Arthur had been gone for two days. He had vanished from the inn in the middle of the night, and had never returned. At first, Yao tried to quell the distressed King.
"Perhaps he went to investigate area on his own...I'm sure he'll be back by nightfall."
Yao repeated that sentence over and over for the first day. While hesitant, at first, Alfred accepted Yao's suggestion, hoping for the best. However, when Arthur still had not returned by nightfall, the royals began to suspect that something was truly wrong, and Alfred, in turn, flew into a frenzy. The gravity of a Queen that had disappeared began to sink in for all of the royals, and they scoured the city of Valden looking for Arthur that night. Yao and Matthew had gone into the heart of the city, asking if anyone had seen someone matching Arthur's description, and Alfred had searched the outskirts of the city. He returned to the outer streets that surrounded Valden. Arthur was not there. He had returned to his old farm house, and found nothing. He returned to the charred magic-deprived area, but found it only as lifeless and bleak as it had been the day they had found it. Alfred stood in the barren area, and the cool Spades breeze stirred the dust beneath his feet. He soon came to the realization that he now felt something he hadn't felt in quite a while. He felt lonely. Arthur had been such a vital and consistent part of his kingship, and not having him by his side was genuinely unsettling. And scary. But more than anything, he felt worried. Alfred knew that Arthur was not dependent on him. At least not in the way that Alfred depended on Arthur. But there was no way that Arthur would disappear on his own without telling him.
At this realization, Alfred felt fear beginning to stir in his core. Something bad had happened to Arthur. And he was running out of time.
Alfred returned to the Zaffre Inn under the cloak of night. The streets of the city were empty, and it was well past midnight. As Alfred's footsteps echoed on the damp cobblestones beneath his feet, he saw the dimly lit lamps outside of the inn. Alfred was quickly intercepted by Yao, who was waiting just outside the inn.
"Your Excellency!" Yao said as he saw the King approach.
As he quickly walked to meet him, Alfred immediately spoke.
"Did you find him?"
Yao's face darkened gravely.
"No. We saw no trace of His Highness. And no one seems to have seen him."
Alfred's fear began to wear plain on his face, and he ran his fingers through his bangs, tugging the hair off of his forehead.
"What are we going to..."
Yao immediately held up his hands, stopping the King.
"Your Excellency. We won't be able to act effectively if you don't stay calm."
The fear flickered slightly from Alfred's blue eyes and he stood up straight and shoved his hands into his pockets.
"Fine. Calm. So what do we do? I don't even know how to go about finding him." Alfred looked down a little. "I can't track his magic output the way he can track me."
"Actually, you can."
Alfred looked up at Yao.
"What?"
"You can, Your Excellency. You're the King of Spades, there is not a spell in all of Cards that you do not have access to." Yao reached into his Jacket's inner pocket and produced a small leather bound book that Alfred recognized as his events planner. Yao continued speaking.
"Tracking royal magic output doesn't come as naturally to you as it does for Lord Arthur, but it should still be quite easy for you." He stopped on a particular page, seemingly finding what he was looking for. "The only difference is that while Lord Arthur tracks magic with a passive spell, yours will need to be cast actively."
Alfred nodded, hope coming into his voice again.
"Alright. I'll try it."
Yao held the book out towards the King.
"Here, I've written down emergency spells in the event of a situation like this."
Alfred took the book into his hands and stared down at the page. The spell was long and complex, and it was a form of magic that Alfred did not have much experience with. However, Alfred was able to pick out the most important parts of the spell, shortening the spell down into a brief incantation. Alfred closed his eyes and recited the spell. With his eyes closed, he was able to sense great power. His own. Yao's standing beside him. Matthew's deeper in the heart of the city. The sorcerers all the way back in the capital. Every person who could practice magic in all of Spades. Even some of the royals outside of Spades. But not Arthur's.
"I can't feel him." Alfred opened his eyelids, his eyes glossed over with emptiness. "I can't feel his magic. At all..." Alfred turned to the Jack of Spades, his voice raising with urgency. "Yao, I can't sense Arthur's magic! It's like he's not even in Cards! What if he's...!"
"Your Excellency." Yao said firmly, trying to stop the King's thought process. "Take a deep breath." Yao spoke in as calm a manner as he could manage, but the concern on his face almost matched Alfred's. "The spell...might not have worked. Or maybe His Highness is concealing his magic output."
Alfred took a step closer to the Jack.
"But for what? What if he's not, Yao? What if he's really hurt, or...worse?" Alfred's azure eyes filled with far more than just fear. He turned and began taking steps back towards the town. "I have to find him."
Yao caught the King's arm, stopping him in his tracks.
"Your Excellency. It's late, there is no way you would find him right now."
Alfred glared back at the Jack and tried to shake his arm free.
"This is serious, Yao. If Arthur doesn't have a magic output, then he could be..."
"I know this is serious, Your Excellency!" Yao's fingers dug into the King's arm, an uncharacteristic wave of emotion coming over him. Yao blinked, surprised at his own outburst, and softened his grip on the King. "Believe me, I do. But you aren't going to be doing us any favors if you end up disappearing too."
Alfred stared angrily at Yao before his face softened back into a state of deep concern. Yao let go of the King and continued speaking. "Matthew is still scouring the city. I am going to meet with him once he returns, and then we can discuss what actions to take from there. Until then, please rest, Your Excellency." Yao paused and looked down. "If Arthur has not returned by morning, I shall let the palace know of his disappearance."
Alfred looked at Yao, before reluctantly agreeing.
"...Alright."
Yao's face softened and he bowed to Alfred.
"Rest well, my King."
Alfred turned and made his way back into the inn. His heart felt like lead, and hung heavy with fear and the longing of wanting to see Arthur. Alfred climbed the stairs to his room at the inn and turned on the room's lights after closing the heavy door behind him. He looked around, half-hoping to see the Queen of Spades, but it was just as empty as he had left it that morning.
Alfred reached in his pocket and removed the spade-shaped pocket watch from the depths of his pocket. It was still as pristine as the day that Arthur had given it to him, as Alfred had been vigilant to keep it in better condition than the previous King had. As Alfred ran his fingers over the cool face, he thought for a moment.
