Chapter Thirty-Eight:
Extra Battles
Gregory almost felt sad as he placed his moving unicorn script on the field. It was the last move and both players knew of the importance. Both players flipped their scripts over. Gasps erupted from the pair as they stared down at their scripts. The scripts had the same number of points. Both looked at the other. Neither was willing to admit that they did not know what to do. After several seconds of unsettling silence, both men reached for their decks. The two were about to draw again when the pictures on the scripts came to life!
The old noble jumped unto the unicorn's back and charged at the snake-like creature that had immerged out of the Invader's script. The two original players just stood amazed and watched the battle. Who would have expected the scripts to do this? The snake's strike moved as quickly as it was deadly. Luckily, the unicorn was quick and slick. The horse and rider narrowly missed the deadly strike each of the three times.
The Invader's snake was not the only script attacking. While the horse lunged and jumped, the rider used his sword to smite the creature. The sword never broke the snake's skin. It was covered in rough armor but the men were smart. He poked the creature's eye as it shrieked.
Thanks to the scripts, Gregory had won that round. Or so he thought. "You cursed the scripts! They have never acted so life-like even when Carlos himself plays!" Yelled the enemy Invader pointing at Gregory. "The only way the scripts could have moved and attacked like that was if you changed them. You cheated but that won't help you win this time. No matter what you draw it can't beat this script. Nothing can stop us!" He placed his script on the labyrinth with one forceful movement of his arm to emphasize his strength.
The enemy's script came up first, reviling the monstrous tiger within. Gregory looked at his own script. Nothing was coming from it. Could the script not have a monster or warrior within? The enemy began to laugh but was cut off when a blinding rainbow of light soared through the labyrinth. Both men closed their eyes. When they opened them again, only one script remained, Gregory's. The True King had helped Gregory again. He just wished he knew who the man helping him was. No teacher in any of Bantor's schools had taught him that. No matter what happened, in the end, he would find out who this being was.
The other Invader looked at Gregory with a confused glaze over his eyes. He looked down at his deck and suddenly; the bewildered look turned into one of anger.
"There is no one helping you! You are alone and you cannot defeat an enemy as strong as us. You will not win this last round!" The enemy Invader yelled shaking with rage. His eyes turned red as his teeth clinched in anger and hatred.
"What last round?" Francis asked. "Gregory already beat you two times."
"He cheated and I aim to prove it."
"You would break the Law?" asked Gregory in a voice framed with warning.
Hearing this, one of the Invaders left the field. He didn't get far before the remaining Invader with the stripped chin yelled, "This is no longer a duel but a trial. The other two rounds were questionable wins. This is now a Sudden Death Round. We will duel one more round and I, Amion, will defeat you once and for all, mortal!" The Invader's voice rose with determination that was surrounded in anger.
Gregory knew that the game was over. The young man pretending to be a nobleman didn't even draw a new script. Gregory just wanted the trial to end but he saw that the tall Invader would not give up so easily. Greg sighed and knew that he had to continue. Gregory wanted to keep things simple and just set down his four remaining scripts. The other man, who called himself Amion, set down three of his scripts.
The scripts were turned over. Color drained from the other man's face. All of his points had turned into zeros! He didn't even wait for Gregory to reveal his scripts before running after the first older Invader.
Gregory turned around to face Francis and said, "We need to go warn Samuel and the others about the Invaders. They are heading towards the camp." They began to walk towards camp when Francis turned back:
"Don't you want to look at your last scripts?" Gregory slowly turned them over and saw that all of Amion's points had been added to his scripts! There was someone watching over them all. Gregory and Francis had seen it with their own eyes.
Chapter Thirty-Nine:
Greg's Thoughts
Gregory stood in his room at the nobleman's home. He had spent the day with members of the court explaining to them that the economy would improve if the plight of the workers were changed. The other men still believed that their lives were not connected to the workers. The workers of France carried the backload of the country while the rich seemed to get all the spoils. Greg was not an extremist – he did not think that the rich should simply grade places with the poor but surly a man who worked hard should be able to feed his family?
He thought of his conversation with Margaret and how she had understood his every word. The passion in her eyes awakened a passion within him as he spoke. It was as if she knew what she was going to say before he said it because her heart was saying the same thing. The others at court seemed to hold onto the ideas that they wanted. They had been taught that they were better than commoners and that they deserved better than them their whole life. Gregory fought down his anger… All these people thought that he was less than them because of where he came from. They would not have given his mother a second glance if they passed her on the street. Still, he knew that the important thing was where he was going and to get a better life was going to be getting a better life for others.
