Chapter 9

Death. Sacrifice. Betrayal.

Anna’s words echoed in Trystan’s head as he stared up at the canopy of his bed. The words had mocked him all night, along with a myriad of bad dreams that had awakened him more than once in a cold sweat. Anna’s words were an echo of Lorelai’s, but he had broken that curse when he’d refused to kill Davi, right? The curse was no more, so why would those words come back to haunt him now?

Anna remembered nothing of her episode. Even when questioned about it she drew a blank. She did not understand where the words came from or why she’d said them, or even what the darkness was that she spoke of. Trystan assumed her prophecy meant the looming war. He hoped that’s what it referred to. Any war meant death and he was prepared for that. He just didn’t know if his heart could take losing anyone else close to him. He’d felt broken when he thought he’d lost Davi. Devastated at losing his father. He couldn’t imagine the pain if he had to cope with losing Ri or Avery or Alixa.

Alixa. Even just saying her name in his head caused warmth to infuse his body. When had the traitorous duke’s daughter become so important to him? He had thought her cold and abrasive at their first meeting, but he’d been so wrong. Any relationship with Alixa would be doomed from the start. He knew that. They were too different. The kingdom would never accept her as queen. But that did nothing to quell his heart racing every time she walked into a room. She was the most intelligent, beautiful, and infuriating woman he’d ever met. He couldn’t imagine not having her in his life. But with a prophecy and a war looming over them...

Sighing, he ran a hand over his red-rimmed eyes. He might as well get up, He wasn’t getting any more sleep. Images from last night’s dream came filtering back into his head, replacing thoughts of Alixa. Not a dream. More of a nightmare, brought about no doubt from Anna’s dire warning. Every time he broke free and woke up, sleep would claim him again and the images would crawl straight back. Images of fire and death, destruction and pain.

He shook his head, trying to force the memories away. No need to keep focusing on it. It was just a nightmare. He’d had plenty of those before. He had more important worries to fill his mind with now. Like Davi and Rissa’s hopeful success on their mission. The safety and wellbeing of his people. How to win a war. How to defeat the coming darkness. Just everyday king stuff.

He got out of bed and walked to the window on the other side of his room. The sun was just rising, and the early rays illuminated the gardens below with streaks of oranges and gold. He smiled to himself as the blooming garden lifted his spirits. It was a nice view. A healing view. The pink orchids of the cherry blossom trees and the colorful carpet of flowers reminded him of life and hope, chasing away the remnants of his nightmare.

As he stood there enjoying the warm rays of the crowning sun on his face, a movement from below caught his eye. Curious, he peered down into the garden, wondering who was out and about this early in the morn. A dark head and a blonde head, close in conversation it appeared, moved below him. Alixa and Anna, he was sure. But what were the two of them doing out in the garden this early when they both should be in their beds asleep?

Curiosity filled him, and he dressed in a hurry, wanting to catch up with them in the garden.

He met no one on his way out, but the smells wafting from the kitchen informed him the staff were already up and preparing for the manor’s breakfast. His stomach grumbled, but he ignored it as he stepped into the crisp air of the morning. He breathed in deep, the fragrant scent of the garden renewed him with its freshness, and he couldn’t help but smile to himself.

It didn’t take Trystan long to find the two women. They had rested on a marble bench awash in golden sunlight. They both peered up in surprise as Trystan approached, and he felt the familiar racing of his heart as Alixa smiled at him in greeting.

“Good morning, your Majesty. Looks like we are not the only two early risers.”

“Good morning to you both.”

Alixa looked as appealing as always, but Anna appeared more perturbed than she had the night before. Her face was drawn and pinched and dark shadows adorned her eyes, evidence to her sleepless night. Trystan felt an overwhelming urge of pity for the young girl. Being a seer was hard enough but double a curse at such a young age. “Anna, I hope you are not suffering any ill effects from last night.”

“I’m used to these… nights,” she said, her voice sounding older than her years.

“Then I don’t envy you. I believe we all suffered a taste of sleeplessness last night, but possibly worth it since we all get to see this glorious sunrise. May I join you?”

Alixa and Anna shifted over on the bench and Trystan sat with them, all three basking in the comfort of the sun’s warmth. After a few moments of silence, Alixa turned her golden eyes from the beauty of the sunrise and studied Trystan in interest.

