Chapter Four
Elek
My eyes burned as I scanned the documents that were sprawled all over my obsidian topped desk. There were new boys coming of age for their military service, men completing their required five years, and reassignments everywhere. Then there was the constant stream of eligible women to look through and ultimately reject. I raised a thumb and forefinger to pinch the bridge of my nose.
There were times I thought of hiring a secretary to read through the unclassified mail and documents to give me the gist of it all, but I could never bring myself to trust someone with the task.
The door to my chambers opened but I didn’t look up. Not only did I already know who it was, I wasn’t particularly interested in entertaining them when I had reports to read and file. Yet they fluttered on in, fuchsia hair and all.
“There’s my handsome nephew, I’ve been searching for you everywhere.”
“What do you want Huri?” I bit out, hoping they would say what they needed and leave.
Huri gave me a knowing smile and turned away from me, pausing as if seeing something I could not in the back of my room. Having them get to the point was like pulling out teeth and I wasn’t in the mood to hold them down to do it. Their teeth would regrow within a day anyhow, but it would be satisfying to hear the screaming, if I wasn’t already drowning under my paperwork. Huri turned back toward me and approached the desk, their youthful face turning solemn.
“I have it on good authority that Fort Khronos may be under siege very soon.” Huri said, their mouth forming into a grave line as they handed me an open letter.
I scanned the contents quickly. Those fae bastards. Furrowing my brow, I tossed the piece of paper into the roaring fire of my obsidian fireplace.
“Prepare Unit One. Tell them to meet me outside the barracks.” I ordered and Huri left without another word.
I looked around my chambers for a once over to be certain that there was nothing I required before leaving. It would be some time before I would return. My black canopy bed lay unmade, with the black comforter uncovering the crimson silk sheets underneath. I pulled it up in a half attempt to make the bed. I strode back towards my tall dark leather bound chair, my boots clicking on the smooth flagstone flooring, gazing up at my family crest against the purplish flagstone wall. It was going to be a long day.
Stifling a groan, I pulled my leather and fur lined coat off the back of my chair, a gift from the people of Alger after I slew the colossal bear that tormented them. The dark coat was made from the hide, after its meat had been dispersed to those in need. Shoving my arms through the sleeves I quickly vacated my room and made my way towards the barracks, a couple of buildings down from the castle.
My men were there waiting for me. Fifty of them standing in straight lines of ten were at the ready, swords sheathed at their sides and shields strapped to their arms. On the breasts of their leather armor was my insignia, two dragons on their hind legs and facing one another with swords. They were perfect and that was the only way I would have them be. Anything less than perfection would get us all killed.
This particular unit was unique compared to the others at my command. All of its members had at least one parent who was a dragon or they displayed abilities as close to full blooded dragons without being one.
“Fort Khronos is in need of assistance.” I began, raising my voice for them all to hear.
“Those fae pests like to believe they have a right to what is ours.” I continued, the corners of my mouth turned upwards.
“Let’s go show them that it’s out of the kindness of our hearts that we don’t move further south and wipe them out completely.”
Some of their expressions matched my own, others began to cheer.
Tossing my coat to the ground, certain that someone would return it to my rooms, I allowed for my scaled and bony black wings with their crimson membranes to unfurl from between my shoulder blades and through the carefully aligned slits in my shirt. The rest of them followed suit and soon wings of every color erupted from their bodies. I kicked off the ground and took to the skies, aiming myself towards our southern border. Strong winds brushed through me as I glided at the front.
This unit was the fastest in my arsenal. We would reach the fort in a little over an hour. It was a distance that would take many at least a day to walk. I scanned the ground before descending. Nothing was amiss, but that meant nothing. The fae were devious bastards who struck with near silence and would be long gone before you could bat an eyelash.
This would make the fourth attack this year alone on one of my forts at the border. Although old Oberron insisted that the attacking fairies were bandits and had no allegiance to him, I knew better. He took joy in reminding us that they were always nipping at our heels, just as I enjoyed reminding him that he couldn’t reach any higher than my heels.
As we sailed through turbulent winds, I surveyed the lands below us. Occasionally we passed a small village. Many people stopped and waved up at us, some even cheered knowing why we were passing through. Most of the land held little for vegetation and only an occasional source of fresh water. I suppose to a foreigner we would appear a desolate and impoverished nation, especially compared to our neighbors who enjoyed showing off their lavish lifestyles. But their people were hidden by dense forests and there were tales of sacrifices to keep whole villages alive. There was a hierarchy in their land that I didn’t care to understand. A king should not allow for their subjects to kill one another if they fear running out of food.
That was not something that happened in Demarcus. At least all of our people had food in their bellies and the only sacrifice asked of them was for the men to finish their five year obligation to the military. Of course, should a soldier stay longer they were rewarded handsomely.
A massive dark structure loomed in the distance. The rectangular, purplish wide-stone building itself was four floors high and stretched widely, covering the distance of a large lake. Then there were the defensive walls that stretched even further with sentries lined on top.
Small windows lined the walls, allowing for archers to aim with little risk to their bodies. Others were used for small cannons. The fort had a capacity of two-hundred soldiers, with a massive courtyard in the center of the structure to act as their training grounds. Most slept on the north side and patrolled the south side.