Yelling at the nobles would not help the commoners and that was his goal. He wanted to give them the same chances he had gotten: the chance to go to school and to be able to see what they were really getting into. Bills that are passed will have a meaning for them instead of obscure number or title. They will know what the nobles are doing to them before it happens. Petitions and papers will inform the nobles as to what the public needs instead of the riots that are going on now.
While all these thoughts and frustrations moved through Gregory's head, a messenger came to the door and handed a think envelope with a red court seal to the nobleman. The messenger hurriedly left the room, knowing that he had other letters to attend to and that they absolutely had to be on time! Gregory looked closely at the seal and saw that it was not a mere court seal but the seal of Louis himself. The nobleman's brow was knit in worry and concern as he also studied the envelope and the message within.
"What is it?" The older man just stood next to his ward with his mouth open. "Say something!" Gregory's shout made the servants and the old nobleman jump so he was quickly freed from his trance. "We need a new plan," Greg stared at his mentor blankly. "The girl is gone. She was believed to be kidnapped yesterday but a note was found earlier this morning saying that she ran away with Anthony. The king has placed a search out for her. He thinks that there is an ulterior motive and that she is being taken advantage of."
"I have met the man and would have to agree with his Majesty. The man could not have the girl's best interest at heart. I think that he is evil enough to plant that note."
"You do not think that she is really with Anthony? You know her father admits that they wrote to one another often?"
"She would not leave everything she has for a man she only wrote a few letters to."
"You are still new to the ways of women. Passion can move them to do anything," warned the mentor.
"This girl is different," Gregory demanded. "She would not have run away with a fool like him if she was not forced to. The king is right: His Majesty is not just being suspicious of Spain. Don Anthony is up to something."
The younger man simply nodded.
"I can't argue with you… I just hope you know that you are going to need more proof than that when you accuse the man before the court."
"The Don will not come easily. He knows that he will be going to his death. You are going to have to find him and outsmart him before you will be able to bring him in. A wounded dog will fight to the death. The Don will be even fiercer when he finds that he has nothing to loose."
"What do you know about all this?" There was a dramatic pause: the old man licked his lips and the young student pretending to be a lord rubbed his hands. Neither one of them were sure if they were ready to hear all of this. "If we are going to go all the way through with this project I nee to know what I am up against. You have said how conniving and studious the Don is and we both know that I am going to need all the information that I can get to defeat him. Things will go much faster if you just tell me."
"I knew that it would eventually come down to this but I did not expect it to be so soon."
Chapter Forty:
Flash of Black
Markus could only think of one other place to look for this father – Anthony's office. It seemed like the only logical place now that he looked back on it. It was the last place he and his father had been together and it seemed to be the only place his father where his father allowed himself to be nervous before the accident. Braine could not shake the feeling that the Don was evil. There was just something off about him. The Don was everything his father was not: sneaky and secretive over even the minutest detail.
Carlos was an honest and caring father. Even when things were bad and the future was scary, he never openly lied to his son. There were times when his father would try to hide things from him – like the fact that money was low – but he never told him it wasn't low either. If he went up and asked his father a question he knew that he would get an honest answer. That was just the type of person his father was. It was in him when he was born. Don Anthony must have been born with the same kind of determination to cause mayhem. Braine watched him stand in the middle of the street while the smoke billowed around him. He seemed to look at the destruction with wonder and awe – almost a sick joy. This man had all the right things going for him: He was a little mad, really angry, and extreme political.
Anthony knew all the tricks to this strange business that Marcus and his father did not understand. The sad thing was that he knew he had the control and relished in it. He loved every second that he was in control. It seemed like an intoxicating mixture of giddiness and obsessive-compulsiveness took over him as he delved into the very lives that only meant something when they were in his hands.
Anthony turned up the street and into his new office building. He smiled when he saw something there in the shadows next to his desk, which is not a normal thing for most men to do. Anthony smiled because he knew why the man in the shadows was there. He was no man at all. He was the thing that used to be Braine's father, the monster that lived inside of him. The thing began to make a clicking and chilling sound that seemed to come from the bottom of his throat.
"Good, Good," Anthony murmured as he soothed his new pet. "The job is done. All I have to do is wait and then, you shall go out on another errand…"
Anthony smiled an evil smile as the images of the actions that were about to take place ran through his head. Carlos had refused to do things like this when he had control of his body but now the body belonged to the thing that Anthony had created. Carlos could not stop the actions that the thing did but Anthony liked to think that Carlos was still lost in his body somewhere, watching the ultimate betrayal take place.
