.

She knew what came next.

“Ah! Marwenna! It's great to see you again....listen, we need to talk.”