.
I could use a time spell. I could turn back time for all of Spades by a day so that Arthur never went missing.
.
Alfred pressed his thumb into the side of the watch, his mind racing.
.
It would be so easy.
.
Alfred brought the lines of the time spell to his mind, but right before he was about to recite it, the memory of Arthur's worried face came to his mind.
"I don't want your own magic to be what destroys you. Please. Be more careful with your magic."
Alfred froze as creases began to tug at the corners of his mouth.
Alfred sighed and shoved the pocket watch back down into his pocket. He silently wished that Arthur had never told him about cost of time spells. He looked over at the desk in the corner of the room. The spell he had used to track magic outputs was still very fresh in his mind. Alfred walked across the room and sat down at the desk. He leaned forward and closed his eyes, repeating the spell over and over again. He did not sleep that night.
.
.
Arthur slowly awoke, a deep, throbbing pain pounding through the back of his head. As he slowly attempted to will the pain away, he brought his hand towards his face only to find his movement restricted half-way. Confused, Arthur looked down and found a heavy shackle locked around each of his wrists. Each restraint was burdensome, and was attached to the wall behind him with short, equally thick chain. Arthur frowned in confusion before growing steadily more awake, and darkly more aware of his situation.
The Queen of Clubs. She had deceived him into accidentally entering Clubs, and then...
Arthur paused. A thick layer of confusion clouded his memory, and he felt terribly exhausted despite having just awoken from what felt like a very heavy slumber. As Arthur tried to remember how he had come to be in this situation, he looked around.
He was on the floor in some form of dungeon, and cold, dark stones covered the walls of the small cell. The room was bare, save for a small basin a short distance from where Arthur was chained to the wall, and high on the wall to Arthur's left, there was a small sliver of a window. It was too far up to see the surroundings; all he could see was a gray sky above, but it was the sole source of light in the darkened room. To Arthur's right there was a heavy oak door, and judging by the intricate metal pattern on the door knob, had several locks. Arthur took in his surroundings. The cell wasn't filthy, per say. But it was old, and it was very apparent from the cobwebs and dust that no one had been in this room for quite a while. And it was cold. Far colder than even the Northern-most hills of Spades, and through the small slit of a window, he could see that snow was falling outside.
Arthur returned his attention to the shackles that hung tightly around his wrists, and tugged at them for good measure. When they resisted firmly, Arthur immediately knew a feat of strength was out of the question. Arthur then closed his eyes and began mumbling an incantation to break the shackles. However, instead of the familiar burning feeling in his heart and core, a fiery, painful feeling began searing into his skin where the shackles rested. Arthur immediately cried in pain and ceased his spell. Confused, he took a closer look at the shackles and his heart immediately fell. Black iron. The naturally occurring metal was notoriously known for blocking magic, and since long ago was the only thing known to kill elves and faeries on contact. Arthur frowned as he ran his fingers over where the metal had burned him. Even with something as magic-averse as black iron, it shouldn't have affected a royal of his caliber that strongly. Arthur thought for a moment, wondering why his magic felt so weak, and that's when Arthur looked up.
Over the door of the small cell, and engraved around much of the other parts of the room were strange symbols carved into the wall. And while it was barely noticeable, each symbol was releasing a very dim, green light. Arthur's heart dropped further. Runes. The ancient script completely nullified active magic. Arthur felt his pulse quicken as he felt the danger of his situation setting in around him. He was truly defenseless in this situation, and he wouldn't be able to use any form of magic to defend himself. If it was just a few runes, it would be no problem for a Queen to destroy them, but there were so many of them that even Arthur doubted if he would be able to generate enough magic to break free.
Arthur took a deep breath and tried to calm himself. How long had he been asleep? Arthur returned his attention to the window above. Even with the gray skies and the snow, it was easy to tell that is was during the day. But what day? Judging by how groggy he felt, Arthur knew that there was no way that it was the morning after his encounter with the Queen of Clubs. That would have only been a few hours.
Suddenly, Arthur heard a noise at the door. His whole body tensed up as he heard the clicking and turning of several of the locks on the door. Slowly, the door opened, and revealed the cell's intruder. It was the Queen of Clubs. She was clad in a different forest-green dress than their first encounter, had a sheathed broadsword with the Clubs emblem strapped to her waist, and she was holding a small tray in her hands. Her eyes met with Arthur's before she turned and closed the door behind her.
"I see you are finally awake," she said quietly, as she turned back to face Arthur. Arthur offered her a cold, stony expression, unwilling to let her think she had any power over him despite his situation. When Arthur said nothing, the Queen of Clubs continued.
"You were unresponsive for an entire day. Even I was beginning to get worried."
Arthur's mind raced at this statement. A day. He had been gone for a day. His mind instantly flew to Alfred, who he knew must be worried, no doubt. His heart ached at the thought of what must have been Alfred's current state, but refused to let it show on his face. The Queen of Clubs walked over to Arthur and knelt on the floor in front of him.
"I've brought you some food. I imagine you're hungry." She paused for a moment and mumbled to herself. "...I'm really not even supposed to do this, but I'm not about to let a fellow Queen starve."
Arthur stared down at the plate, growing more and more aware of his strong hunger, but willing himself not to move. If she had captured him and thrown him in a magic suppressing dungeon, there was no way that he was going to trust any food that she was offering him. The other Queen seemed to pick up on Arthur's train of thought.
"...You don't trust it, Lord Arthur?"
Arthur eyes shot up and stared at the other Queen in stubborn anger. As his emerald pools bore into hers, she smiled a little.
"You're a good Queen, Arthur. I wouldn't trust it either." She sighed a little. "But I assure you, it's fine." She took a piece of the sandwich from the plate and took a bite of it. As she chewed, she looked up at him. "See?"
Arthur willed himself to ignore the meal in front of him, and looked at the Queen. More than food, he hungered for information, and was going to try and get as much out of her as possible. He spoke in an even tone.
"You're the Queen of Clubs?"
The Queen of Clubs nodded, realizing Arthur wasn't going to take the food, and pulled another piece off for herself as she spoke.
