Chapter 10—What Remained

Rory’s eyes burned with rage as he looked at Silas laughing hysterically. Asher appeared behind him as he stepped from the shadows.

“Asher, kill him! The king was slain by his hand!”

But all Asher did was wear a faint smile with a glint of guilt in his eye.

Rory’s heart sank as he realized that the person he once considered to be a friend betrayed him and his land. He went to strike Silas, but Rory stopped unwillingly in his tracks. You could see him straining to keep his body moving but to no avail.

Silas laughed some more before saying, “Do you really think you can break through my defense? Aldwyn was right about you…You are a loyal subject that will persevere even with the odds stacked against you.” He paused with a snarl. “Too bad he was a stupid old fool.”

“Don’t speak ill of the king!” Rory shouted as his rage began to boil. “Dammit, Asher! How could you?”

“I did what I had to do…The king was starting to change. You were the only one who couldn’t see that.”

“So when I ordered you to protect the king, you allowed Silas to waltz right in!”

“Pretty much…It made my job a lot easier when you asked this of me instead of defending the castle and finding the opportune moment to sneak Silas through.”

When Asher finished his explanation, three guards came in holding Queen Naomi, Prince Delwyn, and Princess Phebe. They were dirty, clothes were torn, and hair messy. Queen Naomi was silently crying as she held her kids to shield them away from their dead father on the floor.

“Oh, the special guests have arrived!” Silas screamed in delight. “What to do…What to do…” He paced the room with excitement.

Rory ran in front of them. “You will not touch them!”

“And who are you to stop us?” Silas asked as Asher and many other of his followers stood around them. Rory could have tried to stop them, but he felt that it would be wrong. The timing just wasn’t right.

Instead of killing everyone right away, Silas threw us in the dungeons. The queen, prince, and princess were thrown into the smallest cell together. The rest of us were thrown in random cells that were filthy from their last inhabitants. Silas would get one of his followers to bring food to use once a week if they felt like it. He made the royal family into his servants that would be woken up by the crack of dawn and thrown back into their cell at dusk.

We were down there for months as Silas and his followers were tracking and capturing those who didn’t support him. When he found them, they were thrown into the dungeon. Some of us were tortured relentlessly. Townsfolk died during this time and the stench that surrounded us was horrendous, but Silas’ men would only remove them when they felt like it. Some bodies would be down there for weeks; some for months. Rory’s voice rang in my ears as he explained the terrible conditions that he had to endure.

One day while I was trying to formulate a plan to get out and save whoever I could during this excursion, I watched the queen trying to comfort her sobbing children. She was such a great mother to them, feeding them all her food and eating what little remained She would sing them a song until they fell asleep each night. As I watched this kindness, love, and compassion, I remembered the king’s dying words. I must pretend to be a follower to survive and bring him down.

This was going to be no easy task. He was everything I despised but he was so far out of reach.

After three months had passed from the day Silas overthrew the king, all of his followers came down into the dungeon, shackled us, and led us outside the castle. A guillotine was standing next to Silas and Asher. The inmates were facing the castle in an orderly fashion. It was the first time anyone had seen what had become of our city.

The castle lay in rubble, barely still holding together. Everyone’s houses and markets were burnt to the ground. The sky was gray, and the trees no longer emitted light. Everything that had made Shanaledge magical, had vanished.

“Everyone, now that you know what I can do, it is now your choice if you want to join me!” Silas announced, talking to the prisoners. “I spent many hours and many months trying to convince you of my righteous motives, to be a part of my wonderful vision, but some of you still refuse.” He paused with a smirk. “One by one, you will all stand before me and either accept my invitation or reject it…the choice is yours…”

The shackled prisoners stared at each other in bewilderment as the first person in line took his place in front of Silas.

“Do you accept my offer to join my legion? We will be powerful yet.”

“No,” the man replied in a monotonous tone.

“Very well,” Silas responded, rolling his eyes. “Guards!” He waved his hand. “You know what to do.”

The audience watched as two of Silas’ guards escorted the man to the guillotine and watched in astonishment when the blade fell, chopping off the victim’s head.

Silas burst into laughter. “If you reject my offer, you die!” he retorted in a matter-of-fact tone.