“Anna and I have been discussing our reasons for our lack of sleep. I think it’s beneficial to talk about what bothers the mind, so it doesn’t bother the heart. I dreamt of Ella all night. Thankfully it was mostly good memories. Our time together as children. Our conversations and laughter. The bad memories tried as well, but I refused to let them overwhelm me. Anna has told me it’s better to focus on the good and the bad will fade.” She smiled at the young girl and Trystan realized that Alixa possibly saw a lot of herself in the withdrawn Anna. “Would you like to share your reason for lack of sleep, Trystan? Don’t take this the wrong way, but you look terrible. Did you rest at all?”

“Thank you for the compliment on my appearance,” Trystan laughed and Alixa joined in. It was nice to hear her laugh.

“Well you know me, never one to stay quiet when something needs to be said.”

“Careful, Lady Alixa. That sounds dangerously close to something my mother would say.”

Trystan did a double take at Anna’s words before realizing the young girl was actually teasing. So, she did possess a sense of humor under all that gloom. Even the slight smile she sent Alixa’s way transformed her face, making her look more like the young child she should be. Trystan wanted to make the smile grow.

“Yes, we all saw that last night, did we not? I almost felt sorry for Mira and Wren. Your mother is a formidable woman. I must admit, I’m glad she stands with me and not Calis Bearne. You are lucky to have your mother’s support.”

Alixa caught his gaze over Anna’s head and nodded in approval of his words. They had both grown up motherless. They both knew how lucky Anna was to have her mother’s love.

“Be that as it may, Trystan, you still haven’t told us the reason you’ve crawled your way out of bed at sunrise. I’ve told you of my reason. Now it’s your turn. Anna says you must talk about your fears or else they will continue to haunt you. She’s a smart girl, this one.”

Trystan chuckled softly. “Talk about my fears? Where do I begin?” He stared off into the distance for a moment, gathering his thoughts. “I worry for Ri and Davi. It’s been weeks now and still no word. I worry about the approaching war. Will we be ready in time? Will we be able to defeat Calis at his own game? I worry for my people. For their safety. I do not wish to lose anyone else. I dreamt it happening last night and…” He glanced down at the girl, rapt at his story. “Never mind. It’s not important. What’s important is breakfast right now. I’m starving.”

“No, please, sire.” Anna grabbed his hand imploringly. “You must continue. To keep your fears hidden will eat at your mind and soul. Tell us what bothers you.”

He stared into the young eyes that had seen far too much in their short years. As if he couldn’t help himself, his words started up again.

“I dreamt of horrible things. Of loss and death. I dreamt of a village on fire. A village I do not know, yet it was as real to me as this garden is right now. Others were there as well. Ri, Davi, Ramsey, Lorelai, Rion, Edric. They were all there screaming in pain as blue flames swept through the village, incinerating everything in its path and Calis’ army looked on.”

Anna’s tiny gasp stopped his words and he worried he had gone too far. He didn’t mean to scare the child.

“A village engulfed in blue flame? Your Majesty, I too have dreamt of this. A horrifying nightmare of people screaming and dying, brought down on them as reprisal from the mad king. Tell me, was there a statue at the head of this village? A statue of King Marcus?”

A cold wave of fear chilled Trystan’s blood at the girl’s words. The vision of a finely sculpted image of his father at the village’s entrance entered his head. He’d seen it in his dream, along with the blue flames.

“Yes.” His voice was practically a whisper, scared for what the girl would say next. “But it was just a dream. A nightmare. It wasn’t real.”

“Sire, the village is very real. I’ve been there with Wren. It’s Briarwood, a village at the Dreach-Dhoun border. That we both share it tells me our dream is no dream at all. I fear it is instead, a prophecy.”

* * *

“Trystan you are not listening to reason.”

Wren gripped the edge of the table and glared Trystan’s way. His anger was evident, but so was his concern.

“We do not have time to argue this point.” Trystan glared back. “I fear Anna is correct. This event will happen if we don’t stop it. Briarwood is three days of hard riding. We must get there as quickly as possible, which means leaving now.”

“The king is correct.” Avery stared down her nose at Wren, her displeasure with him for all to see. “Speed is of the essence.”

Wren raised a hand and rubbed the back of his neck. “I understand your concern. I do. And I believe in my sister’s gift, but we cannot walk into this foolishly. If your dream is true, this village’s fate lies in the hands of an army of Calis’ men. We cannot afford to fall into their grasp. And as much as I believe in the fighting ability of Avery and yourself, you two alone cannot take on a squadron of men. Men armed with magic. We must send an army to deal with an army and that takes time. We need a day to prepare.”

“I hate to admit it, Trystan, but I agree with Wren.” Alixa’s voice severed the stare down between Trystan and Wren. The worst of it was, Trystan did not disagree with Wren’s idea. He knew the man was correct. Putting a contingent together took time. Time they could not afford to waste.

