Chapter 24
Elara
I opened the tent flap and stepped into the winter morning air of Norrandale.
So close to the mountains, the air felt much colder than in Everness, my fingertips numb despite my gloves.
Our party had set up camp between Mistwood Palace and the mountains in the north.
A few days later, Lord Burrow and his men arrived as promised by Alastor, who’d secured the alliance on behalf of Cai.
The increase in our numbers brought me some comfort, but I still felt an ever-growing worry in my gut at the prospect of what was to come.
We were going to Mistwood with Cai leading the attack. There would be fighting and blood and death. And we could only hope that by the end of it, Cai would be back on his throne.
I wrapped my cloak around me in a futile attempt to keep out the cold and started making my way towards the main tent in the centre of our camp.
There was a smell of smoke in the air from all the burnt-out fires from the night before.
I could see my breath as I made my way past tents and soldiers sharpening their weapons.
The semi-frozen ground crunched under my riding boots, and I was grateful for wearing my breeches and a tunic again.
Despite the fact that I’d grown quite fond of the beautiful dresses Anesta always put me in, they weren’t practical for what we were about to do.
Though I was certainly aware that all the layering in my skirts actually helped to keep my legs warm.
Being so close to the mountains meant the weather would only get worse and the soldiers more unmotivated.
We were all cold and tired, and if we wanted to take back Mistwood, we would have to do it soon.
Cai was already there as I entered the main tent. So were Alastor and Rhen. There was a large table in the middle, with maps and drawings of the landscape around Mistwood and the palace itself.
“Good morning.” I tried to sound cheerful but there was a sense of dread in the air. Not just in the tent itself but all around the camp.
Cai gave me an attempt at a comforting smile, which we both knew to be fake, but I appreciated the gesture.
“Lord Burrow should be here any moment,” Rhen said as I went to stand next to Cai.
“Good.” I gazed over the maps, my eyes involuntarily going to the mountain ranges I knew to be filled with Myrgonite stones.
Aries and his men were getting closer, and though it would be some time before they reached Mistwood, we needed to keep the front lines as far south as possible.
Not only for the sake of the stones, but because the closer his men were to Everness, the bigger risk it was for my kingdom that they would invade.
The tent flap opened again, and Lord Burrow walked in, looking surprisingly awake and able compared to the rest of us.
“Your Majesties,” he greeted us politely, looking over the table. “Do we have a plan for how we want to proceed?”
“I’ve sent word to Mannik and Stapleton, and they are willing to send all the men they can spare, but it will be a while still before the soldiers arrive.
We do not have that much time to waste if we want to overthrow Mistwood.
But we will need the men, regardless, for when the battle comes,” Cai said.
“Will you be making Mistwood the fortress from where the army attacks?” Alastor asked. His long dark hair was tied up and he appeared to carry a weapon on just about every part of his body. Should I have been his enemy, I would not want to come across him in the middle of the night.
“I would prefer to keep the fighting as far away from my ancestral home as possible,” Cai replied. “But it might be a good place for us to gather before we march on the Argonian army.”
Not to mention that if Cai reclaimed his throne by taking Mistwood, it might persuade the people to turn back to their exiled king. As it was, we needed every able-bodied person to fight on our side.
“Are we to attack them directly? Force our way into the palace?” Lord Burrow questioned.
“No, I want the element of surprise. Alastor, do you have the numbers for the Argonian soldiers currently residing at Mistwood?”
“We’re looking at a few hundred, Your Majesty. Enough to keep the palace under their control against civilians or small loyalist groups.”
“With our numbers, surely, we are looking at an easy victory.”
“With all due respect, Lord Burrow,” I interjected. “You must keep in mind that Argonian soldiers are not like our men. They’ve been trained in different ways, and based on what I’ve seen of them, it would take at least two or three of our men to take an Argonian down.”
“She’s right,” Cai affirmed. “These men are ruthless, and we must be prepared for every possible outcome. Aries cannot easily be outsmarted.”
“What about civilians?” Lord Burrow asked. “Is there any risk of court members getting in the middle of it?”
“I doubt it,” Alastor responded. “The court had been sent back to their estates before the Argonians arrived. Apparently, we are not the only ones who want to fortify the palace. And then, apart from the soldiers, Lord Thatcher is there, of course, in charge of all of them.”
I felt Cai tense up next to me at the mention of Thatcher.
“Thatcher’s a puppet,” I said to no one in particular. “He has no real power. Aries is only using him for his inside knowledge of Norrandale.”
We continued the meeting, looking at all the possible entrances to the palace, where the guards were likely to be stationed and how we would go about infiltrating the building.
Once we had more or less established a plan, Lord Burrow departed the tent with Rhen and Alastor following to meet with the soldiers.
I looked over the drawings of Mistwood again.
“What are these?” I asked Cai, pointing to lines drawn beneath the building.
“The catacombs that run under the palace.”
“Anything interesting down there?”
“It’s mostly just my ancestors who are buried there. Maybe an heirloom or two.” He shrugged.
“Do you think it could be used as another way for us to enter undetected?”
“There are so many tunnels down there, it would be easy to get lost. Not even I know the way.”
“Once we’ve taken back the palace, what happens next?” The winter wind sang outside the tent. It was to be another dreadfully cold day.
“We wait for the rest of our army to arrive, and then we start planning where and how to attack Aries.”