I lifted my right hand to signal our descent towards the walls. As my boots touched the stone I looked over the edge of the wall, peering towards the dense forest line. Below the wall was a wide river with rapids so brash that even some of my strongest warriors found swimming across it a challenge. It helped that most of the soldiers at the fort had the fortunate genetic ability to sprout wings.
A broad man in his forties, Nolan I believe, walked towards me and bowed lowly. His chain mail clanked as he rose, his eerie red eyes holding mine. His gloved hand came up to scratch the reddish stubble of his chin.
“We are honored you have come, Your Highness. I’m afraid there have been signs of restlessness these past few days.” He said and pointed towards the edge of the forest.
“I can sense it, sire. They have enlisted beasts now.”
I merely nodded at him, and kept my gaze on the tree lines. There was certainly something ominous about them. Usually, even in the midst of pure chaos, birds would flutter by and the leaves rustled with the softest hint of a breeze. However now, there were no chirps, no fluttering, and the leaves remained unwavering, as if frozen. Something was certainly not right.
“Tonight I will accompany your patrol unit. I want to get a closer look over the forest.” I said.
I turned before he could answer, and walked towards the door to inspect the keep. As I reached the door I paused,the iron handle in my grasp.
“Call for a meeting in the courtyard in two hours. I want to do a thorough inspection.”
My room was the same as I left it the last time I came to defend the keep. It was a near replica of the one in Maleko, only with fewer windows. Most of the rooms I occupied were like that, whether it be in a fort or one of the cities. It made it easier to wash up and pick out clothing.
I pulled the tie from my hair, allowing it to hang towards my shoulders. From there I retreated to my washroom. I didn’t tolerate my soldiers to have improper hygiene and I held myself to the same standard. A lack of cleanliness caused unnecessary issues such as illness and infections. Using unscented cleansers I made quick work of it.
Hair back up and my Demarian leathers on I left the room and began the inspection.
The men all seemed well fed, none were ill, and whatever small abrasions were on the stones seemed to be holding up decently with the plaster sent in from our forges up north.
The mess hall was clean enough. That was one thing I could count on from my men. They weren’t slobs. No crumbs meant no rats, and no rats meant that diseases stayed on the outside.
Ornate swords and shields bearing my insignia hung on the walls. A roaring fire crackled in a large stone fireplace against the wall, allowing for sufficient light where the lack of windows did not. Long wooden tables stood end to end with benches to host the large number of occupants.
Even the kitchen was well stocked and the food organized and stored properly. A tall fire licked the underside of a cauldron warming some stew, most likely boar meat, as that was the most plentiful in the area. Ovens in the walls baked fresh breads and along the other wall were large wooden barrels filled with beer and pickled produce. Fresh was hard to come by.
Returning to the mess hall I caught a small group of four sitting at one of the long wooden tables, silver bowls of stew before them. As I approached they were quick to their feet to bow, I swiftly waved my hand to dismiss the gesture and they quickly returned to their lunch. I sat down far enough away to not distract them from eating but close enough to make conversation.
“Tell me about the occurrences as of late.” I ordered, although I partially hoped my tone wasn’t too forceful. These men did not know me well enough to not take offense to my directness.
A young man, no older than sixteen, cast me a weary glance with his light brown eyes. He must have volunteered rather than wait for the age of eighteen to meet his requirement in the military. I respected that.
“There have been whispers of draugrs and wraiths, Your Highness. They say that the souls of starved fairies and elves have come back from the Void and are venturing through the woods. As for the draugr, it’s said to be the tortured souls of our men out there, seeking flesh.” The boy spoke in a northern accent, similar to my father’s. I did my best to not have an accent, I found them uncivilized.
If that was what we faced, it was going to be a complicated feat. Wraiths attacked at night and were near invisible because of it. Draugr, being our own fallen brethren, had the possibility of retaining some, if not all, their abilities from life. They tended to have everything but their memories or senses. There was a probability of facing some with wings or abilities to cast fire. What an odd combination though, seeing as how wraiths could be killed with fire. Strong fire, but fire nonetheless.
I simply nodded my head.
“Any other whispers?” I asked, looking in turn to each of the four men.
A man closer in age to me cleared his throat, raking a hand through his sandy hair.
“It is also said that the wraiths and draugr are not completely out of control. They say some powerful fae is pulling at the reins, a noble one who can raise the dead.”
“A necromancer?” I raised an eyebrow as the man nodded. That was a rare ability. However, if anyone were to be able to do such a thing it would be someone from Silvania.
The courtyard was packed with all two hundred soldiers plus the fifty I flew in with me. Nolan set up a wooden platform for my use to address the men. Wooden training dummies and hay filled round targets littered the yard, along with racks of swords, bows, and arrows against the stone walls.
“I will be leading the patrol tonight with ten others. The patrol will be for a total of three hours, unless we are forced to return early. Later we will increase to two groups, patrol for two hours, and then bump it up to three groups for two hours. Should any group be confronted, send up a signal and you will receive backup. We will do this nightly until the threat to our land is eliminated.” With that I left the platform to return to Nolan.
“Have your strongest fliers ready by eight this evening. Make sure they have all had a good meal before we leave.” I didn’t wait for his acknowledgment before I retreated up to the top of the wall.
