Disclaimer: Garth Nix owns it all
Already Nick was missing his friends. It had been only a day and he was in a hotel in Bain. He was not enjoying himself. The room was luxurious, but he didn't have the usual appreciation for it. It was a lot better then what he had to put up with in hedges care , but there was something bothering him. He couldn't explain it but there was something like an ach inside of him since he had said goodbye to Sam and Lireal at the wall. If only he could have gone straight back to the Old Kingdom, but he had to get his permit and assets off his uncle before he could cross the wall. He hoped he could find someone to exchange them for Old Kingdom deniers. A polite knock interrupted his musings.
"Mr sayre. There is somebody here to see you" a voice from behind the door said.
He recognised the voice as the manager's daughter. He had been trading old kingdom stories with her the night before. She was a cheerful and easy going person. The only time she appeared subdued was when she had told him the story that her father told her about when Kerrigor crossed the wall.
"Really? Did he give a name?" Nick said as he opened the door.
"Yes as a matter of fact he did. Lieutenant Tindall or something"
"What does he want with me I wonder" Nick wondered aloud.
"You're guess is as good as mine. Sounds secret and confidential though. You know what that means though?" she said.
Nick shrugged and thought about what she meant.
"You'll have something to tell me for a change!" she said with a mock shocked expression.
Nick grinned. He hadn't been comfortable with telling her his story about forwin mill so he had largely listened last the night before, but a secret of the government he would definitely not be uncomfortable with telling her.
"Well better see what he wants. See you later?" Nick said.
"Of course. Wouldn't miss this story for the world!" she said as she turned around and walked away.. He shook his head bemused and went down to see what the lieutenant wanted.
* * * * * * * * * *
The paperwing hovered above the palace before doing its circular landing pattern. Sam was shivering with the cold and Lireal wasn't faring much better. It was a quick and uneventful journey, but the altitude and wind had made it freezing! Lireal was shivering madly beside him. Who would have expected someone who lived in a glacier to be so affected by the cold? The paperwing landed and was instantly inspected by a group of carers.
Sam smiled at the look on Lireals face. She was staring shocked at the place. It was colossal lireal thought to herself. Towers reaching to the heaven, statues incredibly detailed dooted the grounds and main entrance, a soft comforting glow radiated off it and the main door!
The castles entrance door was huge. Easily thirty to fourthy feet tall. Designs of animals and mythological creatures of the Old Kingdom were so realistic she half expected them to walk out of the door, snakes flowing through the artwork with ruby's for eyes, beautiful men and woman at the ground level and charter marks moving through the door not obscuring it only enhancing it's beauty.
"Quite a sight isn't it?" Sam commented to lireal.
"You can say that again" Lireal replied.
"It took a while to repair the palace" Sam continued as he fell in step beside her "when the reget burnt it there must have been some free magic used because no matter wat we did we could use charter sending's!"
Lireal nodded sagely not really listening.
"So father had to bring in the citizens of belisiare to help. That must have been hard to do." Sam said apparently unaware of his audiences disinterest.
"Stop boring our Aunt Sam!" a scolding voice sad from a woman who lireal recognised as ellismere fro forwin mill.
"Who said i was boring her!" Sam said while scowling at his sister. Elismere waved his comment away and turned to look at lireal.
"Sorry father couldn't come, but there's been trouble from the elders around belisaire"
"Really? What's happening?" Lireal asked curious.
"Well the thing is there complaining about having to pay taxes when there not technically not in belisaire, but touchstone is arguing that there still being protected by the royal guards and it seems as though no side is going to back down. Touchstone will most probably sort it out" Elismere said.
Lireal nodded sympathetically, but she secretly agreed with the elders. The royal guards protected everybody in the old kingdom why should the pay for everybody's right?
"Anyway while fathers away it's up to us to show our aunt around" Elismere said affectionately.
* * * * * * * * * *
Nick was waiting at the bar in the train station. He kept idly looking at the clock on the wal to see how long e had left till his train came. He was thinking about lieutenant thindalls talk just a few hours ago. The lieutenant had been nervous when he got there. His eyes nervously flitting to the people around him. When he explained what he had to tell him he understood why. Apparently there had been horrific ritualistic deaths all across ancliestere and a few neighbouring countries. The method was all the same and equally unexplainable. All the bodies had been so badly burned that they weren't even remotely recognisable. They all had been in some strange symbol, that while was magical, nobody recognised it. This was seemingly not what made the lieutenant nervous. The lieutenant said there was a group of people who were snooping around.. Whenever somebody tried to bring them in for questioning they always managed to evade them. While they were looking for them they corner soldiers and somehow persuade them to give them information. He said the only reason he told him this was that most of their questions were about nick. Disturbingly two of the soldiers who had told them what they wanted had recently gone insane. His advice was to get out of Bain quickly. He then left after the warning.
Nick knew he wasn't one to get spooked easily. Although he had to go to the parliament in corver he was pretty sure he would be safe in ancliestere for a few more days. Then he would be in the Old Kingdom and they could hardly hunt him to the Old Kingdom! He had waited till the nightime to get the train. It was cheaper and there were less people on it. He glanced at the clock and saw that more time had passed then he thought. His train would be here. He walked out and saw that the train had conveniently just pulled up. He walked on and noticed a person wearing a trench coat getting on as well. He payed the ticket seller and settled into a seat on the train. I'll be going to the Old Kingdom soon he thought wistfully.
He felt a very strange feeling after a while. It was that feeling raidiating from his charter mark when free magic was close. There was also a strange uneasy feeling from that little part of him that was free magic. It was kindave like a dull ache from a recently healed broken bone. Not painful but not pleasant either. When he focused on the feeling it went away as though he imagined it. He mentally shook himself and told himself it was probably his imagination. He glanced at the man getting aboard after the ticket seller said a greeting.
"Hello Mr. Goodmen! Late night for you!"
* * * * * * * * * *
In corver outside the parliament one of the night shift guards were sneaking in a cigarette break. As per usual it had been a godforsaken, wet and windy night. He looked up as a boy no more than sixteen or seventeen walked up to him. He was plain in all respects except for his eyes which were bright blue and sparkling.
"Hello. How are you" he asked pleasantly.
"Get a life twerp" growled the not in such a good mood guard.
The boy shrugged then was about to walk away then paused as though forgetting something.
"But isn't there one right in front of me?" he giggled.
He suddenly lunged and stabbed him in the throat. His eyes turned a brighter ad brighter blue showing his excitement.
A/N: I really like doing these ominous endings. Anyway thanks to everybody who reviewed this. I'll try to have this one up quicker.