"Oh. Yes...we haven't been properly introduced." She brushed some crumbs from her hands and looked back up at Arthur. "I am Elizabeta of Clubs; the current reigning Queen."
Arthur sat in silence for a moment before his eyes flitted around the cell.
"Where am I?"
"The Clubs castle. In our innermost dungeons."
Arthur blinked at her unveiled response.
"...and to what do I owe the pleasure? Or do you simply want to be at war with Spades?"
At this question, the other Queen paused. She froze where she sat, and slowly began to look as if she was mulling over several things in her mind. Arthur asked another question, growing more irritated with her.
"Why have you brought me here?"
The Queen of Clubs looked up at Arthur, her expression cold. She seemed...driven. But far from malicious. And although fleeting, she showed small signs of pity...even guilt.
"It's nothing personal, Queen Arthur. This has nothing to do with you."
Arthur scowled, as it slowly grew even more difficult for him to veil his irritation.
"If it has nothing to do with me, why am I the one chained up in your castle's dungeon?"
Elizabeta closed her eyes firmly and averted her face from the other Queen.
"I'm just following orders, Queen Arthur."
Arthur blinked in disbelief and let out a snort of derision.
"Orders? You're the Queen of Clubs. You have more than enough freedom in all of Clubs to do what you want." A silence fell between the Queens for a moment before Arthur angrily spoke again. "Who told you to do this?"
Elizabeta swallowed and refused to look at Arthur.
"...Ivan."
Arthur blinked and raised his eyebrows.
"...Ivan? The King of Clubs?"
Elizabeta said nothing, but her hands formed tight fists in her lap.
"I...I have to do exactly as he says."
Arthur stared at the Queen. He knew that the current King of Clubs had an inexplicably strong dislike for the kingdom of Spades, but his reasons for doing so mostly evaded explanation. And Arthur certainly didn't know him well enough to know why he would order his Queen to capture him. Arthur shook his head trying to make sense of what the other Queen had said.
"I've never heard of something so absurd." Arthur dropped all formalities with the other Queen and spoke definitively. "You're a Queen, Elizabeta. You have your own power. The King's role is never absolute among the royals, and his word should not be absolute for you either."
The Queen of Clubs' face contorted into a genuinely pained expression as she bore her eyes into the floor, visibly trying to maintain her own composure.
"I have to do whatever he tells me. I have no power within here, Queen Arthur...I never have. You don't understand."
Arthur's eyebrow twitched downward in equal parts confusion and frustration.
"No power? Have you gone mad? How could you possibly have no power when-"
"He threatens me!" Something in the Queen of Clubs snapped as she suddenly raised her voice. She looked back up at Arthur, her eyes stern, but with a fleeting sense of hopelessness. "He threatens me..! And if I don't do exactly what he says, he'll..." Elizabeta paused before her stony expression fell away, revealing genuine despair. "...he'll hurt him...!"
Elizabeta's statement burst forth so pained and raw that it took both of the Queens by surprise. She looked up at Arthur, who looked genuinely shocked before looking back down to her hands which rested in her lap.
"Roderich...our Jack he..." Elizabeta swallowed before calmly continuing. "...If I don't do exactly what Ivan wants, he'll hurt him."
Arthur stared at the Queen, dumbfounded.
"You can't be serious."
Arthur searched the other Queen for any hint of dishonesty, but only found genuine disgust and anger. Arthur couldn't believe it. While it wasn't unusual for royals to butt heads every now and then, this level of distaste was unprecedented. Arthur finally spoke, searching for logic within her explanation.
"...Why?" Arthur furrowed his brows and shook his head. "What reason would The King of Clubs have for harming his own Jack?"
Elizabeta pursed her lips together and thought so hard that visible creases formed on her young brow. She suddenly stood up, averting her eyes towards the door.
"...I should go. I've been here too long anyway, and-"
"Elizabeta."
Arthur interrupted the other Queen, knowing that once she left he would not be getting any more information. Additionally, something in her expression begged for someone else to know her situation. She looked back over where Arthur sat, and he implored her as evenly as he could.
"Tell me. As a fellow Queen."
She looked tempted for a moment, but then she shook her head.
"You can't do anything about this, Queen Arthur."
"You may be right. But at least you'll have someone to confide in about it."
Elizabeta paused and clenched her hands into fists painfully before letting out a large sigh. She slowly sank back down to the floor in front of Arthur, her outer shell of icy composure finally breaking away.
"I've...I've been wed to Ivan for three years." She looked down at her hands in her lap and slowly continued. "I know that marriages between the royals very rarely have love. It's expected. But with us...there was no love, no friendship...not even any respect." Elizabeta's expression turned bitter. "I've never cared for Ivan, but he hates me. Passionately." Elizabeta ran her hands together for warmth in the cold cell. "Roderich was the only one who made life here bearable...He was so kind to me, he would make sure I was always comfortable...he really cared about me, and..." The Queen of Clubs blinked back a sad smile. "...We fell in love."
Arthur's expression softened at the other Queen's revelation. It was easy to tell that she was telling the truth in a moment of weariness. She cleared her throat and continued.
"When Ivan found out he was...furious. At first, he took it out on me. He no longer pretended to tolerate me, and in the beginning he would...assault me. Rather, he tried to anyway." Elizabeta proudly patted to sheathed sword that was strapped to her waist. "Before I became the Queen of Clubs I was training to be a knight. He can't best me, not when it comes to physical combat. And our magic is pretty evenly matched."
The Queen's confident smile quickly fell as she continued.
"That's when he began targeting Roderich. Roderich...isn't suited for combat. He was a musician before he received his mark, and he simply can't take physical exertion." Her expression darkened, and it was clear that she was remembering something distressing. "At first it was small things...When I would defy what Ivan wanted, the next day, there would be bruises on Roderich's face. Then...all over his body. At first he would play it off as if he had fallen or bumped into something, but then it gradually became harder to cover up. Cuts...and knife wounds...broken bones..." Elizabeta's eyes filled with guilt and pain. "I try to protect him as best I can, but Ivan has ordered me not to intervene...if I try and protect Roderich, Ivan beats him even worse..." Elizabeta looked back up at Arthur, her eyes swimming with tears that refused to fall. "And now I never even see him...! Ivan has made it so that we can never communicate, even though we live in the same palace. And if we so much as see each other, he..." Elizabeta's voice cracked at the end of her sentence. She slowly straightened her posture, resuming some form of facade, and her expression returned to normal despite the tears still in her eyes.
