An angel’s road to hell

25. Of duties, plans and a little bit of trickery

Cassandra Pendragon

We all rushed to Greta’s side and bombarded her with questions: “you’re awake, how can you be awake? Do you know what happened? Can you move?…”

“Calm yourselves. I’m fine for the most part but still drained. Are we still in danger?” She croaked. Before anyone could answer I replied: “Yes, we are. We should get moving. Can you walk?” “With a little help I should be fine. Why the rush? What’s going on? All seems quiet.” “My husband and two soldiers are waiting for us in the courtyard. Let’s get there first before we start talking.” My mother interrupted. “We should hurry.” Greta didn’t insist but rose slowly to her feet. Ahri, who had picked two more blades from the wall while we had been talking, had to keep her steady but she could move. We didn’t waste any more time and headed to the courtyard.

The others were back already. Mordred and my father were clad in mithril from head to toe. Mordred carried his longsword and my father had his sceptre in hand. All three of the guards, Jules had been given a healing potion, wore steel plate and had mithril shields and halberds in their hands. I didn’t see any additional equipment, but it was probably stashed away in my father’s dimensional stamp. A short explanation about artefacts, runes and alchemy might be in order. Materials could be imbued with different forms of energy. In short, the right substance could be enchanted to do anything a sentient could do, sometimes even more. Several practitioners could work together to create a single artefact, for example, or the enchantments could be strengthened through other means, like sacrifices or energy sources. The power of an artefact was mainly limited by the ingenuity of the creator.

The purpose of alchemy was transformation. Practitioners extracted the energetic essence, mostly of plants and used them to create something new. A healing potion, for example, could be produced with mana essences, life essences or soul essences resulting in three different grades of purity. The plants and substances to extract the essences from became increasingly more difficult to find and the rituals of transformation became ever more complex and difficult. A mana based healing potion would stimulate the natural healing process and supply as much energy as was contained in it. It couldn’t regrow limbs or cure poisons but almost any injury would disappear in a matter of seconds. And they were expensive. A life based potion would heal the very life essence itself, it would basically reset the body to a healthy version, short of death there was nothing it couldn’t cure. We had one of those in the armoury. I had never heard about what a soul potion could do, or even what ingredients could hold soul energy but I imagined it to be rather spectacular.

Runes were something else entirely. They reflected the mastery over a concept, be a light, fire, water or something more esoteric like sharpness. The more knowledge the creator had, the closer the runes could mirror the concept. They were basically formations used to channel energy into specific patterns and the more detailed the formations were, the more far reaching the effects could be. The protection Ahri had created for example had channeled mana into a cage around Greta and the shadow had been forced to deplete the stored energy before it could overcome the runic barrier. If Ahri had been there to supplement them with energy continuously, she should have been able to hold the barrier indefinitely. Hmm… I should remember that.

Anyway, I didn’t know exactly what my dad had stored away in his stamp but I knew we had some interesting artefacts and a view bottles of healing potions down in the armoury. Usually potions wouldn’t effect me, their energy couldn’t circulate through my body, but Greta had told me early on that I could mix a drop of my blood into them. It would act as a catalyst and allow the potion to work. Unfortunately that meant every alchemical poison that came into contact with my blood would work just as well. I had received a painful reminder of that fact not half an hour ago.

We gathered around my dad and he quickly scrutinised everyone of us. “We have 10 healing potions left. Cassy, Greta you should each take one.” He closed his eyes for a moment and concentrated. Two vials filled with an emerald potion appeared in his hand. He handed one to each of us and continued: “We have enough weapons and armour for all of us but I don’t know if any of you can use them. For the observation orbs and other artefacts I need a quiet place and some time to activate them. We could try to barricade in the dungeon or the armoury and activate the orbs before we make any decisions.” I cleared my throat:

“Unfortunately I don’t think we can. I have an idea what might be happening…” I had already mixed my potion with a drop of blood and downed the concoction. I could feel the muscles and ligaments in my back regenerate as I started talking. I quickly reiterated Mordred’s story, what I knew about shadows and the emperor and continued: “the only reason I can see, why the emperor would risk an attack, is if he expects he will be able to replenish his forces. I think he has used the last days to brand members of the other families and is taking over the palaces right now. When he’s done, the remaining shadows will descend on us like foxes on a rabbit.” Silence was the only answer I received. Everybody was looking at me and I could see despair creep into their eyes. We were only nine, if I was correct how were we supposed to get out alive, let alone protect our home? My father was the first to find his voice again:

“We won’t know if you are right until we can either communicate with one of the palace or get the observation orbs to work. As far as I can tell our options didn’t change. We can either try to reach the dwarfs in the garden or we stay and barricade down. We could also try to go on the offensive, but I’m not sure what the nine of us (he didn’t include Adam for obvious reasons) could do. We had over 50 guards in our palace and these three are the only ones left. I can’t imagine how we could even start fighting against another, probably even larger, horde of shadows.”

