Last Knight (The Champion Chronicles Book 2) (3 page)

              The gravity of the situation suddenly hit him.  Conner looked down at his chest.  The three long slices were deep and were leaking so much blood that his belly and his pants were soaked.  An anger suddenly rose up within himself and he was surprised at the thoughts.  He wasn’t concerned about his life, he only cared that the four bandits would get away with attacking him and leaving him to die.

              “This will hurt,” the man said.  He held up a thick twig.  “Bite this.  It will help.”

              Conner took the twig in his mouth and leaned back.  He closed his eyes and bit hard as Laurin began.  The more he thought about the revenge that he would inflict, the less Laurin’s work hurt.

Chapter Three

Marik Brownbow led his mount towards the city gates of South Karmon, the capital city of the kingdom of Karmon.  His horse was no special war horse.  It was the fast horse of a messenger, no different than any other horse in the city.  He was clad as any merchant or traveler.  Dusty and matted from a long journey, his clothes were not that of a Karmon Knight.  Former Karmon Knight, Marik reminded himself.  As anonymous as the other merchants and travelers, he melted into the crowd. 

He had not planned to arrive in the middle of the day, but he was glad that he had.  Business was booming throughout the city and the amount of traffic through the main gate showed that.  Carts full of goods that came from as far away as the Taran Empire were being pulled by horses, donkeys, oxen, or even young boys.  Makeshift stalls had been set up along the streets for the merchants to sell their wares.  The city was filled with vendors screaming at the top of the lungs, trying sell their goods to every passerby.  He could not ever remember it being as loud as it was.  It was almost too loud to even think.

The soldiers who manned the walls gave him a quick glance as strode through the gate, but nothing more.  Marik surprised himself at how much he missed being a knight.  It wasn’t just the accolades and looks of respect that he was given; it was also how he felt about himself.  Being a knight made him feel strong and powerful, able to conquer any obstacle.  But the moment it was taken away, he felt weak, as if he were missing something.  He was of noble blood, but right now it didn’t feel like he was any different than the farmers, merchants, and peasants that were walking right next to him.

It was a long and slow walk through the city.  Just a few months ago he would have been able to ride his horse all the way up to the castle.  But now, if he were riding, he would have trampled dozens on his way.  His annoyance was short lived, though.  As summer was on its way out, and autumn was just around the corner, change was more than just in the leaves of the kingdom’s trees.

Thellians were all around, now.  At first they had come only a few at a time, but soon their former enemies from the north were invading the streets.  It still made him wary to see them walking around, and he always kept an eye on them.  They were easy enough to see because they dressed differently.  They wore thicker leather that was often times lined with animal pelts.  Their skin seemed to be paler and their hair often times had differing hues of red or reddish brown.  In most every other way, it wouldn’t have been difficult to discern a Karmon from a Thellian, but the little differences seemed to make them stick out.

They acted friendly enough. They smiled and they laughed.  Just looking at the interaction between Thell and Karmon, it was impossible to tell that they were lifelong enemies.  But the copper coins of trade flowed freely.  Everyone benefited, from the merchants of Karmon to the merchants traveling from the north.  But Marik’s hand itched, desiring to draw his weapon and slay these intruders.  He had to keep reminding himself that they were friends, now.  Or at the very least business associates.  He knew that he was fully responsible for this change, but he was still uncomfortable with it.  It was hard to look at them without feeling the desire to kill them.

The memories of the ambush were still fresh in his mind, as was the death of his king, the last true king of Karmon, King Thorndale.  The plots of Neffenmark had been fully exposed, and Thell had taken responsibility for their actions.  That put Karmon in an advantage as they brokered a peace deal.  Thell did not want an all-out war.  At least their king did not.  But Marik knew that peace would not hold forever unless whatever treaty they could come up with included a way to merge their kingdoms forever.  It was time to bury the hatchet and their pride, and accept brotherhood.  King Lorraine of Thell was on board.  Hopefully Queen Elissa and her lords would be as well.

Marik quickly moved through the streets, winding his way up towards the castle.  Soon, the streets became less crowded and he was able to increase his pace.

