The Emperor's New Nightingale (12 page)

“Show me this proof, Julie, quickly.”

From the bag, she pulled out a glittering Krystal. Nearly everyone in the room saw it, and gasped in astonishment.

Trall stepped forward.
“Erson Weston switched it when it was taken to their home to test the human women. Erson came into the tavern drunk and confessed his part. It seems the Shadow Lord has been pulling a few strings to stop the real nightingale from being known and to have the Song Krystal destroyed.”

Drango voiced the question they were all thinking.
“They look identical. How do you know which is the real Song Krystal?” “That is a fake!” Matika hissed. “My Lord, please—I am your true nightingale, not this piece of trash.”

Disgusted and angered at her words,
Orin shoved the woman at his officials. “I knew there was something wrong with this female. She is an agent of the Shadow Lord—I felt the darkness.”

“It lies. The Earthling lies! She holds the fake Krystal!” shrieked Matika.

“Your instincts as to who was your nightingale were right all along, your Majesty.” Trall spoke softly. “Go ahead and sing Julie, show him.”

Julie
cradled the Krystal like holding a precious infant. Orin's chest swelled with new hope it was true they were all fooled by the dark forces at work. Julie's smile was one of utter adoration when she met his gaze.

‘Hold me, touch me, let the love come rushing through me.

I’m yours with every breath I take, forever and ever.

Hold on to love,
'cause deep down that’s what we’re made of,

Never let go for my heart
's sake…

'
Cause my heart belongs to you…”

The Krystal in her hands glowed brighter than the one on the
dais Matika made shine. The pure light called to him, just as the woman holding it did.

“Julie…” Her name
became a reverent prayer on his lips, all his pain swept away, replaced with the fullness of the love coming from her words and heart.

She did love him! He stepped towards her
. The need to touch her, pull her into his arms and kiss her was so powerful he didn’t how he refrained from doing it.

Cular stepped forward.
“Your Majesty, how can we be sure which is the real one?”

“I know, I can feel it, this
—” he gestured towards Julie, “—is the true Krystal.”

A dark anger curled in his gut
when he now realized how he and his court were played for fools. A cry of pain rent the air and Orin swung around to see both his councilors stumble, blood soaking their chests. Makita somehow produced a blade and stabbed both men.

In a blur of
movement, she raced towards Julie, her eyes wide. Matika struck her across the face with the back of the blade before anyone could intercept her. Julie crumbled to the floor and Matika snatched the Krystal from her hands before she fell with it.

A dark fury raced through Orin faster than the speed of light. He launched himself at the piece
of vile evil, determined to end her life for daring to harm his Julie.

Before
he reached her, she threw the Krystal to the ground, shattering it into a million pieces, and threw back her head. Oran landed on his feet, knocking the dagger from her hand and wrapping his hand around her throat.

“You’re too late!” she wheezed, her eyes changing to a blood red. “My master comes.”
She cackled a blood-chilling laugh.

Cries of distress echoed through the great hall
, and the ground rumbled, a darkness fell over the palace.

Trall
rushed to Julie’s side when Drango moved to pull Matika out of Orin's hands. She didn’t fight; Drango quickly cuffed her. More guards raced forward.

“
The barriers are broken!” Cular cried as Orin dropped to his knees beside Julie and Trall. Unable to stop himself, he brushed back her hair.

“Is she al
l right?” There was a nasty cut on her forehead.

“She breathes and will be fine.”

The ground rumbled again and a dark mist spiraled and formed in the center of the room. People shrieked and scrambled in panic seeing the armies of darkness pour into the room.

“The Shadow Lord comes! We are lost without the true Krystal!”

Orin ignored the fear in Cular’s cry, meeting Trall’s own angry gaze at the way Julie was hurt.

“I charge my Empress into your hands
. Get her to a healer and guard her with your life.” Trall nodded, gathering Julie into his four arms and lifting her, carrying her from the hall.

It was time for him to do what he was born to do
—lead his people. The Song Krystal may have been destroyed, but he had a strong army.

