A Stolen Crown (21 page)

Carly forced a melancholy smile in the darkness and continued down the tunnel and Ariana shook her head at the things the girl had told her. She imagined the many roads that Carly had traveled and the hardships she had faced in her life and felt as though the challenges that lay before her were not so difficult. Whatever came to pass, she was determined to take crown back from her uncle Cerric and make things right for people like Carly, who were just trying to live their lives and maybe improve their lot.

She hoped she would be able to help all of the people of her kingdom in such a way, but for the time being, she was grateful that Milli and Carly had been willing to help her, and she realized how lucky she was that she and Aaron had ended up at the inn and that Milli had recognized her. As her thoughts moved to Aaron and she worried that he had made it safely away from the soldiers. She knew she could not use her power to find him because they were too far away from each other now and the ward spell made him difficult to find. All she could do was hope that he was okay as she followed the girl through the darkness.

After a short distance, they reached the end of a passageway and the flames of the torch began to flicker more strongly as a breeze came from somewhere ahead. Carly dowsed the torch in some water that had pooled near the edge of the tunnel, leaving her and Ariana in darkness but, as her eyes adjusted, Ariana noticed a faint bit of light coming from up ahead. She followed as Carly led her toward what appeared to be a solid wall of rock, and once they had reached it, Ariana could see that a side passage had been cut into it and within a few steps and another side passage, they emerged into the cool night air near the bottom of the falls.

“Wait here. I have to collect a few things,” Carly said and picked her way across the massive rocks that lined the bottom of the cliff beneath Rivergate and disappeared into the darkness.

The place where they had exited the tunnels directly overlooked the river that had formed at the bottom of the falls. From this vantage point, Ariana could see that the river, the lesser of the two that ran through Rivergate, was still quite substantial. She left the bundle of hers and Aaron's things and walked the short distance over to the water's edge and saw that it was deep and moved quickly with a strong current that pushed its way deep into the dark, green forests that marked the edge of the Elven lands. Over the sound of the rushing water, Ariana did not hear the quiet footsteps approach from behind her.

A short distance away, Carly pushed the stone back into place over the hole in the side of the cliff where she had hidden a pack that held a number of her belongings. She was glad that no one had found the cache of items, many of them valuable and some of which could come in very useful on what she imagined would be a long and possibly interesting journey. From the pack she pulled two daggers and sheathes with leather straps and tied them to her upper thighs, under her dress. She would have to change into more suitable travelling clothes later, but for now Carly figured she had best get back to the princess.

She silently made her way across the rocks toward the river and then froze when she saw the black-robed mage. In the dim light from the starry sky above she could see the cruel-looking dagger he held in his hand and she saw him plunge it into Ariana's back. Carly wanted to cry out to warn her, but it was too late. She was too far away and there was nothing she could do to save the princess. The man in the dark robes pushed his victim into the rushing water and Carly watched as Ariana's body disappeared beneath the surface, dragged away by the strong current. The mage stooped to the water and rinsed the blood from his dagger then replaced it underneath his robes then he turned. Carly ducked behind the rocks and cleared her mind. She knew that mages had the power to sense things other people could not and that they could read a person's thoughts.

A lesson she had learned long ago returned to her and she thought about fish and the idea of scooping them from the river like a bear. She thought about fish then she thought about bugs in a log and how good they would taste to eat. Carly imagined smashing rotting wood open with a large, fur-covered paw, then she thought about a sleeping bear in a cave.

At the edge of the river, Dakar let go of his power. From what he could tell, there were only a few deer, some rodents scurrying around in the undergrowth and a bear that appeared to be sleeping nearby and dreaming about its next meal. Satisfied that no one had seen him kill the princess, Dakar made his way up over the rocks that led back to the other side of the falls and the path that would take him back up to Rivergate Keep. He had walked only a short way when he encountered several guards with torches making their way down to the river.

“Sir mage, did you find the commander?" one of them asked.

“No,” Dakar said. “Has something happened?”

“He fought the fugitive, the one who killed the princess, and they fell from up there.” The man pointed to the top of the cliff.

“That is a long way to fall,” Dakar commented. “I doubt anyone could survive it.”

“The Captain-General is one of the toughest men in the army and if anyone could make it, it would be him. We're going to search the river, just the same.”

“So be it,” Dakar said. “I did not see anyone down here, but I wish you luck.”

Dakar cursed himself for not disposing of the princess' body more thoroughly. He should have used his mage-fire to completely burn her corpse until there was nothing but ashes. Still, the wound he had given her was deep and the strong current of the river should carry away anything or anyone that would have fallen into it. If the princess' companion had met his fate in those same waters, then so much the better, and if Nathas was gone as well, then that was something of an additional gift. Dakar had found the Captain General to be far less obedient than most of the other commanders in the Cerric's army and would certainly not miss him much.

The mage continued on up the trail passing several other soldiers on their way down to search for their leader. Hopefully, they would find nothing. In the meantime, he thought he might return to the inn and enjoy more of that liquor the woman had served him earlier. He also had a few questions for her about the tunnels that led under the city.

*****

Aaron felt a sharp pain in his shoulder as strong hands pulled him from the river. He choked and coughed as the water rose from his lungs. It was dark and it took a moment for his eyes to focus. He looked up and saw Nathas dragging him up from the water. Aaron’s sword was still gripped tightly in his hands and they scraped across the rocks and stones that lined the river's edge. Nathas collapsed on the rocks next to him, breathing heavily.

“Are you going to be all right, Aaron?” he asked through his own spluttering coughs. Aaron winced when he moved his shoulder.

“I'll live, but my shoulder might not,” Aaron told him as he released the grip he hand on his sword, letting it fall to the ground. Nathas rose to his knees and Aaron felt hands on him. He winced when Nathas grabbed his injured shoulder.