“Can you do it in half a day?”

Wren threw his hands up in the air and stepped away from the table. “Mother earth, grant me patience.” His gaze flicked Lady Yaro’s way. “Mother, help me out here, will you?”

Lady Yaro regarded them both from her position at the head of the table. Anna sat demurely at her side.

“I don’t often say this, sire, but my son speaks wisdom. We need time to prepare. If we are to stop this event from happening, we need men, supplies, weapons, horses. We do not have enough horses here to supply an army of one hundred, let alone what you will need to take with you. These people you see outside, they volunteered and have trained well, yes. But they are poor peasant folk, mostly. They walked here on foot or came by wagon. We do not have the horses and wagons needed to transport them. As we speak, my messengers are on their way to the closest outlying villages to gather those things. Packhorses, palfreys, workhorses, anything that can move. We will hurry the best we can but that will take some time.” Lady Yaro glanced over at her daughter and grasped her hand tight. “Anna’s gifts are a blessing, but they do not always follow a linear timeline. This event may be days away, or it may have already happened. You must brace yourself for that possibility, Trystan.”

Trystan granted Lady Yaro a hard stare. “No. I refuse to believe that. This has not occurred yet. Ri and Davi are still very much alive. I know it. I feel it in my heart. There was no way they’d be taken out that easy. Not my sister. Not the woman she’s become. She’d take Calis’ army out single handedly before she’d let any harm come to that village or her people. Of that I’m certain.” He took a deep breath and pushed himself back from the table. Pacing around the room, deep in thought, he whirled back to Lady Yaro and her son. “Fine, I agree. We wait, but we leave at first light with what we have. As of right now, what are our numbers? Avery, we arrived with fifty men and horses, yes?”

“Yes, Sire.”

“And what can you provide us with as of this moment, Lady Yaro? Where do we stand?”

“Body wise, we stand strong. Out of the thousand plus soldiers in the fields, over half of them have already been supplied weapons and armor. They are ready to battle. Travel wise, with the horses and wagons we have on hand we can possibly send one hundred and fifty, give or take a few. That gives you two hundred able-bodied men and women, some proficient with magic as well. Some not.”

“And what do you expect your villages to be able to supply?”

“With their horses and wagons we should be able to double that number. Will it be enough? You had the dream. You saw Calis’ army. Will four hundred bodies be enough?”

Trystan’s mind dredged up the memory he had been trying desperately all day to avoid. Closing his eyes, he pictured the village. He saw the blue flames dancing from cottage to cottage. He heard the screams of the people as the heat of the flames melted the flesh from their bones. Their desperate attempt to escape the ring of fiery death as Calis’ men encircled the village, firing upon anyone lucky enough to make it through the flames alive. A sea of men and women standing deep in shadows that stretched back into the hills surrounding the village. At least double or more of the four hundred they were able to send.

“Yes, it will be enough.” He ignored Anna’s eyes as they finally lifted and met his. In them he could see her puzzlement. Her disbelief that he had so blatantly lied. She said nothing however, and Trystan was grateful for that. He needed everyone to believe that they could do this. He could not afford to have them give up hope before they even began.

“Lady Yaro, Lady Alixa, I need you both to cull the troops. Check with the commanders of each house and choose their best swordsman, the best archers, the best magic wielders. We need every single body to count. While you are doing that, Avery, Wren and I will be formulating a battle plan. For this to work, we need to act with speed and precision. We can’t afford to make any mistakes.”

“Understood, your Majesty.” Lady Yaro stood and walked out of the room, Anna following close behind. Alixa turned as if to follow, but instead approached Trystan. She placed a hand on his arm, her gold eyes searching his face in concern. “I know you’re worried, but Ri is far more resourceful than you give her credit for. Davi too. Even Ramsey. If anyone can save this village before we can get there, it’ll be them. Don’t worry.”

He gave a curt nod, tamping down the need to pull her into his arms for the much needed support he wanted from her touch right now. Instead, he made do with lacing her fingers through his and gripped her hand tight. She smiled at him before turning away and he watched her walk out of the room, her words echoing in his head.

Don’t worry.

Easier said than done. He was worried. Extremely worried. Worried that four hundred men would prove not enough. Worried that those he loved were awaiting a fiery death. Worried that none of them would make it back alive. Worries his father had faced every day, no doubt. But he was his father’s son. He would try his best. For his people. For Ri. For Alixa. He just prayed that they wouldn’t be too late.