“We are not lost Cular, not while I rule my galaxies. I am Emperor and protector of my people.”

Drango handed him a sword and a miniaturized pulse cannon. “The men are assembling as we speak,” he whispered to Orin and stood by his side. Orin nodded seeing more palace guards flood into the hall and the people rush out in a mad panic.

Orin
turned and faced the masses assembling. If they wanted a war, a war they would get.

A tall
, dark man in a black robe came through in the middle of the army flowing into the palace. Orin instantly knew who this was, by his glowing, red eyes, and the way he tilted his angular head, meeting Orin’s gaze. Even from this distance, Orin felt the power emanating from the creature.

Ractor, Lord of the Shadow Realms. All he needed to do was cut off the head of the serpent
, and the rest would die also.

“It’s so nice to be back.” The Shadow Lord’s smile could
have made the bravest of warriors shudder in fear, but Orin wouldn’t be intimidated, He would never cower in fear.

Orin stood firm
, walking around to the first step and facing the assembling mass without fear. He glared at Ractor. “I give you this one chance to leave now, Ractor, or face the consequences.”

“I think not
. Your kingdom is weak, you don’t have the Krystal and this realm is now mine for the taking.” Ractor strode confidently forward, his minions parting before their master.

“Not while I draw breath will you ever take my kingdoms.”

“Well then, we can’t have you continuing to breathe then, can we?” Ractor gestured to his army, his sinister smile turning deadly. “Kill them all and bring me the head of the Emperor!”

Chapter Fourteen

Throbbing pain
and the pounding in her head made Julie groan. She felt weightless, yet secure at the same time.

“Julie, are you a
ll right?”

That was…Trall’s voice
. She forced her eyes open and struggled to focus, only to realize Trall was carrying her against his muscular chest. What happened? Why did she feel like an anvil was dropped on her head?

It suddenly played back over in her mind like a bad horror movie. The fake nightingale hit her.

“Easy, you’ve had a nasty knock to the head. Orin ordered me to take you to the healer and protect you.”

“What happened?”
She glanced around to see people scurrying about with a look of fear on their faces. Soldiers whooshed past at a dead run, large alien weapons strapped to their belts.

“
Matika destroyed the real Krystal. It ripped a hole between our realm and the Shadow Realm, and then the Shadow Lord came through and the grand hall is now a battle zone.”

“What?
But where’s Orin?”

“
Still in the hall, leading his army.”

Breath seized in her chest
. He was going to fight with the army. “No!” She struggled in Trall’s arms. “Put me down. I have to go to him, I have to help him.”

Trall set her on her feet
, but didn’t let her go. “You’re not a soldier and a battleground is no place for the Empress of Ario. I wasn’t always a tavern owner, Julie, I trained with my brothers in the Verkin army. I’ll make sure no harm comes to you.”

“I don’t care about myself
. We have to help Orin. There has to be a way to drive back the Shadow Lord, a way put the barrier back in place.”

“Without the Krystal, I’m not sure
it’s possible. All we can do now is fight and hopefully win.” With his hands on her, he forced her to keep walking down the corridor.

“Your
Majesty, your Majesty!” a voice yelled.

Julie, thinking Orin was nearby, scanned the people running to and fro
, trying to seek him out.

“Wait
, your Majesty!”

“He means you
, Julie.” Trall paused, turning to face an elderly man with short, white hair and a long, thin face, dressed in a purple robe.

Breathless
from running, he paused to draw in several deep breaths before bowing. “Your Majesty, I am Jitt and I’m a Song Krystal keeper. The secrets of the Krystal have been passed down to me for many generations. You are our only hope of fighting back the darkness.”

“The
Krystal is destroyed; how could she possibly be of any help now? You’re being foolish, old man,” Trall growled.

“Damn it
, Trall, be nice.”

“
This is where you’re wrong, Verkin. The Krystal is and has always been one part of a whole. You, your majesty, are the other half. The Krystal may lay in shattered fragments on the floor in the Great Hall, but you have the power to bring it back together.”

“How?”
Julie again tried unsuccessfully to tug herself from Trall’s grip.