"I have to follow Ivan's orders, Queen Arthur...I don't know how much more Roderich can take."
Arthur looked at the Queen. He was honestly upset by her situation, but still equally upset with his own. He spoke, wondering if it would be possible to help both them and himself at the same time.
"There has to be a way that you and Roderich can stand your ground against Ivan, Elizabeta. Even just making sure he—"
Elizabeta shook her head firmly, cutting Arthur off.
"You don't know Ivan, Queen Arthur. He's relentless. He even went as far as breaking our own Ace just so that—"
Elizabeta froze mid-sentence in horror at what she had just said. Arthur's eyes widened as a serious edge crept into his voice.
"He...broke your Ace?"
Elizabeta's icy wall went up again as she quickly stood up.
"...I've said far too much. Forget everything I have said, Queen Arthur." She slowly made her way back towards the cell door. "In any case, just accept this, Arthur. You won't be able to escape from here, and you won't be able to get in the way of what Ivan wants. We're both better off if you just accept it."
Arthur's mind was racing, now filled with more questions then answers. Before Elizabeta reached the door, Arthur spoke.
"That still doesn't explain why you're doing this to me."
Elizabeta turned back towards the Queen of Spades.
"It's not you that we want, Lord Arthur. You are simply serving at bait."
Arthur's eyes widened with realization at this statement. His heart began to pound in fear, as rage at this statement began to fill his heart. Alfred. They wanted Alfred.
Casting all previous sympathy he felt for her aside, Arthur locked eyes with the Queen of Clubs and spoke, his voice dripping with venom.
"...I will fucking destroy you if you do anything to Alfred."
Elizabeta's eyes widened at Arthur's sudden verbal assault, but looked more confused than anything else. Silence fell between the pair, and Elizabeta studied Arthur's face curiously before she slowly spoke.
"...you...actually care for your King?"
Arthur glared a her defensively, but his answer didn't need to be said. Elizabeta shook her head and spoke. "It doesn't matter. King Alfred is simply in the way. We want who comes with him."
Arthur was about to ask more, but with that final statement, Elizabeta slipped from the dungeon cell, leaving the Queen of Spades alone once more. As Arthur heard the locks being placed back on the door and footsteps disappearing down the hallway, Arthur's thoughts began to race. He had gotten a lot of information from the Queen of Clubs, but there was one thing that was scaring him more than anything.
"King Alfred is simply in the way."
Arthur swallowed, truly worried by the Queen of Club's statement. They were using him to try and draw out Alfred.
That's when Arthur got an idea. Arthur looked down at where the shackles rested on his wrists. In his current situation, he wouldn't be able to use active magic. But if it was feint enough, Arthur wondered if he might be able to use a passive spell. Arthur took a deep breath and began mumbling a specific passive spell that he hoped might work. Under the runes, even such a small spell was incredibly exhausting. The shackles began to grow warm where they rested on Arthur's wrists, however, not nearly as painfully as they had when he had tried casting active magic. Arthur was able to properly finish the spell, although it was extremely tiring. He opened his eyes and let out a relieved smile. This could work. This just might be able to work. He just needed to repeat this spell until one last condition fell into place. It would be exhausting, but Arthur felt this might be his only hope. Arthur closed his eyes and began mumbling the spell again, praying against all hope that Alfred would sleep tonight.
.
.
Alfred spent the entirety of the day using countless spells to try and find Arthur. He steadily began using more and more complex spells trying to find any trace of Arthur throughout Spades, and even wide range spells across all of Cards, but no matter which spell he tried, he couldn't feel any of Arthur's magic.
When Arthur still had not returned by the early morning on the second day, Yao had sent word of Arthur's disappearance to the Palace, who had also begin searching for Arthur's magic output. Yao and Matthew had returned to searching the city, but had insisted that Alfred remain at the inn just in case Arthur did return. Alfred was running himself ragged, gradually increasing the power and force of his spells until he had grown virtually numb to the pain of casting such high level spells. It was entering early morning of the third day since Arthur's disappearance, and there still had not been absolutely no sign of him.
Alfred pressed his fist into his cheek, concentrating on a new spell in the dim lamplight of the desk. His mind felt fuzzy from exhaustion, and his eyes felt heavy, but to him, there was nothing else more important than finding Arthur right now. Suddenly, there was a soft knock at the door, and Alfred whipped around to look at the door.
"Al? Can I come in?"
Alfred visibly relaxed as he heard his brother's familiar voice. He sighed, turning back towards the desk he was seated at as he spoke.
"Sure. Come in, Matt."
The Ace of Spades slowly opened the door and made his way towards where his brother was seated at the small desk in the corner. Alfred looked over at his brother. Matthew looked tired. The dust of Valden's roads had decorated the hems of his pants and his shoes, and his face was worn and tired. Alfred immediately spoke.
"Any luck?"
Matthew pressed his lips together and sadly shook his head.
"No trace yet."
Alfred's shoulders fell instantly.
"Oh."
Matthew looked at his brother for a brief moment before speaking.
"Al, did you sleep at all last night?"
Alfred looked at his brother, but did not answer. Matthew hesitantly implored further.
"...Have you at least taken a break yet?"
Alfred turned his attention back to the spell in front of him.
"I can take a break once we've found Arthur." Alfred said as he began casting another spell, this time over a larger portion of Cards. His body shook a little over the magnitude of the spell he was casting, and his breathing became audibly labored.
"Al!" Matthew grabbed his twin's arm firmly, breaking his concentration for the spell. Alfred turned and blinked in surprise as he stared back into his twin's blue eyes. Matthew looked visibly worried, and spoke in a terribly upset tone. "Al, look at you, you're hurting yourself!" Matthew slowly lessened his grip on his brother's arm. "If you don't rest, how can you expect yourself to be well enough to find Arthur?"
