The Union

And then the door creaked open. Vernice first reaction was that of annoyance. It seemed one of his squires entered his room without knocking. But then he realized that none of his squires were like that. Even the talkative one was tamed enough to respect him with a knock. His nerves were shaken by the remaining possibility. And that grim possibility was confirmed by the voice that followed.

"Writing a letter?" the old man asked in a surprised tone "May I ask to whom are you sending that one?"

Cold sweat trickled from Vernice"s forehead. He swallowed and tightened his throat a bit.

"A merchant friend in Ront. I was just asking for prices of grain. You know, trade stuff. A man got to make his living right?"

Vernice let out a small chuckle and hoped the old man would buy his story.

The old man stepped forward, slowly and with a smile. Every step tugged Vernice"s heart. Every moment was excruciating. When the old man was just a few steps away from Vernice, he opened his palm.

"May I see?"

Vernice took the sealed letter and gave it to the old man. His palms were sweaty enough that the letter almost fell from his hand.

"What a unique seal. A lion inside a teardrop. I thought the seal of your family is shaped like unharvested wheat?"

"My friend and I have this secret seal" Vernice again let out a brief chuckle "Childish right?"

The old man stared at him while smiling. The stare lasted for what seemed like eons to Vernice. That smile soon vanished.

"Remember what I told you earlier about what will happen to you if you betray us?"

Vernice nodded.

The old man lowered his head a bit. Vernice saw the moment the old man"s lips crurved into a smile.

"And did you betray us?"

"I didn"t. No. I am on your side remember? Why do you doubt my loyalty?" Vernice hurriedly said.

"Only fools would trust a man they"ve known for but a day. I do not want to doubt your loyalty Earl vernice. But I do think you betrayed us. Why else would you write a red-sealed letter to a merchant friend? If your intention is just to ask for grain prices then you should have used a brown wax. Well I may be wrong and a sure do hope so. Because if I"m right..." he looked at Vernice- expressionless as if looking at an insect.

"You will burn"

The old man proceeded to open the letter and started to read. Vernice knew it was over. He clasped the top of his cane, ready to draw the hidden blade.

The old man"s eyes widened. It was followed by a grin.

"You did betray us" his cold voice sounded.

Flame then burned from the old man"s hand. It was burning. The old man"s hand was burning.

Vernice stepped back. The once dimly lit room was illuminated like day. It was hot. The cold sweat turned into perspiration.

And then the old man suddenly turned around. Another man, moving like a shadow in the darkness tried to stab him from behind with a shortsword. It wasn"t successful. The old man sidestepped, dodging the stab. He tried to catch the shadowy figure with his burning hands but the shadow was also fast.

But after a few more attempts the old man cornered the shadow. The flame burned hot. The shadow took the form of a man with a hat and black coat. He was leaning back against the corner of the room.

The shadowy figure started to scream in agony. He was not being burned but the heat must have been painful. He was protecting his face with his arms.

Vernice uncapped the top of his cane. He held the blade firm. His rushed towards the back of the old man, almost falling several times.

The old man of course noticed his heavy approach. He looked behind and tried to dodge. But he was facing two enemies now. The shadowy figure, despite still being in pain, again stabbed his sword. The old man was again able to dodge. But it was Vernice"s strike that connected. He was able to draw blood from the old man"s shoulder.

The old man grimaced in pain. He stepped back and studied his two opponents. The three of them came into a stanstill.

"The two of you will soon burn!" the old man dropped a threat. "The cull will soon come. You made the wrong choice oh dear Earl. You should have given your loyalty to us rather than your King. That King of yours will be destroyed by us anyway. But first this city will burn. I will show you how we deal with traitors!"

With a sneer he ran away. Blood dripped on the floor, indicating that the old man"s injury wasn"t light.

Vernice, on the other hand, was shaking. He could barely stand because of his weight so he couldn"t give chase. He looked towards the shadowy man.

"Who are you?" Vernice shook his head "No. Let me first thank you"

The strange-looking man did not reply. He was still grimacing from pain.

"Are you alright?" Vernice asked

"This is not the time for idle talks" he finally said "We just p.i.s.sed him off. You must capture Ivan or else the other n.o.bles would besiege Anthapis"

Vernice realized that the he was right. Anthapis just openly declared its allegiance to the King. The rebellious n.o.bles would surely attack the city. He must act fast to capture Ivan or at least put the city on lockdown.

His legs were still weak but he forced himself to walk forward. The strange-looking man grabbed his wrist.

"On second thought write to the King first. You cannot capture Ivan anyway. Not with that man protecting him. Tell King Timothy that we need help. Tell him that I"m here. Tell him that the Spectator is in Anthapis and the situation is dire"

**********

The gates of Anthapis closed one after another behind them. With a heavy bang the iron things dropped.

Ivan was riding with what remained of his Wismarines. Helios beside him was injured.

He looked behind. They escaped. Helios was fast and they were able to escape. But Ivan was burning with anger.

"That fat pig!" He exclaimed.

"Hush now boy" Helios said and then turned an eye towards him "Your Majesty I mean. That pig will pay. Oh yes he will. I will roast him personally"

In Helios" voice was anger. It was rare for the old man to show such demeanor.

"So what are we going to do now?" Ivan asked

Helios leaned forward on his horse.

"I said that I will make you a King. I said that Timothy will fall. I shall abide by my words. But first we need to Anthapis. I was tricked by that fat Earl but never again will I make the same mistake" he glanced at Ivan "How many serfs can the n.o.bles raise?"

Ivan thought for an estimate. The sixteen Barons and two Earl had thousands of serfs under them.

"Nearly ten thousand. Twenty if the serfs are to fight with bare hands. It"s the weapons we lack, not the population"

"That"s good enough. Our contracted mercenaries will also arrive soon"

Ivan didn"t talk after that. He was contented as long as he gets the crown.

*********

Nighttime during snow seasons was a time of silence. The city of Anthapis was usually bathed in inactivity.

But that night the city was alive as if it was day. People were woken by blares of horns and shouts of sentries. The city guards were like bees buzzing in search of fugitives. The personal guards of the Earl were also put into motion.

At first everyone was confused. The Earl of Lards wasn"t one to rouse people from their slumber. Everybody knew that something must have happened.

The city center was filled with a crowd thirsty for information. And then a representative stepped into the platform. The murmurs of the crowd hushed.

The representative cleared his throat. He was holding a piece of paper with scribbles on it. He held the paper and started reading.

"I, Earl Vernice Devon, Earl of Anthapis and its surrounding lands, is a witness to Prince Ivan"s betrayal to the crown. With the responsibility given to me by the King, I shall bring Prince Ivan into justice. Every citizen of Anthapis, serf or landowner, is hereby commanded to do the prince harm if he or she is able. Anthapis shall stand by the King in these hard times. The city gates will be locked night and day until the arrival of a suitable representative of the King. Curfew shall be implemented. A militia shall be levied from the populace. I urge you, citizens of Castonia, to support our King in these difficult times. Long live King Timothy and may the Omniscient"s light give us strength"