“If we decide to leave, we would have to sneak down the stairs or I would have to carry you all down one by one. I don’t think the stairs are unguarded, the emperor wouldn’t have such a lapse of judgement. If I were to carry you down, I would bet the shadows will be onto us before I touched down in the garden for the first time. We would also lose our foothold on Boseiju and either have to abandon our home or fight our way back up the stairs against everything he decides to throw our way.” I paused briefly. “There is another option, though. We could split up. Fortify a place to activate the artefacts, try to reach the dwarfs and sneak into the other palaces, all at the same time. If some of us get caught, the others would still have a chance to succeed. We could gather our forces in the garden and still have people on Boseiju who can relay information or simply keep the emperor occupied while we try to take back our home.” Nobody liked what I had had to say, but they didn’t contradict me either. We all knew that, most likely, not all of us would make it through the night and this way we would at least not go down together in a blaze of useless glory.

“If we do this I want you, your brother and Adam down in the garden with the dwarfs. I won’t even contemplate it otherwise!” This time my mom had been the first to speak up. I understood where she was coming from, but that didn’t mean I agreed. I had already expected to be sent down, I could fly after all and my abilities were rather narrow. I could use my wings to a devastating degree against enchantments and magical beings but I couldn’t use spells or even fight properly. Up here I could only be of some help in guarding the artefacts and whoever was operating them, but even then I would be at a loss if I were to come face to face with normal soldiers, let alone accomplished spell slingers. They would put me six feet under with an indirect spell like a flying rock or a guided weapon before I would even see them coming.

Mordred was another matter. He could cast spells, was a formidable warrior in his own right and the only one who had met the emperor personally. Sending him away was just dumb. Before I could voice my opinion though, Greta had already answered for me:

“I think Cassandra is right but I also agree with Helena, for the most part. Cassy and Adam should leave but I don’t think Mordred should tack along. If it’s just the two of them, she can take off right here and now and be with the dwarfs before anyone is the wiser. With Mordred it would make for two trips and we sorely need him here. He is the best fighter we have and his magical knowledge and spell casting abilities rival my own. Don’t let your worries make a fool out of you, Helena.”

My mother had already opened her mouth to voice just how much she cared about Greta’s opinion when my dad placed a hand on her upper arm and whispered into her ear:

“You know she is right. But also think about what would happen if you were to send Mordred away. He is a fighter and the prince of this kingdom. He would be on the frontlines when they were to retake the stairs to Boseiju, whatever we say or do beforehand.” He turned to me and added: “but you won’t. I want your promise that you will stay away from fights as well as you possibly can. Should it look like we are about to lose, you will take everyone that’s willing to listen with you and abandoned this island. There is an airship close to the dwarven mines. When push comes to shove, you will take it. Have I made myself clear?”

“Do you really expect me to turn tails on everyone I care about? Forget it, I will fly down but you don’t have a chance to make me abandon all of you and my home!” I meant it, I didn’t want to survive alone and without a home, let alone the guilt I’d be carrying around with me for the rest of my life. If we were to fail, I’d fight to the very end alongside everyone else.

“That wasn’t a question!” My father thundered. “I’m ordering you as your father and your king to get to the dwarfs and abandon us if it should become necessary.”

“I understand. I’m not going to obey.” That shocked him enough for me to continue: “my personal feelings aside, I can’t abandon our people. Didn’t you always preach that being a royal was mainly a duty, not a privilege? I’m more than ready to do anything that will bolster our chances but I’m not going to run. It wouldn’t be right and I’m not going to do it.” He opened his mouth once, twice but couldn’t muster a response. I hoped it was because he thought I was right and not because he was too indignant for words.

Greta’s soft chuckle cut through the heavy silence: “I don’t know if I should congratulate you on bringing her up the right way or if I should pity you for all the fights you sure are going to have with her. But she’s right. You can’t make her leave and I don’t think you even should. Even if you ignore her heritage, she’s more than just your daughter, she’s a princess. You shouldn’t make her shirk her responsibilities.” Both my parents fixes her with a share that should have killed her by all rights. Greta simply shrugged and added: “just ask yourselves: would you leave your home, especially if it’s on the brink of destruction?” Mordred nodded silently.