Alfred stared at his brother before a frown tugged at both his mouth and his eyes.
"But...what if something really bad happened to Arthur? What am I supposed to do, Matt?"
Matthew frowned.
"Do you trust Arthur, Al? Do you believe that he's strong?"
"Of course, but—"
"Then he'll be okay." Matthew slowly released his twin's arm and spoke as calmly as possible. "Arthur...he's smart. I don't know where he is or what's happened to him, but I doubt he would be overtaken by anyone so easily. He'll...he'll be okay. I'm sure."
Alfred stared at Matthew as the words slowly sank in. He was right. Arthur was far from being considered a possible damsel-in-distress, and in Alfred's mind, he still considered Arthur far more powerful than himself. Whatever had happened to him, Arthur was fighting it...surely.
Alfred slowly nodded as his head fell a little.
"Yeah...you're right, Matt."
Matthew's expression softened.
"We'll find him, Al. We're all looking for him. But you are an important entity in the search. We'll need you to be alright and in functioning shape. We can't be without our King right now." Matthew offered a sad smile. "So please rest, Al. Even if it's just for an hour or two. I'll cast some spells in your place, and I'll wake you up right away if we find something."
Alfred was extremely reluctant to pause looking for Arthur to rest even for a minute; but he knew Matthew was right. There was no argument he could make to prove otherwise.
"Alright, Matt. I'll take a break...but just for a few minutes."
Matthew let out a relieved sigh.
"...Good." The Ace of Spades turned back towards the door. "I'll be in my room setting up some spells. I'll be back in an hour to check in on you."
Alfred offered his brother a weak smile as he disappeared through the door.
As Matthew closed the door behind him, Alfred wandered over to the bed and sat down. The bed had been made from the previous night, but Alfred still traced his hand along the area of the bed that Arthur had slept. Alfred glanced down. Arthur's small bag was still right beside the bed, and on top of it was Arthur's shirt which had been casually tossed aside from two nights before. Alfred reached down and took the shirt into his hands. It was just the simple collared shirt that Arthur wore under his royal jacket, but the sheer familiarity of it and its association with Arthur was incredibly calming to Alfred. Alfred slowly brought the fabric to his face and gently breathed in. It was faint, but it still had Arthur's scent on it. Although Arthur spent the majority of his time indoors, he had a very cool and calming earthy scent, very akin to the smell after a rain shower.
Alfred reluctantly laid down on the bed, holding the fabric of the shirt close to him. As he softly inhaled the scent again, he found himself lulled into a state that made him realize just how exhausted he was. His eyelids began to feel incredibly heavy, and his breathing fell to a slow and even rate. Alfred tried to fight off the feeling of sleepiness, wanting to continue his search for Arthur, but as the weight of exhaustion began to settle on him, he his reasoning for wanting to stay awake began to slip.
I'll...just close my eyes for a little while.
And as quickly as that thought had passed through Alfred's mind, he was asleep.
.
Alfred stirred through the murky darkness that surrounded him. It felt cold and empty, yet there was something there that felt familiar. At first, it was eerily quiet. Then, he heard a faint sound.
"...lfred?"
A voice echoed quietly through the darkness. Alfred strained to hear it, but it was definitely there.
"...Alfred..?"
The King shifted his weight and began to walk, trying to move closer in the direction of the voice. The tone was muffled and distorted, but he knew them.
"Alfred?"
Alfred's eyes widened as the voice became clear and he immediately recognized the voice. Alfred hesitantly called out into the darkness.
"...Arthur?"
Slowly, the pitch black surroundings began to lighten into a murky gray, and standing in the distance, the silhouette of the Queen of Spades came into view. Arthur squinted through the mist before his green eyes met the King's. Alfred's eyes widened and his heart began to pound in his chest. Alfred instantly ran towards Arthur, throwing his arms around him.
"Arthur!" He pulled back briefly to look at the Queen. His appearance was clouded and almost transparent. But it was him. It was definitely him. Not just a dream version of Arthur; it was inexplicably and undeniably Arthur. The real Arthur. Alfred leaned forward and buried his face in the side of Arthur's neck, holding him close. The wave of relief and emotion felt too great, and even though Arthur was now in his arms, he almost felt as if he couldn't get close enough.
"Arthur..." Alfred sighed happily as he wrapped his arms around his missing instructor.
Arthur failed to suppress a small smile and he returned Alfred's embrace, just as relieved to see him. However, the urgency of his situation came whirling back to Arthur all too soon. He leaned away from the King lightly, his features contorting into a frown.
"Alfred..! I've been trying this spell for hours!"
Alfred looked at Arthur's face, confused.
"Spell...?"
Arthur frowned further.
"Channeling my spirit to you as you sleep is complicated magic, and it doesn't count for anything if you aren't sleeping! What have you been doing until now?"
Alfred looked at the Queen, his voice worried and accusatory.
"What do you mean, 'what have I been doing'? What have you been doing?" Alfred took Arthur's face into his hands. "Where are you, Arthur?"
Arthur placed his hands over Alfred's and spoke with a tone of urgency.
"Please, Alfred. I don't know how long I can hold this spell." Arthur's eyes flitted away from Alfred's. "There was a terribly embarrassing miss by my part. I've...been captured by Clubs."
Alfred's eyes widened in shock.
"Clubs?" Alfred's mind began to race as his memory settled on the menacing figure of the King of Clubs whom he had met just once before. He quickly spoke, fear and anger rising in him once more. "Arthur, are you alright?"
"I'll be fine, please, listen Alfred." Arthur spoke quickly, the sense of impending urgency growing clear in his voice. "I can't use my magic to break free, and my active magic isn't working. I'm just barely holding this passive spell as is."
"What do they want? Why did they take you?"
Arthur looked as if he was concentrating very hard on maintaining the spell.
"Alfred, this extends far beyond me...they...ant...ou..." Arthur's voice became weakened and distorted and his form began to fade. Fear entered Arthur's weakened eyes as he tightened his grip on Alfred's hands, and looked at him, pleading.
"Pleas...Alfred...whatev...ou do...don't..."