A gasp rushed through the crowd as a wave of terror took hold. “Come now to your new king, or end up like this schmuck!” Silas roared.

The next person stood in front of Silas and said, “You are no king of mine.”

Very few people died. Most of them agreed to be a part of his tyranny to avoid death, as most people do.

When it was Rory’s turn, it was obvious that there was inner turmoil. He let out a heavy breath, grit his teeth, and knelt on one knee before saying, “I join you…my king.”

Silas broke out in hysterical laughter. “Splendid…Just splendid, Rory. I have many, many plans for you!” He smirked.

The royal family remained in the dungeons as the new king’s servants. They were treated poorly and physically malnourished. Rory had felt that he had let them down. It was his duty to protect them and the king, but now, he had to take orders from a mad man. This was something that physically and mentally weighed on him.

***

Years had passed since Rory joined King Silas. Society had become much worse. No one was allowed to rebuild their homes close to the castle. Everyone lived outside the city in poor conditions and having to provide for themselves. But the king had any and everything that his heart desired. Home-cooked meals that he didn’t have to hunt or prepare. Clothes were made for him instead of him having to deal with the painstaking task himself. The tables were filled with more food than even ten people could eat. The villagers became upset and resorted to bartering their most valuable possessions to the king for something as little as bread. Crime, such as theft, became worse the more time passed. Villagers were stealing and fighting, but the king didn’t care. Silas was content with the corrupted society he created.

Within these years, Rory managed to gain Silas’s trust, but Asher remained skeptical of his motives. Even so, Rory was the person Silas always consulted with on every subject, which made Asher jealous. The abilities that the late King Aldwyn took away from Silas died with him, so missions were given to his guards; mostly the ones he trusted. These missions frequently included his men going to different realms, searching for information, objects, and something else that remained a mystery. Silas would never tell his people what it was, not even Rory.

I was awakened one night by a mad and visibly upset Asher. He told me that the king requested my presence immediately. So I hurried out of bed and ran to his side of the castle. I found him standing, arms crossed behind his back, staring out the window as if he were in deep thought.

“You wished to see me, sir,” Rory announced himself.

“Yes,” he replied, turning around to look at Rory. “These past few years, you have surprised me, Rory. That day you joined my forces, I just knew you were up to something. I’ve had eyes on you all the time and I have seen you defend your new land magnificently.” He paused for a moment as a way to clear his mind. Asher and another guard named David walked into the room. “I have always trusted you that day, allowed you to advise me in certain decisions, but I have not been completely honest with all of my intentions. When Aldwyn died, he took my powers with him, except my telepathy and telepathic defenses. With him gone, it is apparent to everyone that I can never be completely whole, nor rule this land the way I need to. This is where the three of you come into play.” A dark smirk spread across his face as his devious nature came to the surface. “As you all know, the missions I’ve sent you on have been successful. We now have all the information I need to gain back the power that was stolen. We have also successfully procured the locket that is required, but there is one piece still missing.” He let out a sigh of disappointment. “We are so close…yet so far…”

“What are you missing, my lord?” Asher asked with curiosity painting his voice.

“A girl,” he said hesitantly. “A girl from a realm we have not traveled before.”

Rory’s brow moved up as he asked, “What is this girl supposed to be able to do?”

“Bring back my powers.”

“But how, sir?”

“She has to perform a ritual, and then, if I should like, she will marry me.”

“How is it that she can bring back stolen powers?” Rory questioned in confusion. “The royals are the only ones allowed to take power away, but the same person who took it has to give it back. It has always been known that no other possesses such an ability.”

Silas let out an irritated sigh before he began. “I have been watching her for many years now. She is clumsy with her abilities and does not understand how to use them at all, which is lucky for us. The girl is peculiar because the universe continually brings her back after each death but always to the same realm, Terrah. She is permanently known as Sarai. She always physically looks the same.” His eyes started to glow with astonishment. “It’s like she is a product of the universe, meant for something important. It’s a conundrum.” Silas began to look down in deep thought. “She is supposed to be a part of Shanaledge, but she has never been born here.”

“Why not?” Asher asked, intrigued.