When he reached the castle’s main gate, he found the portcullis raised, but the city guard still manned the entrance.  They were dressed differently, now.  Just half a season ago, they were the Royal Guard clad in their dark blue surcoats.  You would also have seen knights in their own brightly colored garb with an embroidered family crest.  But neither existed anymore.  It was a change that still bothered him.  The city guard didn’t wear chainmail, but wore only a thick leather undershirt.  They wore a loose fitting dark red tunic over the top.  Their weapons were short stabbing swords and not the more elegant longswords that were common with the Royal Guard or the heavy broadswords that the Knights commonly wore.  They were less threatening in their appearance, which was intentional.  He didn’t agree with it, but it wasn’t his decision to make.

He knew the two young men who were posted at the castle gate.  They were former squires that had been on their way to knighthood.  But now their duty post was to stand guard alongside every other noble or peasant soldier that desired to serve the queen.  It felt odd, but he really couldn’t say it was wrong.  For too long he had relied on his own bias towards men and boys of noble birth.  Family lineage meant everything.  But then there was Conner.  The most common that a boy could be.  But he had learned to fight like no man he had ever seen and in such a short time as well.  He was the catalyst for all this change.  Soldiers of Karmon now were of both noble blood and not.  They all served the queen and the kingdom.  They rose through the ranks through their effort and skill and not because of who their parents were.

He had been sure that the knights as a group were going to protest the change.  But many of those that would have fought the change died in the short war with Thell.  The knights who survived actually seemed to take it the best.  It was really the squires that were the most difficult to manage.  They had been brought up since birth being told they were better than the common people of the kingdom.  And now they were simply soldiers of Karmon.  Many had rebelled at first, having lost their birth-given prestige.  But the knights who had fought and seen two kings die had a perspective that kept the needs of the kingdom higher than their own.  It didn’t make for perfect relationships between all the soldiers, but it kept most of them in line.

Marik marched under the portcullis and began to head towards the stables when the two city guardsmen moved to block his path.

A momentary fit of anger overcame him and he snapped at the two guardsmen, “Stand aside!”

Neither moved and their hands fell to touch their short swords.  “What is your business in the castle?”

Marik glanced up at the castle walls.  Four bowman stood guard, bows strung and arrows in hand, but not nocked.  He was sure that they knew he was, but he also knew that it didn’t matter.  He was a soldier just as they were and they were only doing their duty.

“I have business with the queen,” Marik said coldly.  “But first I am going to return my horse to the stables.  I have been on a long ride and I am tired.  Stand aside or be run over.”

Marik walked directly towards the stables shaking his head.  The two guardsmen let him pass without further confrontation, but Marik was still thoroughly annoyed.  He knew that the new order of his life was going to be difficult to adjust to.  He was too used to being able to do what he needed to do without constantly being challenged.  Maybe the privilege bestowed upon the knights was unfair, but they had many duties and responsibilities that needed to be dealt with without having to run everything by someone else.

There were two young stable boys that helped Marik take care of his horse.  After the horse was fed and watered, Marik hustled out of the stables and to the castle.  Rather than returning to the courtyard to be challenged again, Marik took the long way through the lower levels of the castle.

Two guardsmen stood at attention in front of the doorway leading to the royal apartments.  They were dressed as all the other city guard, but they held long halberds instead of the short swords.

“I am here to see Queen Elissa,” Marik said.

The older of the two guardsmen gave a slight nod to Marik and said, “The queen is not seeing anyone right now.”

“She will see me.  Tell her it is Marik Brownbow.”

The elder guardsman shook his head.  “Sorry.  No one.”

“I have been riding for five straight days.  I am tired.  And I am tired of everyone telling me I can’t do what I am supposed to do!” His words slowly raised in tone until he was on the verge of shouting.  “I have a message for the queen, and I will see her now!”

Marik took a step forward and the guardsmen lowered their halberds in a threatening matter.  The door opened behind the guardsmen and Arpwin, the personal assistant to three kings and now a queen poked his head through the opening.