Suddenly, sound no longer reached Alfred's ears. Alfred watched in horror as Arthur slowly faded away, and soon, Alfred was left once again in the darkness.
Alfred awoke with a start, breathing rapidly and the memory of the dream still overwhelmingly present.
"Arthur...!" Alfred breathed, knowing that the dream had been far from that. Although it was faint, he felt small remnants of Arthur's magic within him.
Alfred sprung from the bed and took off down the hall of the inn. He needed to find Yao and Matthew. They needed to go to Clubs.
.
"Captured by Clubs?" Yao exclaimed, standing from his chair in shock.
The three remaining royals had gathered in Yao's room at the inn after Alfred had luckily intercepted them both before they headed out on another patrol. They had gathered in the small room and Alfred quickly and urgently relayed the information to the other two royals who listened with baited breath as Alfred filled them in. Alfred turned to the Jack, responding to his outburst.
"We need to go to Clubs and get Arthur back."
Matthew nodded quickly, agreeing with his brother.
"I agree, Al. If what you're saying is true, this could be really bad."
Yao sat back down in his chair, his expression heavy with thought.
"Just a moment, Your Excellency. Let's think about this. If Clubs was cunning enough to capture Arthur, I can only assume they have malicious ideas for us too. What if this is all a trap?"
Alfred turned angrily to the Jack.
"What if it is? Arthur is in trouble, Yao. And if we don't do something, he—"
"I'm thinking." Yao interrupted, frowning so heard that it looked as if his thought process was becoming painful.
Matthew thought for a moment, before speaking.
"What if we assembled some knights and guards from the palace to go in our place?"
Yao shook his head.
"No good. It would take a day at least for them to mobilize and reach Valden, let alone the Clubs capital. And a unit of that size would be considered and invasion and grounds for war."
Alfred shot a look of disbelief at Yao.
"Grounds for war? They captured our Queen, Yao; we are essentially already at war! Declaring it would just be a formality at this point. All I know is that Arthur is in trouble, has been captured by our largest enemy and can't use any active magic. I have the most magic in all of Spades, and I am not going to waste time sitting around wondering what I should do. I am going to Clubs to save Arthur."
Yao turned to look at Alfred before letting out a sigh and nodding.
"You're right, Your Excellency. While normally, I wouldn't consider something like this as a viable option, right now that is the best way to save His Highness." Yao stood up. "We leave in an hour. We shall make Clubs pay for what they have done."
An unusual edge crept into the Jack of Spades voice with this statement, but Alfred barely noticed. He was already half-way out the door to prepare for departure. With new resolve, Alfred had already set his sights on Clubs.
"Hold on, Arthur. We're coming to get you."
.
The Clubs capital is located quite close to the border. Unlike the other countries of Cards who tend to have their capitals farther inland from their borders, due to Clubs' mountainous terrain, the Clubs capital is situated in the lower elevations near the west; close to the border it shares with Spades. From Valden, it took the royals half a day to get to the outskirts of the Clubs capital city. They didn't have any problems crossing the border into their neighboring country, and immediately began their ascent from the low clover fields into the low mountains of Clubs. To avoid attention they didn't use a vehicle or horses, and instead traveled on foot. It normally would have taken far longer considering the steep, mountainous landscape, increasingly cold temperatures and eventually, snow. However, considering Matthew had just recently infiltrated and escaped Clubs only last week, he knew the swiftest route to the city.
Just like Spades, the Clubs Castle laid on the outskirts of the capital city, far from the center of town. Matthew led them through the evergreen forests surrounding the city in order to evade visible detection, and by early afternoon, they had reached the Clubs castle.
The facade was intimidating to say the least. The castle was tall, but very wide, and almost made entirely of dark stone. The term 'fortress' may have been a more fitting term. The Clubs emblem was used liberally on the tall stone wall that surrounded the castle, but aside from that, the outside of the castle was free from the emblem except for on the tallest tower.
As the Spades approached the Clubs castle, it became eerily apparent that the Clubs were expecting them. They walked cautiously towards the castle's main gate, and found that the great gate had been left completely open. Although the path to the castle was long, there was not a single guard nor knight to be seen.
Yao scowled.
"They've pulled the guards." He said flatly. "An ambush is highly probable."
Matthew turned to look at his twin, clutching where his scythe was strapped to his waist.
"Al..."
Alfred stared ahead, his resolve not fading.
"Then I guess we shouldn't keep them waiting."
Alfred walked boldly through the gate and towards the looming castle. As they approached the palace, The main door was also left completely open, allowing the cold of the outside, and even the snow to blow into the castle. The interior was dark and bleak. As opposed to the polished marble that made up much of the Spades castle, this castle was jarringly different. Unlike the brightness and extravagance of the Diamonds castle, and the warmth and color of the Hearts castle, The Clubs palace was bleak, and far more resembled a relic than a functioning palace. There were no servants nor knights nor guards to be seen, but the iron torches overhead were lit with dull orange flames. The ceilings were high, and much of the main hall resembled an ancient cathedral. However, windows were scarce, and where they did exist, they were high, thin slits that only served for illumination rather than a view.
Alfred boldly walked through the main hall without pause, and Yao and Matthew followed closely behind them. Right across from the castle's main door was was a pair of large, oak double doors leading to the throne room. These doors were left completely ajar, and it was possible to see the end of the royal chamber. Far across the throne room, the King of Clubs was seated on his throne, and although it was impossible to see his expression from this point, it was clear that he was waiting for them.
Alfred's eyes were focused on the other King and quickly crossed the main hall towards the throne room's entrance. Just as he was about to walk through the doorway, Matthew reached out and swiftly caught Alfred's arm before he entered the room.
"Al, wait."
There was an urgency in Matthew's voice that was uncharacteristic of him. Alfred immediately paused and looked over at his brother.
"What?"
Silently, Matthew pointed upwards. Alfred's line of sight followed his brother's direction, and that's when he saw it. Far above them, at the top of the throne room's door frame, there was a faint green light. Alfred had to squint to see it properly, but once he did, his face contorted into an angry frown.
"...Runes."
