Cryos & Jade- Secrets Page 4
“Thank you again for your help, Sir,” Torina said as Gar led her through the castle.
“Think nothing of it,” Gar said. “I’m always glad to help — Oh, good eve, Sir.”
One of the castle guards had turned a corner, nearly bumping into them.
“Stablemaster,” the guard greeted with a suspicious eye. “Why are you roaming the castle at this late hour?”
“The princess commanded a meeting with this fine lady,” Gar answered.
The guard eyed Torina.
“It’s past midnight, Gar. The princess is asleep.”
“Oh, aye, Sir. But she was quite specific. She demanded the meeting be at this very hour.”
“Is that so?”
Gar held out his hands plaintively.
“Beggin’ your pardon, Sir. I only do what I’m told. This lady requested to meet with her, I informed the princess, and the princess demanded a midnight meeting. Might odd, if you ask me, but I don’t question my liege.”
“I will have to verify this with her majesty.”
“Oh, to be sure. It’s just that…well…”
“Well, what?”
“Her majesty was quite specific. You’ve heard of her odd behavior as of late, I’m sure. Well, she wanted this meeting without guards and without escort. When I suggested she have a guard with her, she became quite angry, like I was defyin’ her orders. I only meant to help. Threatened to remove me from my post, she did. But I’m sure you’ll be safe in your position, what with bein’ a royal guard.”
The guard looked unsure, and Gar pounced.
“I have an idea. Why don’t you get approval from the King? The girl and I will wait at the princess’s chambers. We won’t go in until you return. That way she can’t say a word about you disturbin’ her sleep.”
“You’ll wait here and not move from this spot until I can confirm with the King.”
“Oh, Aye, Sir. Whatever you say. We won’t move a muscle.”
The guard eyed the Gar a moment longer and then proceeded down the corridor.
“C’mon,” Gar said as soon as the guard was out of sight.
“Master Gar,” Torina said as she hurried to keep up with the large man. “Are you sure about this? I don’t want to anger her majesty. And the guard said to wait.”
“Oh, don’t worry about that, Lass. The princess is quite prepared to see you. It’s true she’s asleep, but — Ah, here we are.”
They had arrived at a set of double doors flanked on either side by large gargoyle statues. Torina stared at Cryos, doing everything she could not to reach out and touch him.
Why is it disguised as a statue and how is it able to stay in our world? I have to know.
Before she could bring herself to ask the Sil itself, Gar stepped in front of her and placed a hand on her back. “Now, just go on inside, young miss. You’ll have to shake her rather hard to wake her. She sleeps like a rock, she does.”
He opened the door and began shoving Torina inside.
“Master Gar, I don’t know if I can—“
“In you go now,” he said with a final shove. He closed the door before she objected further. Torina stood stock still in the darkness of the bed chamber. She felt so nervous, her stomach churned. Her eyes adjusted and she saw a large, four-poster bed across the room. Her heart jumped into her throat as she observed the lump that must be the sleeping princess.
What am I doing here? I just wanted to know about the Sil, and if the princess was a summoner like me. And if she’s not, how did a Sil come to live in the castle?
The door opened. Torina glanced back, only to see it close again.
Perhaps I could still talk to the Sil.
She could still sense it. It had moved. But she could also sense other things. Several items, in fact. Her head slowly turned to a dark corner of the room.
There.
Her feet carried her as if they possessed a will of their own, the objects drawing her to them. She came to a chest, barely visible in the dim light of the stars. She knelt and opened it. A dagger, a large crystal, two small beads, all composed of jade. They glowed in her presence. Her hand went instinctively to the dagger.
A key? Some part of her thought distantly.
Something clamped down on her chest. Coming to herself, she felt herself being lifted off the ground and screamed.
***
Beverly sat bolt-upright in her bed. Someone was screaming. She saw Cryos standing in her room, a figure held aloft by his massive claw, the jade dagger casting its eerie glow somewhere on the figure’s far side.
“Cryos? What’s happening?”
“This thief is stealing your dagger.”
“No!” squeaked a young voice, “You’re not a Sil! What are you?”
The blade came into view, its glow casting light on Cryos and the face of Torina. Cryos reached for the dagger hand. Torina slashed, slicing Cryos’ palm. The huge gargoyle roared and dropped the girl. She bolted for the door, but Beverly tackled her.
“No! Let me go!” Torina screamed. She flipped to her back and slashed at Beverly. The princess avoided the blow and grasped for the girl’s flailing arms.
“Torina, stop!” Beverly yelled. “Calm yourself!”
A huge claw gripped Torina by her tunic and hauled her into the air.
“No!” Torina screamed. “Someone help me!”
The bedroom doors burst open, and two guards rushed in. Cryos had Torina in the air, his arm moving in a downward arc to slam her against the floor. Between Cryos’s strength and the girl’s lithe frame, Torina would not survive the impact.