“Because she possesses everything that can either destroy this realm or make this realm superior. She can even bring back everyone’s abilities to such a point that they surpass their natural state.

“The king knew all about Sarai. Even monarchs before him knew, but they never sought her. But now, I have more than one purpose to have her…” Silas stayed silent for a few moments before continuing, “Rory, Asher, David, go to the realm Terrah and find this girl named Sarai. Bring her to me and give her this amulet, it helps her to use her powers more efficiently. It can also push her into Shanaledge without us having to accompany her.”

The men bowed to their king before leaving. They walked to the old training courtyard that had not been used in years. The men focused and suddenly disappeared.

While we were walking between dimensions, I felt this pull. The one you get in your chest when your soulmate is near. I followed it to the land of Terrah, which led me straight to you. You were as beautiful back then as you are to me now. I saw you. I knew exactly where you were, and from that point on, I knew I must protect you.

Terrah is a huge land that would take Asher and David a long time to navigate for one girl. So I acted like I did not see you, shielded my mind of your face from their prying eyes.

When the day started to become night, we returned to Shanaledge to report our failure to find you to the king.

“YOU MUST FIND HER!!” Silas demanded in desperation. “Go to your quarters…get out of my sight,” he said, disappointed.

The next morning we were sent again with a few more soldiers for ‘help’ tracking you down. I was by myself as were the other soldiers to cover more ground. This is when I took the opportunity to get to know you. I started to train you. As time went on, I knew I couldn’t keep you a secret much longer, but I tried anyway, with great consequence.

Asher had known I was keeping you from Silas, but he didn’t tell the king at first, nor did he confront me. He only watched my moves. After a month, Asher, along with three other followers, snatched us and brought us to Silas. While I was waiting for him to reprimand me, all I could do was worry about what they might be doing to you.

Locked in the dungeon, Rory was tortured for days before he was brought to the king. Sarai stood beside Silas with fear playing across her face. “So you thought you could keep the girl a secret from me, did you?” he began in a cool voice. “Asher! Tell him what you reported to me.”

“Over the past several weeks, Rory has been going off on his own and staying in the realm of Terrah long after he was to report back to Shanaledge. I found this behavior unusual, so I took it upon myself to find out what he was doing.” A sly smile spread across his face. “I found that he had been socializing with the subject. I felt the need to watch a few more days in case he was working to make her willingly go to Shanaledge. Unfortunately, Rory had no intention of doing so as he started to teach her how to control her abilities. I knew that he was not doing as the king wished. After digging around, I also uncovered that he found Sarai the first day we were sent out to search for her and she is his soulmate.”

Rory’s gaze moved toward Sarai who was sitting fearfully behind Silas with tears filling her eyes.

“Now…What to do with you…?” Silas murmured contemplating. Nothing was said as tension rose with the silence. “You were a great soldier, Rory…But this betrayal cannot go unpunished. I hereby banish you from Shanaledge.”

“But this is my home!” Rory replied desperately.

“Yes…And it’s a shame too. But be warned: if you set foot in Shanaledge ever again, you shall be killed.”

“What about Sarai? What will you do to her?”

“Don’t you worry, dear Rory. She will be just fine.” A malicious smirk ran across his face as Rory disappeared.

***

Rory let go of me. The memories were over.

“All that I remembered that day was that grotesque smirk that was plastered on his face as I was banished to Terrah for the rest of my life.”

“What happened to me?” I asked sadly, realizing that there was no way he could possibly answer this question.

“I’m not sure. I was running through so many plans in my mind, trying to figure out a way to rescue you, until about two days later, you died…” His voice became morose. “I felt you die.”

“How?” I asked, confused.

“It’s a part of our abilities when we meet our soulmates…Whenever your soulmate dies, there is an unexplainable feeling of loss that can never go away.”

“I died…”

“Yes, my love. I’m not sure if Silas killed you, or if you killed yourself, or maybe the ritual he spoke of was too powerful for you.”

I remained silent for a while, thinking how all of this could be true… “Is there a way for me to be able to access my memories?”

“I do not think so, my love. We have tried before, and you never succeeded.”

“Then how did I access those memories with the house in the forest?”

“I honestly don’t know, my love.”