Richard Tuttle - Sapphire of the Fairies

“That sounds pretty good,”Tedi admitted, “but will the King even see you?”

“If he is really Lord of theManor in Cidal,” Tanya speculated, “the King probably will see him.Do you know anybody there that the King might know?”

“Just before we left town, Iwas in a meeting with Captain Grecho, head of the Cidal MercenaryCompany. The King may have heard of him,” hoped Fredrik.

“I heard about them today inthe same conversation,” Tedi exclaimed. “They are known here inMelbin and have a good reputation.”

“Well, Lord Wason,” bowedArik, “it would appear that you are about to see the King ofMelbin.”

Fredrik straightened out his clothesand headed for the Royal Palace, which was an imposing mansion inthe heart of the city. The Palace itself was set back quite a bitfrom the road and Fredrik feared he would look foolish walking infrom the street. He turned around and headed towards a carriagehouse he had seen earlier in the day. For twenty crowns, he renteda large, ornate carriage for the trip to the RoyalPalace.

The carriage pulled up to the gate tothe Royal Palace and the driver announced Lord Wason of the CidalManor having just arrived in the city to seek audience with theKing. The guard looked inside the carriage and nodded. A runner wassent to the Palace and he returned several minutes later with amessage. The guard opened the massive gate and waved the carriagethrough.

The carriage rode up to the front ofthe Royal Palace and stopped. A Palace servant dressed entirely inwhite, except for an orange and black sash, opened the carriagedoor. Fredrik stepped out as proudly as he could. The servantclosed the carriage door and then led Fredrik inside. The Palacewas fairly new and very well decorated. The entry was large andspacious and sported large plants to give the room an outdoorfeeling. Paintings lined the walls of the tiled corridors and thedoors were made from excellently carved woods with goldscrollwork.

The throne room was large and the floorwas completely covered with carpeting as fine as any Lanoirian rugFredrik had seen. Spaced along the walls were large murals of theseacoast and statues placed between them. The throne, itself, was agaudy gold chair with orange and black cushioning. Seated on thethrone was a small, plump man with a receding hairline. Behind thethrone were two women dressed in orange and black dresses. Theservant announced Lord Wason and Fredrik realized he was speakingto the King.

Fredrik bowed to King Alfred and waitedfor a signal to approach. Fredrik had never been before a King andhe had no idea what the protocols were, but he behaved as if theKing were a god and hoped that whatever he did would not create anoffense.

“King Alfred, I greatlyappreciate you taking the time to see me without an appointment. Iam afraid that our first meeting is marred by my need to asksomething of you.”

“Lord Wason, please, I do notstand a great deal on the formalities of the old ways. The last Ihad heard the Lord of the Manor in Cidal was Lord Alrecht. As yourname would indicate that you are not his son, may I ask how youhave come unto your Title?”

Lord Alrecht was my uncle, YourHighness. He was murdered by Black Devils passing through Cidal andI am his only heir.”

“You have my sympathies,” theKing offered. “I trust the Cidal Mercenary Company avenged hisdeath?”

“Actually, Your Highness,Captain Grecho informed me that the company was unaware of themurder until it was long over and the Black Devils had movedon.”

“A pity,” the Kingsympathized. “Well, what is it that you wish from me, LordWason?”

“I have been chasing a youngwoman who was staying in my mansion in Cidal,” Fredrik gambled. “Ithas come to my attention that she was arrested here in the citythis very day.”

“It seems to me, if I recallcorrectly, your uncle used to chase women, as well,” the Kingjoked, “but I think I know of the woman whom you are referring to.A Lady of Caldar has charged her with sorcery. The Lady told me aninteresting tale about having her dress ripped off her on the mainstreet of Caldar.”

“That could very well be thesame woman, Your Highness. The woman I am after used sorcery on oneof my own maids in my own mansion and I have been chasing her eversince.”

“Well, at least I no longerhave to feel guilty about executing her for sorcery,” chuckled KingAlfred. “Of course, the Lady of Caldar’s word was enough to satisfyme, but your word assures me beyond doubt. I will allow you towitness the execution and then we shall have a great feast for theLady and yourself.”

A shiver ran through Fredrik’s body. Hehad not known that the woman whom Niki disrobed in public was theLady of Caldar. The woman had seen Fredrik with Niki and if she sawhim here, he could also be arrested and executed.

“Your Highness,” Fredrikpleaded, “I would request that this woman be turned over to me sothat I may have her returned to Cidal to stand trial for her crimesagainst me and the people of Cidal.”

The King lost his entire jovial moodand went silent. For several long agonizing moments, the only soundin the large, cavernous room was Fredrik’s ownbreathing.

Finally, the King of Melbin spoke. “Youpresent me with a difficulty, Lord Wason. I have before me a womanwho has committed serious crimes in two jurisdictions. Eachjurisdiction is a potential ally and vassal of Melbin. Caldarappeared before me first, but Cidal is closer and has the backingof the Cidal Mercenary Company. This is a difficult choice. Wouldyou care to look at the woman and confirm for me that we are,indeed, dealing with the same woman?”

“Certainly, Your Highness,”Fredrik agreed.

A servant and two guards led Fredrikout of the throne room and along a corridor to the rear of thePalace and across the yard almost to the far wall of the estate.Not far from the wall was a large, square plot of land surroundedby a moat, with a flagpole being the only structure above ground.The guards worked a winch that moved a narrow bridge out across themoat and the servant led Fredrik across. The entire island was aseries of cages built into the ground, which were exposed to theweather. The servant stopped at the first cage and Fredrik’s heartsunk as stared down at Niki in the cage. She was sleeping andFredrik did not have the heart to wake her.

Fredrik returned across the bridge andthe guards withdrew it. The four men marched back to the throneroom and Fredrik addressed the King.

“Your Highness, just seeingthe woman again makes me plead that you give preference to my claimtowards her.”

King Alfred nodded and laughed. “MyLord Wason, my advisors have come up with a plan to please bothCaldar and Cidal. You will be given the woman to take back to Cidalas you requested.”

Fredrik’s heart leaped with joy atavoiding this close call over losing Niki.

“That will be, of course,” theKing continued, “after we have executed her to satisfy Caldar’sclaim.”

Fredrik’s heart sank and he beggedleave from the King’s presence. On the way back to the FlutteringJib, he tried to think of what he would tell the others.

When Mikal Obanik emerged from thebasement of the leather shop, the sky had blackened and the alleywas dark. As dark as the alley was, the news from Alcea was evendarker. Instead of Alcea preparing to receive its new King, itsounded like the petty interests of rival Lords had takenprecedence. Worse than that, King Byron had been assassinated andQueen Marta had fled the city.

Mikal waited a moment to let his eyesadjust to the darkness and moved down the alley to his nextcontact. Sounds far behind him in the alley caught his attentionand Mikal refused the temptation to turn and look. If someone wasfollowing him, there was little he could do until they got closer.Care would have to be taken to make sure that no one knew hiscontacts, though. Long after Mikal had left the city, his contactswould have to continue living here.