Many months prior, Arthur had taught Alfred about the anti-magic script, and he know immediately that this was intended to be a trap set for them. Alfred brought his eyes back to the King of Clubs, seated far across the room on his throne. Although he was far away, it was now easy to see his icy smile. Alfred scowled as he quickly reached up and closed his fist, mumbling a spell that caused the runes above the door, and several parts of the ceiling inside the throne room, to crumble away effortlessly. As the destroyed stones fell from above, Yao and Matthew sent Alfred a shocked look at how swiftly and easily the King had destroyed the script. However, Alfred didn't even make note of their state. He stormed into the throne room and the two other Spades fell in step behind him. As he walked in, he noted that the room was completely empty, and his swift footsteps echoed haphazardly throughout the room. Alfred stopped in the middle of the room, several feet before the throne.
The King of Clubs sat atop a great throne comprised almost entirely of stone. He was clad in his palace uniform, but the most alarming thing was his expression. He had a relaxed posture with his head resting on his fist that would have usually suggested boredom, but he wore a chilling expression that seemed to be a combination of contempt and amusement. In any other situation, it would have sent chills down Alfred's spine, but today, there was nothing that could shake the rage that was growing steadily stronger in his heart.
Ivan spoke slowly.
"Three Spades in my court...what an unexpected pleasure..." Ivan let out a small laugh. "But you really should let me know next time. It's rude to show up unannounced..."
"Where's Arthur?" Alfred barked, not bothering with any sort of formality for the man before him.
Ivan smiled darkly, feigning innocence.
"...'Arthur'?"
Alfred leered at the man atop the throne.
"You have Arthur. Where is he?!"
Ivan tilted his head off of his fist and looked past the furious King of Spades. He locked eyes with Yao.
"It's nice to see you, Yao. It's a shame that your King is so hot-headed. You deserve better."
Yao scowled and moved his hand to his sheathed sword at his hip. Yao spoke evenly, though it was audibly clear that he too, was deeply angered.
"...You have our Queen, Ivan. Where is he?"
Ivan shifted his weight again, once again nonchalantly resting his head on his wrist. He however, did not take his eyes off of Yao.
"...Who knows?"
Impatience and rage began to course through Alfred's body. He shot Ivan a lethal glare over the silver rims of his glasses, and the King of Clubs slowly pulled his attention from Yao back to Alfred.
"Don't fuck with me, Ivan."
The King of Clubs smirked, and this time turned his attention towards Matthew. Matthew flinched a little.
"So you're the Ace of Spades..." His expression darkened as his eyes scanned the Ace. "You just narrowly escaped us the other day. It was a fucking eyesore."
"Ivan!" Alfred raised his voice to echo lethally throughout the stony throne room. The King of Clubs returned his attention to Alfred with an amused expression on his face, apparently enjoying the King of Spades' current state. Alfred raised his voice again.
"Where. Is. Arthur."
Ivan shrugged nonchalantly, but the smile never fell from his lips.
"...Good question. He may be dead by now for all I know. I haven't exactly been giving him...royal treatment."
Alfred's eyes widened in shock and horror, and the rage within him began to grow further. His mind tumbled wildly from one idea to the next, fearfully calculating Arthur's current state.
Making note of the other King's change in demeanor, Ivan rose from his throne and took a lazy step forward.
"What's important is that you came with the rest of the Spades." He smirked darkly. "You have done exactly as I wished."
Alfred scowled further, standing his ground firmly despite his mind racing beyond control.
"What do you want from me?" Alfred spat, trying not to think of Arthur's current predicament.
Ivan smiled, flashing some of his white teeth behind a malicious smile.
"...I thought you'd never ask."
Ivan took another solitary step forward.
"You have something I want, Alfred." Ivan's eyes briefly wandered to Yao and Matthew. "Something that will affect the fate of all of Cards itself."
Alfred clenched his fist, irked by every word that was falling from the King of Clubs' mouth.
Suddenly, a girl clad in shadows appeared beside the King of Clubs. Matthew's eyes widened. He instinctively extended his scythe and stepped in front of Alfred, his eyes cold and guarded. Alfred looked at the girl. She was as pale as snow, and was wearing a simple, green dress bearing the Clubs emblem. Alfred immediately recognized her as the girl who had slipped him Heartlocke at the party in Diamonds. So she had lied about serving the country of Hearts after all. Alfred's expression darkened.
"...You."
Ivan looked over his shoulder at the girl, noticing her sudden appearance and smiled.
"This is Natalia."
The girl, who had a chillingly identical smile to Ivan, bowed mockingly to the Spades. Ivan looked back at the other King.
"My dear sister is the current highest sorceress in Clubs." Ivan's eyes flitted to look at Matthew, who was gripping his scythe so tightly that his knuckles were completely white. He smirked. "I believe your Ace already knows her well." Ivan covered his mouth and stifled a shallow laugh as he looked back at Alfred. "But to think that that you truly would almost die of Heartlocke poisoning... I guess luck was really was on my side; for you to be so foolish. Too bad it just barely fell short."
Yao's eyes widened and he stepped forward, shock and anger mixing in his voice.
"So you admit to openly trying to murder the King of Spades?"
Ivan said nothing, but allowed his eyes to linger on Yao. The composure completely slipped from the Jack of Spades' face, as he raised his voice at the green King.
"That...that is grounds for all-out war! Have you gone mad?!"
Ivan said nothing, but slowly removed his gaze from Yao.
Ignoring the lead-heavy silence of the room, the girl named Natalia took a step closer to Alfred and spoke up, her smile taunting.
"Hey...how did you break the Heartlocke spell..? I would really love to know, Lord Alfred..."
Alfred glared at her angrily and said nothing. When it became apparent that he would not be giving her an answer, she shrugged, her smile never disappearing.
"...I see. Your loss. It's really a shame that the spell ended up not holding out. Then maybe capturing your Queen would not have been necessary."
Alfred gritted his teeth and clenched his fist so heard that he almost drew blood. Alfred threw his glare back towards Ivan, his voice coming out in a low roar.
"What have you done to Arthur?"
Silence fell between the two Kings before Ivan confidently smirked.
"Everything."