“The power of the Krystal
lies within the pure heart of a true song. You mix it with true love and the perfect pitch. There is nothing more powerful and potent in the entire universe. You must return and sing.”

“There’s a war going on in there
. I won’t put the Empress in harm’s way.”

“
It's either here and now, or we will be overrun by the darkness. If they scatter the fragments of the Krystal before she can sing, we will all die.”

If this were
an ordinary human on Earth, Julie would have dismissed him for crazy, but since her arrival on Ario, she saw and done things to challenge everything she was ever taught. It was time to step up and accept who she is, a woman in love, willing to walk, run or ride into hell itself to save Orin, and it wasn’t just him, but a whole galaxy of people at risk. They were her people now.

Julie straightened her spine and pushed the throbbing pain in her head back.
No longer the shy, timid, little Julie of Earth, she is the Empress to Orin of Ario, ruler of the Four Galaxies of Harmony, and without her, Harmony would be shattered forever.

“I believe him. Trall
, we have to go back.”

“I can’t allow
—”

She yanked
herself from his arms and faced him. “I’m the Nightingale and Empress of Ario. If your orders are to protect me, then do so, but I am going back to the great hall to do what I was brought here to do.”

“Oh, bless you
, your Majesty!” Jitt bowed, reverently.

Trall
bowed his head. “As your Majesty wishes.” In a swift move, Trall jumped into the path of a running solider. The armed Ario man skidded to a halt, glaring at Trall as if the Verkin lost his mind.

“
I need weapons, if you please.”

The Ario guard
unhooked a sword and a dagger from his black belt, handing them both to Trall.

“
Thank you.” He turned back to her and also Jitt. “I hope you’re right about this, old man.” He looked at her. “Stay close to me.” He then drew in a deep breath. “I have a bad feeling about this, but hey, you only live once, and no way in seven hells do I want to live it in darkness run by a suck-up, Shadow Lord.”

Julie hid her grin
as Trall turned back the way they came. Together, they strode down the hall and straight in to the heart of the storm.

* * * *

Orin grunted, delivering a swift kick to the shadow soldier, a dark gray creature with humanoid features and dull, lifeless eyes. He didn’t even wait to see where it hit the ground, as he was already swinging around to battle two more minions racing up the steps.

“For every one of them we kill
,” puffed Drango, fighting at his back, “two more come through the rift.”

Orin
noticed this, as well. “We’ll have to pull back and re-group our forces.” Orin ducked, narrowly avoiding a swinging blade, spearing his own into the belly of the minion. “Surround the palace and concentrate our attack.” He yanked out the blade and thrust his elbow back into another minion, knocking him flat.

“But if we can’t close that rift…” Drango yanked his laser cannon off his belt
, disintegrating three more Shadow Minions, who were barreling towards them with a blood curdling, war cry.

“We have to kill Ractor,
and then his army will fall.”

A flash of
color in the corner of Orin’s eye made him turn his head. Julie came racing into the hall, Trall close by her side, brandishing his weapons.

“Remind me to kill your brother when this is over
,” Orin hissed through clenched teeth. He was going to skin the Verkin alive for directly disobeying his orders.

Trall easily dispatched several minions
who slipped past the mass of fighting guards. Julie ran towards the altar, dropping down behind it.
What on Ario am I doing?

* * * *

The terrible sounds of swords clashing, the grunts and yells of the men fighting and the screams of the dying made it hard to focus.

Clear your mind, block out everything else
.

Love, light, peace
—this is what she tried to concentrate on.

“Julie
, hurry!” Trall’s voice sounded strained.

Love, the way she felt in Orin’s arms, his warm, sexy smile. The way her heart thumped wildly
when he told her he loved her. The warmth of her friends, how they stood by her side through thick and thin. She filled her heart with all those wonderful emotions and started to sing, straight from her heart.

She glanced up
, meeting Orin’s gaze ablaze with passion and fire. The song filled her head and love filled her heart, and she sang amidst all the chaos.