Beverly opened her mouth to stop Cryos, but Torina shouted out, “Galindra!”
A terrible wind pulled at Beverly, lifting her from the ground and sending her hurtling towards the window.
“Cryos!”
She flew towards the loyal gargoyle who along with Torina and the guards were also being pulled towards the window. Cryos caught his feet on either side of the window, his grip holding firm on Torina who appeared unconscious. The guards grabbed hold of the posts of Beverly’s bed. Beverly grasped at Cryos’s outstretched claw, missing it as she flew over his head. The wind carried her out the window. His claw clamped down on the end of her shift. He flattened his wings, leaning back with his pull, even as Beverly felt the fabric tearing.
She oriented towards the sky beyond the castle, and her blood ran cold at the sight. Suspended in the air, a distance away, lay an enormous, circular void into which anything not held down was being drawn. The void sat at the center of the form of a woman with an alien face and a robe of shimmering colors. Her arms in over-sized sleeves stretched out, her form so vast it filled the sky, obscuring both star and moon. Her whole form glowed with a magical radiance. Her solid-white eyes stared down at Beverly.
The fabric of Beverly’s shift tore.
She screamed as she tumbled towards the void. Then, just as suddenly as it started, the wind ceased, and Beverly felt herself falling. She screamed again as the ground rushed up towards her. Her arm jerked, pain ripping through her shoulder as the ground sped past in a dizzying blur. She landed hard, rolling in the short grass before at last coming to a stop. A groan escaped her throat as she pushed herself to her knees. The sky was empty, the mysterious woman gone without a trace. Cryos lay in a crumpled heap a few feet away. She crawled to him.
“Cryos! Cryos, answer me!”
She shook him, and he stirred. Beneath him was the girl, Torina. Unconscious, but alive. Her brown horse hair was gone, replaced by a head of sea-green locks trimmed short.
“Are you all right?” she asked Cryos, helping him to his feet.
“I am unharmed,” Cryos answered. He reached for the girl.
“No,” Beverly said, pulling his arm away.
“She tried to kill you.”
“She was scared and confused. And you almost killed her.”
Cryos paused.
“Do you no longer wish me to protect you?” he asked.
“If someone is trying to kill you, there is often not time to question why. There is only time to act. You were in danger and I acted to save you.”
There was a hint of something in his voice. Anger? He had never showed anger before, not towards her, at least not since he had become her protector. Beverly wanted to object further, but she found herself unable. He did what he promised to do. He protected her, even if it had been overboard. He did what he knew to be right, and she had just chided him for it.
“Cryos,” she said, “I...I’m s—”
“Your majesty,” someone yelled. “Step away from that creature!”
Beverly whirled to see a troop with torches and spears rush up, their boots thudding on the lawn, their glinting chain mail clattering through the still night.
“No!” she shouted as one guard grabbed her arm and dragged her back. “No, don’t hurt him!”
“Stay back, your majesty! We will protect you!”
“Let me go! Listen to me!”
“Die, foul creature!”
Cryos roared and flared his wings. Beverly wrenched her arm from the guard’s grip. “Stand down now! And do that creature no harm!”
“Your Maj—“
“I am Beverly Lithos of the Greys, Heir Apparent to the throne of Thoral Island. You will do as I command and stand down immediately!”
She balled her hands into fists, her face hot with anger. The men lowered their weapons and stared at her. Cryos allowed his wings to relax. Beverly forced her way through the men and embraced Cryos. Hands shaking, with rage or fear, she didn’t know; she turned to the men who stood staring with befuddled faces. She took a deep breath, forcing her words to be calm.
“Drik, take this girl to a guest room and make her comfortable. If she wakes, grant her anything she asks for, but do not permit her to leave.”
The man hesitated, eyeing Cryos.
“The gargoyle will not harm you. He obeys my commands. To your task.”
Drik made his way over, his eyes not leaving Cryos who watched his every move. He picked up the unconscious girl and carried her away just as an older man with a neatly trimmed beard walked into the circle of torchlight. He appeared calm despite the situation he was potentially facing.
“Your majesty,” he said, bowing.
“Sir Merrik,” Beverly greeted him. “I imagine you have many questions.”
“Indeed. May my men and I escort you to your father? After you have dressed more appropriately, that is.”
Beverly took a deep breath. This was what she wanted, but not like this.
No avoiding it now. You’ve brought this on yourself. Time to face it.
“You may,” she said. “Understand this gargoyle is not an enemy. He is not to be harmed.”
Sir Merrik gave a curt nod and replied, “As you wish.” He signaled to his men who made a path and then gestured Beverly forward. She joined him, Cryos close behind and the men flanking them on either side. When they reached Beverly’s chambers, the princess ducked inside and dressed in her green dress, straightened her hair and put on her circlet.
“Begging your majesty’s pardon,” Sir Merrik said as she emerged, “but I cannot allow this creature to come before the king. ‘Tis my duty to protect his majesty.”