“What is this ruckus?” he asked.  He looked at Marik and continued.  “Marik!  It is good that you have returned.  You may enter.”

Without a hint of apology, the guardsmen raised their halberds and stepped away from the door to allow Marik to pass.

Arpwin stood in the center of the front room, a pleasant smile on his face.  Marik took note of the new décor.  Gone were the tapestries that depicted epic battles from Karmon’s history.  In its place were long curtains, colorful, but plain.  The furniture of the room was arranged for entertaining a number of guests, but were all centered around a wide couch that could have seated three large men.  A deep purple blanket was draped over the back of it with an embroidery of the Thorndale family crest.  It was where he expected Queen Elissa to be sitting.  But she was not anywhere to be seen.

“How was Thell?” Arpwin asked.

Marik almost replied immediately, as if he were supposed to be answering to the Queen’s personal assistant.  “Where is Queen Elissa?” Marik asked instead.

Arpwin waved his hand towards a closed set of double doors.  “She is resting.”

Marik glanced out a nearby window which looked directly to the west.  The sun was still far from dropping to the horizon.  It was past midday.  Even if the Queen had a busy morning, it was still too early for an afternoon nap.

“Then wake her,” Marik demanded.  “I have news.”

Arpwin shook his head.  “Whatever it is, you can tell me.  I shall pass it on to her.  She is very weary and needs her sleep.”

“This is only for the Queen’s ears, not for you,” Marik retorted sharply.

Arpwin hesitated for only a moment before letting out a long sigh.  He turned and opened the doors to the Queen’s bedchamber.

The curtains had been pulled closed, keeping most of the light of the day out.  But as soon as the doors were opened, the curtains billowed out and parted, allowing sunlight to fill the room.

“Who is it?” A weak voice said from under the covers of thick blankets.

“It is Marik, your Majesty.”

The queen sat up, keeping the blankets pulled up to her chin.  Her long, blonde hair was a tangled mess and her eyes were encircled by dark shadows.

“Are you okay?” Marik asked.

“I am just a bit sleepy,” Elissa replied.

“It is late in the day for sleeping.  Perhaps you should retire at an earlier hour.”

Elissa looked at the windows.  “I fell asleep as the sun was setting.  What time is it now?”

“The sun is high in the sky.”

“Oh,” Elissa said, running a hand through her hair.  “I must have slept in.”

“You are queen,” Marik said.  “You have a kingdom to run.”

Elissa looked up at Marik with her large green eyes.  Her lips were turned into a slight smile.  Or maybe it was a grimace.  It was then that Marik remembered just how young she was.  She was a stunningly beautiful young woman.  Old enough to marry and bear children, but too young for the pressure of running a kingdom.  No wonder she was lying in bed, trying to hide from the world.  Everyone was wanting something from her or for her to make a decision.  Everyone was expecting her to be the leader of kingdom, to make decisions that would affect thousands of people.  Some of them would be life or death decisions.  And this young, sweet girl had lived her life in the shadows of her father, never having been taught the ways of kings and leaders.

For a moment Marik wondered if the kingdom would have been better off had King Neffenmark survived his one day as king.  He might have been a scourge and an evil man, but he was a leader.  He had kept his little section of the kingdom under firm rule for many years, and maybe he could have been that someone to keep Karmon from falling apart.  But these thoughts were fleeting.  As soon as he thought about the dead fat king, he remembered all the evil that he had inflicted on the kingdom.  It was his plan, his treachery that had led them to where they were now.  If he had not put plans in place, Thell and Karmon would still be enemies and King Thorndale would still be alive.  And Elissa would still be just a princess.

But then he would never have met Conner.  And Conner would never have changed the course of a kingdom.  It was through his one act that saved Elissa’s life that put them where they were now.  Peace.  It was a crazy peace with a teenage queen and the disbandment of the fabled Karmon Knights.  But it was peace nonetheless.

“I want to go for walk,” Queen Elissa said softly.

Marik heard the words, but did not acknowledge her.  His news was too important and he had to discuss it right away.  “Your Majesty,” Marik said with a slight bow of his head.  “We have the treaty to discuss.”