Remember those walls I built, Well, baby they’re tumbling down
…

And they didn’t even put up a fight, they didn’t even make a sound.

I found a way to let you in, but never really had a doubt

Standing in the light of your halo, I got my ang
el now…

She felt her body vibrate
, but she didn’t stop, she kept singing, even as Trall fought to defend her from harm and Orin and Drango fought their way over to her. A glow surrounded her, reaching out to the scattered shards of the Song Krystal.

It’s like I’ve been awakened, every rule I had you
’re breakin’

It’s the risk that I’m takin’, I ain’t never gonna shut you out.

Everywhere I’m looking now, I’m surrounded by your embrace

Baby
, I can see your halo, you know you’re my saving grace…

In a blinding flash of light
, the Krystal suddenly melded back together, but still Julie sang.

Banish the darkness, banish the darkness, drive them back
!
The thought ran through her mind over and over while the Krystal hovered in the air. The fighting came to stand-still and everyone turned to stare in astonishment at the spinning, glowing Krystal. Julie's voice was now the only sound echoing through the hall.

“Kill her
! Destroy the Krystal!” bellowed a cloaked figure, who came rushing at her.

“Don’t stop
, Julie! Sing, my love, sing!” Orin jumped into the path of the Shadow Lord, the ringing clash of metal on metal made her jump, but she kept her voice steady and strong, rising to her feet and reaching for the Krystal.

You’re everything I need and more, it’s written all over your face

Baby I can feel your halo, pray it won’t fade away…

I can feel your halo, halo, halo… I can see your halo, halo, halo…

The moment her fingers made contact with the smooth, heated surface, beams of light shot out in all directions, enveloping everyone in the hall.

The screams
of the Shadow Lords minions cut off as they burst apart, disintegrating into dust, their weapons clattering to the stone floor.

“Nooo!” The
Shadow Lord, the only one left standing, backed up hastily. Orin charged at him, but he turned and ran back towards the rift.

“This isn’t over yet
, Orin, mark my words! I will return and take what belongs to me!” He jumped into the darkness of the rift before it sealed shut.

A roar of victory rose in the hall,
elation and relief flooding Julie as she let her song fade. Orin turned towards her. The pride and love on his face made her heart leap. She couldn’t tear her gaze from his while he strode towards her, handing off his weapons to Drango as he passed.

A smashing
sound made her jump and swing her gaze to Jitt. The Krystal keeper threw the fake Krystal to the floor, shattering it. He stomped on the pieces, grinding them to dust, muttering how he should have known it was a fake, before turning to her.

“Your
Majesty,” he bowed reverently to her, his arms out stretched, “if I may.” She nodded placing the genuine Song Krystal back with its keeper.

A light touch on her shoulder
made her spin around. “My beautiful Julie, you’ve saved us all.” She drank in Orin’s form. There were several cuts on his arm and a bruise on his left cheek.

“You’re hurt.” Her voice
was breathless and she wanted so desperately to touch him, but uncertainty held her back. Was he still upset with her for rejecting him in the alley?

“It is nothing. I need you more.” The depth of emotion in his eyes snapped her
self-control and she flung herself into his arms.

“Oh, Orin, I’m so sorry I ever doubted you.”

His arms crushed her against him, his face deep in her hair breathing in her soft scent. “No, my love, none of this is your fault. We were both victims of deceit. My father told me to trust my heart and believe in my instincts. I did and they have not led me astray. I love you, Julie, my empress, my nightingale. You are mine, now and forever.”

He pulled back his hand
, brushing the hair from her face. “I think I’ve loved you from moment I met you in Trall’s tavern.”

His smile widened. “And I you
,” she said. He dipped his head and she eagerly accepted his kiss. Another cheer rose from the assembled guards and those still in the hall.

“The Emperor and Empress of Ario
!” someone yelled. They broke apart and heat flooded Julie’s face. Orin chuckled, holding her tight and kissing the top of her head.

“I’m looking forward to spending time
to make you flush like that, my love,” he whispered close to her ear, making her redden even more.

She buried her face in his shoulder.