Beverly glared at him, but didn’t protest, knowing the man would not budge on his decision and she did not have the authority to override him in this matter.
“Wait here, Cryos,” she said, “like we discussed earlier.”
Cryos obediently hopped up onto his pedestal and resumed his pose.
“Guard the gargoyle, men,” Sir Merrik ordered. “Do not let him leave. Your majesty.”
“That is hardly necessary, Sir Merrik,” Beverly said as the two of them continued down the corridor.
“Your majesty’s control over the creature notwithstanding, I know nothing about it. And I do not take chances with things I know nothing about.”
Beverly fell into silence. A million thoughts ran through her mind. What would she say to her father? What would he say? He would probably yell at her again. Her feet slowed, the temptation to turn and run coursing through her.
“Your majesty?”
Beverly realized she had stopped walking.
“Yes, I’m...I’m coming.”
She fidgeted but did not move from her spot.
“Your majesty,” Sir Merrik said, his tone compassionate, “if I may be so bold, he is your father. Though his anger may burn, it is but a flare of a flame with no real fuel behind it.”
Beverly felt exposed, yet relieved to know he understood.
“You know my thoughts well,” she said.
“More that I know my liege as well as the circumstances which you face. Do you remember Trelessa?”
“Your daughter? Barely. I remember she was kind. She used to play with me when I was a child.”
Sir Merrik smiled warmly.
“Yes, that she did. She wed a nobleman from Tarsan. I have not seen her in some time. But that is aside. When the nobleman, Falset is his name, came to our land, he stayed as a guest for a time. The day before his departure, he and Trelessa came to me and announced their engagement. Apparently, she had been seeing him clandestinely. I was furious, both at myself for allowing this to go unseen and at the two of them for such rash behavior and going behind my back.”
“I cannot imagine you ever being furious,” Beverly said. The man seemed to have the patience of stone.
Sir Merrik smiled and continued. “At first I refused the marriage. But your father convinced me to speak to the man, learn of his character. He stayed an extra month, and I observed him both openly and secretly. When I determined that his good character was genuine, I relented and blessed their marriage. I would have preferred for the man to ask my permission to court her, but no one is perfect and it turned out all right in the end. Her letters do not indicate otherwise. And he has sent me some as well, most recently requesting my presence at the birth of their first child.”
Beverly had to smile at that.
“Congratulations,” she said. “We must give you leave to visit them.”
“I plan to, your majesty, after things have settled here.”
Beverly’s face fell once again.
“I have delayed your plans,” she said. “I am sorry, Sir Merrik. I understand the lesson. I should have been open with you and Father about Cryos from the start.”
“No, no, no. That was not the point of my tale. My point was that I loved my daughter and eventually Tarsan as well. That love was greater than any mistakes they may have made and was enough to humble me to give Tarsan an opportunity to prove himself. Your father is of a similar mind. He will no doubt be angry, as he should be given your indiscretion. But if your friend is truly as I have observed, he will see the good in it.”
Beverly’s eyes widened.
“You knew?”
Sir Merrik smiled.
“Humility was not the only thing I learned from my daughter’s engagement,” he said. “But it was not my place to bring before the king. Katrice knew as well about your escapades, though she did not know of your friend. She suspected it highly, however.”
“I guess I wasn’t as careful as I thought.”
“People tend to notice when large statues disappear and reappear the next morning. And when a princess is exhausted each day, it is not hard to put the pieces together.”
Beverly sighed and put her head in her hand.
“I’m such a fool,” she said. Sir Merrik remained silent. She knew his thoughts on youth and foolishness. He had expounded it to her many times in the practice yard. She squared her shoulders. “Well, I suppose I asked for this. Thank you, Sir Merrik. Your words have wisdom, as they always have.”
“It is an honor to serve you, my lady,” he said bowing.
Strengthened by his words, Bev
erly walked towards her father’s chambers, Sir Merrik walking at her side. They reached the double-doors flanked by four guards. Sir Merrik signaled to them, and two of them opened the chamber doors. Standing in the center of his room, regal and proper, wearing a blue and silver tunic, breaches, and boots, a silver circlet on his head, was her father, King David Lithos of Thoral Island. Beverly breathed. Her hands clasped behind her back to keep them from shaking, she walked into the chamber, Sir Merrik at her side.
“Your majesty,” he said, “The castle is secure and your daughter is unharmed. The one that is cause for the disturbance is being held in a guest chamber on the princess’s orders. I shall leave the rest to her majesty, the princess.”
The king nodded, his face grim. Beverly thought she saw a hint of compassion in his eyes, as though he wanted to embrace her, but held himself in check. Sir Merrik bowed and left the room. The doors closed behind him with a quiet boom, leaving Beverly alone with her father the king. Gathering all her courage, she remembered Sir Merrik’s words, and spoke.
“Father, I have something I must tell you.”
The story continues in Cryos & Jade Bound…
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