Even as he said it, I could see the hesitance on his face. He’d have had it any other way if possible. So would I.
I might have lived through a rebel uprising. But it would be nothing compared to facing the armies of Argon on the battlefield. Still, we had no choice but to try to save our kingdoms.
“Speaking of which,” I cleared my throat, “Rhen might have found something in the diary.”
At this, Cai’s expression changed to interest. I’d wanted to tell him last night, but Cai fell asleep so early and I didn’t want to disturb the little rest he managed to get these days.
“He said that he found the entries where King Evrin wrote about the Myrgonite mines and how Queen Riona had taken three of the stones and had a goldsmith forge the objects for her. The king didn’t know what kind of magic was used yet he’d warned Riona not to meddle with ancient magic.
But she wouldn’t listen. She wanted to be the most powerful queen history had ever seen.
Initially the objects seemed to give her protection and immense luck.
But the good effects were soon overcome by something much darker.
Magic that old could not be used freely and without consequence.
The king described it as if the magic was taking away from her soul.
She became obsessed with gaining more power and using the objects, no matter what was at risk.
The more powerful she became, the less she was herself. ”
“So, it’s as bad as we thought, then.” He ran his hand through his golden hair, which had grown much since we’d last been in Norrandale.
“Does the king mention anything about what the objects were or was even his diary not privileged with that information?”
“No, he did say what two of the objects were.”
Cai looked at me expectantly.
“Queen Riona was very fond of wearing a certain necklace. One laced with many jewels and that contained a Myrgonite stone in the middle.”
Cai pulled the nearest chair closer and slowly took a seat. “Well, I guess that answers that question, then.” He rubbed his jaw where a few days’ worth of stubble coated his face.
“And the other?”
“Apparently she never had any kind of weapons when it came to exerting her power, apart from one very specific dagger.” I pulled out the knife Cai had gifted to me on my birthday.
“One with gold detailing on the hilt.” I rubbed my thumb over the small jewel encrusted in the dagger before placing it on the table.
“Where did you get this again?”
Cai leaned over the table, picked up the dagger and inspected it. “On the day I first entered Everness, there was an old woman in the woods. She looked like some kind of pedlar. She gifted me the dagger because we’d given her some water to drink.”
I remembered the dream I had while in the forest. King Evrin had buried Riona with the dagger.
“Do you think at some point it was stolen?”
“Maybe,” Cai said in contemplation. “But there was something strange about her.” I didn’t reply, silently urging him to continue. “She knew I was the prince despite the fact that we weren’t dressed in any uniforms or royal attire. She had no way of knowing my title.”
“That is strange,” I agreed.
“And she told me to go to this pool where I would see my future. I didn’t believe her at first but then I saw a silhouette in the water.”
“You’ve never told me about this.”
“It was a silhouette of you,” he said, meeting my gaze. “On the day of the rebellion, when you came back.”
I pressed my lips together. “Do you think she gave you that dagger on purpose, knowing what it is?”
“Maybe. I don’t know.” He handed the dagger back to me and I slid it into the pocket of my breeches. Suddenly it felt heavier, making it impossible not to be aware of the knife and whatever ancient power it might possess.
“So, it doesn’t say anything about what the third object could be?”
“The king himself doesn’t sound certain in his writing. But he seemed to believe that the other two objects and their power were connected to the third somehow.”
“Does it, by any chance, mention that the stones can’t be destroyed?” he asked.
“I don’t know yet,” I said, stepping closer to him. “But Rhen will keep looking.”
“Do you think it’s safe for him to know all this?”
Cai wrapped his arm around my waist, pulling me against him.
“Rhen only knows it could be a dagger and a necklace. I don’t think he suspects your family’s necklace that you gifted to Eloisa without knowing what it was. The necklace is safe with my belongings and nobody knows about the dagger.”
He rested his head against my stomach, appearing tired and worried. I held on to his shoulders, savouring this quiet moment before we would step out of the tent and be surrounded by soldiers and preparations to attack.
“Aries doesn’t know what the Myrgonite stones look like yet, neither does anyone else. If he doesn’t find the mines, he’ll put all his energy into looking for the objects.”
“What if we used it against him?”
“What do you mean?” Cai moved his head so he could look up at me.
“I mean, what if we somehow used the objects against Aries to stop him?”
He was taken aback, as if he could not believe the words that had just left my mouth.
“We’ve talked about this, Elara.” Briefly, when we were heading to Argon and still didn’t know what the objects were. I’d made the suggestion of using them in the future and Cai shut me down, claiming it was too dangerous.
“Why not? It’s going to be difficult if not impossible to beat him as it is. This way we could save thousands of men from dying for the sake of nothing.”
He pulled back from me. “Did you not hear everything you’ve just told me about Queen Riona and what the magic did to her?”
I stepped away from him. “Only because she became greedy and overused the objects for her own power and gain. This is for a noble cause. To stop someone from doing the same thing Riona tried to do.”
“We have no way of knowing what the consequences would be for something like that.” He stood up. “I am not prepared to risk your life to find out.”
“But maybe if we used them together—”
“Promise me.” He took hold of my wrists, looking into my eyes with a serious expression. “Promise me that you will not try and use the objects in any way.”
His eyes were pleading. Begging me.
“Fine. I promise.” But I wasn’t sure I meant it.