Unexpectedly Jules, the guard who had been hit on the head, interfered as well: “begging your highness’s pardon, I didn’t understand everything that has been said but from what I did understand and could witness in the last half hour, the princess has earned the right to fight, if she so wishes. I know it’s not my place to speak up, but I thought someone who isn’t closely related or a guardian to her should. Pardon my impudence, your highness.”

My father seemed ready to explode but my mom calmed him down with a gentle touch: “Albert, they are correct. I don’t like it any more than you do, but we don’t have the right, let alone the means to send her away.” She turned to me and added: “but should we come out of this alive, I expect you to remember what you said. Being a royal is mainly a duty and you will start to take it seriously. We’ll talk about the future tomorrow, but if you want to be treated like an adult, you should better behave like one.” Fighting, healing and now politics… dying tonight didn’t seem so bad all of a sudden. Well not really, but I couldn’t imagine that I would enjoy the changes to my life if we pulled through. Never the less I answered: “Fair enough. Just promise me you’ll be around to make sure I don’t forget.” Her expression softened and she stared into my eyes for a long time before she answered: “I promise, whatever happens this won’t be the last time we see each other.” I had to fight to keep my tears back but I still rushed in and embraced my mom tightly. After a second I pulled my dad and brother into the hug as well and whispered: “thanks, stay safe. All of you.” I pulled back, unsure if I would ever be able to let them go if I remained in their warmth for longer. I tuned to Greta and Ahri and asked: “would you come with me for a moment? There is something I want to give to you.” “More secrets?” My father inquired suspiciously. “Not really, it’s about a spell Greta used. It’s no good at the moment but maybe they can make it work before you encounter any more enemies.” It wasn’t a lie, per se, but it wasn’t the truth either. My dad stared at me for a moment longer but finally nodded his okay.

Greta and Ahri joined me and we walked a good distance, I knew how good kitsune hearing could be. When we were about 20 meters away, I turned around and intended to start talking, but my voice caught. It really hit me then that this might as well be the last time I could ever speak to them. There was so much I wanted to say, but nothing of it had anything to do with the present. No, I would see them again, I’d make sure of it. I would go find the dwarfs, but I wasn’t going to stay with them. I would wing my way back as soon as I had delivered my message. And I had a way to make sure I would find them again. Inhaling deeply I said: “there is much I want to tell you but I’ll keep it quick. You both are just as precious to me as my family and I expect you to take care of one another. I want to see you again come sunrise. There is also this,” I fumbled with my pockets for a second and produced the tarnished emblem. “Greta knows what it is. You can tell Ahri later but right know you need to know that he has depleted his stores of energy. All of them. If you can find a way to replenish them, he should be able to help.” I tossed the coin to my mentor and continued: “all you have to do is call his name.” Before they had a chance to reply I hugged Greta and gave Ahri a kiss on the cheek. Ahri’s eyes were moist and I thought even Greta’s stern features softened a little. Before either of them could say anything I turned around and strode back to the group. I felt a little bad but I wasn’t going to tell them that I could feel my energy in the emblem even from a great distance. They would probably have guessed what I intended to do and never taken the disk. And how was I supposed to find them than?

The logistics from this point on were straight forward and it took less than 5 minutes until we left the courtyard for good. I’d take Adam into the canopy and hide around our palace for as long as possible. If an army of shadows was to arrive, I’d fly off towards the dwarfs. If nobody came after an hour, I’d contact my dad. He had given me a crystal that was connected to another, central one he’d keep on him the whole time. There were plenty of crystals but they all connected to this one centre-piece. My father would be in contact with each of us, but we couldn’t reach one another. He and his three soldiers would use a passage on the underside of our branch to reach Boseiju’s trunk. There was a hidden grove where they would try to activate the artefacts. My mom, Ahri, Mordred and Greta were going to follow along but they’d continue on and climb over Boseiju to reach the first palace. The first family were friends of ours and if we could find allies anywhere, it would be there, plus it was the closest.

I didn’t unfurl my wings yet in case the light show would attract attention and stormed along the branch on foot, Adam in my arms. I picked a side branch close to the palace and followed it until I had left the artificially changed part and could hide behind leafs and blossoms. The scene was disturbing. I had the smell of cherry blossoms in my nose and the fragrance evoked feelings of security and peace. The palace looked serene and quiet under the star light, the atrocities committed within hidden under a beautiful facade. Only the sounds of fire and battle coming from below disturbed the picture. When my gaze roamed downwards I could see destruction, chaos, mayhem. The Garden was still aflame but to me it seemed like the dwarfs were slowly advancing, rescuing kitsune and putting out fires. I wasn’t sure though, smoke and fire obscured my view. There wasn’t much to be done either way. I’d wait as I had promised.

The night ticked on.