“No wonder. It looks like your shoulder is out of joint and there happens to be an arrow sticking out of it as well. That's going to have to come out first.”

Nathas grabbed the bolt that had lodged itself in the muscle of his upper arm and yanked straight out, pulling it free. Aaron's vision blurred as the pain shot through his arm and he felt the hot flow of blood running from his arm. He winced when Nathas pressed his hand on the same spot, slowing the bleeding.

“Good thing it was a round tip on that bolt or your arm would be a real mess,” Nathas commented. “Do you need a moment, or would you like me to fix your shoulder now?”

“Go ahead,” Aaron told him. “I don't think it could hurt any more than it already does.

Without warning, Nathas gripped his shoulder and slammed it back into place. There was a pop and Aaron felt a sharp pain, almost worse than when the arrow had come out. Aaron gritted his teeth but he could already feel the pain begin to subside. Nathas helped him to his feet then picked up his sword and cut two pieces of cloth from Aaron's shirt. He folded one of the pieces and placed it over the wound from the arrow and then tied the other strip of cloth snugly around Aaron's arm, holding it in place.

"That should stop the bleeding," Nathas said then handed Aaron his sword.

“Thanks,” Aaron said, sliding the blade back into its scabbard on his belt, feeling the pain in his shoulder with every movement.

“You must’ve hit the bottom of the river,” Nathas commented. “I'm surprised we both survived the drop, but I'm amazed you didn't lose your sword."

“At the Academy, you taught us never to lose our swords. It would be embarrassing had I done that, especially in front of one of my former instructors,” Aaron said, trying to smile through the pain.

"I think falling from a high cliff into a river might have been a reasonable excuse," Nathas told him, for it was how he had lost his own blade. "You must have hit the bottom to knock your shoulder out like that."

“No, I did that when I hit the door to the Inn,” Aaron told him.

“What? You fought me with your shoulder out of joint?” Nathas was astounded.

“It couldn’t be helped,” Aaron said.

He could see the older man shaking his head in the dark.

“I hope I don’t meet you in battle on a good day, Aaron,” Nathas said, then he saw the faint glow of torches descending along the cliffs from the city above. No doubt the soldiers were searching for them. “We’d better get moving or they’ll come and finish us both off, unless you want to lend me one of your swords so we can play act that you’re my prisoner.”

Aaron noticed that Nathas' sword was missing.

“Your sword,” Aaron said, knowing that Nathas would have had to use both his hands to drag Aaron from the fast current of the river.

“Embarrassing, like you said, but it's gone,” Nathas said with a chuckle. “You know the plan was for me to throw you off over the cliff not both of us to take a swim. But since I’m here, I'd like to tag along a ways if you’re meeting up with Princess Ariana.”

“I don't think that's very likely.” They turned at the sound of Carly's voice as she appeared from behind some rocks along the river's edge. She had the packs with her, but Ariana was nowhere to be seen.

“Where is Ariana?” Aaron asked.

“Gone,” Carly said with a frown.

“Where is she? What happened? I thought Milli was going to get her out of the city.”

“She did,” Carly said. “Well, I did. I brought her down through the tunnels that run under Rivergate but we ran into a problem. A mage found us, and I am pretty sure it was the same one who was at the inn.”

"His name is Dakar," Nathas said.

Carly moved toward Nathas, her moves silent and fluid like a cat, and a dagger was at his throat before he could even blink. Even with his training and expertise as a fighter, Nathas was impressed at the speed the woman had moved, that she could have taken him off guard so easily, but he was less than pleased at the position in which she had him.

“Carly!” Aaron exclaimed. “What are you doing?”

“I risked my neck to help you and the princess, only to have some mage show up and stab her in the back the moment we got out of the tunnels. I was willing to help you because Milli asked me to, but there's only so much I can take before I start to get suspicious. I'm not even sure if I can trust you," she said to Aaron, "but this is one of Cerric's high ups and as far as I am concerned, the more of you that end up dead, the better.”

“Why would I wish the princess any harm?” Nathas asked. “I just dove off a cliff and nearly died with this fool so he and Princess Ariana could get out of the city and away from those who are loyal to Cerric.”

“Carly, what happened to Ariana? Where is she?” Aaron asked, but Carly ignored him.

“You work for King Cerric, and the mage does too. What difference does it make?” Carly kept her focus on Nathas and the steel in her voice was evident, but a little less sure now.

“Yes, I'm the commander of the western forces for the Maramyrian Army and yes, Cerric may be King, but that doesn not mean I like working for him, nor does it mean I have any love for that mage, who, if you ask me, is a blight on the kingdom. There is a lot going on in Maramyr, most of which I do not like, and I am trying to help. If the princess is alive then maybe we can stop Cerric. Now, if you would kindly remove your dagger from my throat, I would like to know what happened.”

“Enough, Carly,” Aaron said. “What happened to Ariana?”

Carly let Nathas go and took a step back from him, her daggers still held loosely in her hands. She knew Aaron had been helping the princess, and it did not seem like Nathas was lying. She looked at Aaron, then back at the Maramyrian commander and decided she might as well trust them at this point.

“Like I said, we got out of the city through the tunnels and then I left the princess alone by the river for only a few moments so I could retrieve my daggers and a few other things, and when I returned, I saw that mage-priest, Dakar you called him, knifing the princess in the back and dumping her in the river.”

“You left her alone?” His words sounded like an accusation but Aaron was simply frustrated that he had not been there.

“I thought we were clear of danger,” Carly told him. “I had to get my daggers. We would have been defenseless anyway without weapons and she should have been safe where she was. No one knew we were there, except that mage. Somehow he knew.”