Anthony felt like his life was not complete unless other people were as miserable as he was. Yes, the nobleman smiled constantly, but that did not mean that he was always happy. Anthony felt that there was not enough happiness to go around the world. If some people could not be happy, why should anyone be happy? It is not fair to let some people have a treasure if others cannot… Unless that one person is the strongest, Anthony reminded himself. The strongest always won and Anthony needed to make sure that the true winner would be himself.
Chapter Forty-One:
Marcus' Discovery
Marcus had to run back to the manor because he had been gone for several hours now. Another servant said that he would cover for Marcus but the boy knew that the servant's patience would not last forever. He ran down the familiar streets that he and his father had trod on. It seemed like Marcus had not seen these streets in years. Everything about them had changed during the riots that had taken place during the last few days. Tears filled Marcus' eyes as he realized how his own life had changed just as quickly.
He wanted to turn around again and continue searching for his father but he knew that he could not. He needed a safe place to bring his father once he was found and the Lady's house was the safest place he knew. He had to keep working there for himself and his father. Finding his father would be wonderful but where could he hide him if he did not have the manor? Even a sneaky man like Anthony would never suspect that Carlos and Marcus were hiding in a rich noble's home. Still, how could Marcus take care of Carlos? Marcus' new roommate would hate to have another person crammed into the tiny room with them. There was only one way that would allow Marcus and his father to stay safe.
Marcus walked through the servants' back entrance of the house with a new reason in life. He needed to do his best at the work to thank the Lady and her father for helping him and so that he could earn the privilege of having a big room. Marcus' roommate had told him that only the hardest workers got their own rooms with a large fireplace and a real bed but the room has never gone to a new worker. Still, the room would be large enough for both himself and his father in live in comfortably and the room would be in the manor. So, if Carlos needed Marcus while he was working he could just sneak down here to see him and help him heal from his illness.
Marcus prayed that his father was safe even though the monster had taken over his body and hoped that they would meet again before the real Carlos was gone forever. The best doctors in the country would come to a Duke's house even if it was just to treat a servant. They would come to help his father because of his position in the Duke's house. Marcus would save his father by working hard and getting doctors and they would know what to do because they were the best doctors.
Thoughts of glory and healthy made sprouts of happiness burning Marcus' soul because of the rapturous ambition he now felt. He knew he could save his father and he knew how to do it! He was so caught up with the excitement and happiness of all of his musings that he almost forgot to get back into work! Luckily, his roommate did cover for him and the other servants felt sorry for Marcus. They knew that he was only a child – and a lost one at that and they wanted to help him. Maybe Marcus could be new and get the large room with the help of all these people. Who would not want to help a lost boy find his father?
The kitchen crew agreed to ask the delivery workers who traveled up and down the rivers if they had seen a man of Carlos's description. The other boys, the butler's two sons, agreed to take turns covering for Marcus when he went out looking for his father. The boys had worked in the manor for years and they new the tricks to not getting noticed. Still, they needed some resolution to this deal: Marcus could not leave for more than two hours each week. Lastly, but most importantly, the maids agreed to let the mistress know that Marcus needed a big room and why. The Lady did not decide who received the room but she was always kind to the servants and seemed to have some sway over the decisions.
Marcus tried to continue with his work as if everything were normal but he could not help himself from asking the cooks if they had heard anything every time he was near the kitchen. The cooks warned him that if he kept asking and volunteering for assignments that would lead him to the kitchen, the Duke would get suspicious and might fire him.
"Why would he fire me for talking to you?" He asked innocently.
"It's not that you talk to us," the head cook, a large woman with a greenish face explained. "Servants have been known to go into the kitchen and take some sweet cakes. If the master thinks that you are grabbing a sweet cake each time you come in here than he may get upset."
Marcus nodded at her words even though he was not sure that he understood. He agreed that he would stay away from the kitchen for a while so that he would not get in trouble. He would never get the room if the Duke fired him! The room was now one of his main goals, second only to that of finding his father. Several servants told Marcus that the chances of him getting the room were slim but he knew that he could do it: He had to at least try… for his father because he could do anything.
He walked to the yard to finish his chores, not really thinking about anything particular, when his eyes caught a quick blur… It was a movement so intensely fast that no shapes appeared. The perpetrator was a mere shadow: it had no shape or form. Marcus feared and a ghost or beast of the night had run into the manor's grounds and was now stalking him. Marcus could not accurately describe what the creature was but he could say what it was not: the shadow moved with in-human speed. What ever the thing was it could not be human.