Alfred's eyes widened, almost feeling sick with hatred at the suggestive tone that the King of Clubs had just used. Ivan, apparently pleased with Alfred's reaction, laughed before speaking again.
"I told you right? You have something I want." Ivan paused, his voice becoming menacingly cold. "And I don't care who has to die in order to get it."
At the mere suggestion of Arthur's death at Ivan's hands, something inside of Alfred snapped. Without warning, he flew into a stagnant, blind rage and let loose a barrage of spells that knocked every royal backwards. The throne room around them began to creak and complain under the stress of Alfred's magic, and a harsh, bright light emanated from every orifice of the King of Spades' body as countless spells were cast off without reserve. Yao and Matthew were knocked backwards, and were struggling to stay on their feet.
Ivan looked genuinely taken aback, and turned to glare at Natalia.
"What are you doing, Natalia?! Hurry up and do it!"
The sorceress nodded, but as she attempted to approach the Spades, she was knocked backwards from the sheer output of the raging King's magic.
Matthew and Yao shot each other concerned looks and the Ace raised his voice above the chaos.
"Al...! Al, stop!"
But the Ace's voice did not reach then King's ears. In fact, nothing was reaching the King at this point. All he was doing was becoming a slave to the rage that was currently coursing through his body, and everything else began to be drowned out by the light of his own magic.
.
Arthur was exhausted after preforming the spell to contact Alfred. He had tried the spell a few times more over the course of the last day, hoping to properly tell Alfred more about his situation, but he had been unable to contact Alfred again. And in turn, Arthur had begun to grow weary. Although his stunted magic was barely able to support his body in his current situation, his hunger and exhaustion had long since begun to take their toll. Arthur's head nodded forward. Just as Arthur was beginning to cross the line from awareness into light sleep, there was a loud crash that jolted him awake. It seemed to come from far above him in the upper level of the palace, and a slow steady rumbling began to dislodge some shy clouds of dust from the ceiling overhead. At first, Arthur was bewildered, and in his current state, he couldn't begin to imagine what was occurring in the palace. But then, a sudden, sharp pain shot through Arthur's head. There was a rush a familiarity. Then the murky unsettling feelings of fear and rage. Although it had never happened before, Arthur's pulse began to quicken as he instinctively began to understand what was happening.
"Alfred..." Arthur's eyes widened as another wave of pain took over his body and with it, a dark realization began to set in. "God, Alfred...please, no...!"
Arthur threw all caution aside and, completely ignoring his own weakened state, began wildly casting magic. He tore his arms against the chains that bound him to the wall, trying desperately to break free. He let out a careless burst of magic and felt the iron burning across his wrists. He let out a cry of pain, but repeated the gesture over and over, his desperation only growing.
Alfred...
Another burst of pain shot through Arthur's head and unfamiliar feelings of chaos began to flood his mind.
Alfred please stop...!
Arthur let out another burst of magic and tore at the chains again, feeling the burning iron searing into his flesh. He couldn't care.
I have to get out of here.
The runes of the dungeon crumbled slightly, but their magic held fast, the weight of their magic crushing Arthur with an unseen pressure with each burst of his magic.
Alfred is...
The entire castle began to quake on its foundation. Adrenaline now coursed through Arthur's veins and urgency completely blocked out the feeling of his scorched wrists that now felt sticky and wet.
.
...Alfred is about to destroy himself.
.
Just as Arthur was about to summon all of his remaining magic in a reckless attempt to break free, he just barely heard locks clicking on the door through the shaking chaos. Arthur shot his eyes at the door, to find the Queen of Clubs slowly entering the room, looking just as scared and confused as he was. Arthur almost couldn't believe his luck.
"Elizabeta!" Arthur yelled at the other Queen gaining her full attention. She clung to the doorway to keep her balance, but had one hand firmly grasping the sheathed sword at her waist.
"Arthur, what are you—"
"You have to let me go, right now." Arthur cut her off mercilessly, throwing any need to remain composed completely aside. She blinked at him, accusatory.
"What? What are you—"
The castle began to shake violently, and a stone or two from the dungeon's ceiling fell to the floor, just barely missing Arthur. He shot a desperate glare at the Queen of Clubs.
"Alfred is here, and he's losing control of his magic."
Elizabeta looked at Arthur, some fear entering her expression.
"Losing control? That couldn't possib—"
"Have you been to the throne room?!" Arthur yelled, cutting her off.
Her eyes widened at Arthur's unveiled desperation before she looked down, ashamed.
"...Ivan told me I was not aloud a part in the negotiations..."
Another violent quake shook the castle dislodging more stones from the ceiling. Arthur bore his eyes into the other Queen.
"Please, Elizabeta. His magic is powerful beyond reason. If Alfred loses control of his magic here, he is going to completely destroy this entire capital and wipe a several kilometer radius of Clubs entirely off the map. You have to let me go."
The Queen of Clubs hesitated, standing in the doorway, looking as if she were truly at war with herself.
"Elizabeta!" Arthur screamed, unbelieving that she could afford to be hesitant at a time like this. The castle shook violently again, and Arthur's eyes widened, knowing that if much more time passed, he wouldn't be able to stop Alfred. Slowly, Elizabeta looked back at Arthur and was met with one of the most lethal and serious expressions she had ever seen. Arthur spoke slowly, making sure his point was made.
"Everyone and everything in this place is about to die."
.
Soon, Alfred couldn't see anything but harsh light. It engulfed everything. There was a deafening silence ringing in his ear, and a rage in his heart so strong that it completely deafened any other feelings. Pain. Fear. The burning feeling of magic that seemed to grow rapidly with each heartbeat. It all felt so distant.
.
Everything feels so distant.
Maybe none of this should exist.
The deafening pressure grew around him.
.
Maybe it should all just disappear.
.
Alfred closed his eyes and felt a rush of surrender washing over him. He began to let go of everything he was. Everything he felt. And slowly allowed himself to be consumed by light.
.
Yes.
Maybe it should disappear.
.
.
"...lf...red..!"
"...Alfred!"
Alfred felt something crash into him, and suddenly there was a rush of magic that was not his own.
Something inside of him seemed to refuse the intrusion. He almost wanted to push it away from him. For a brief moment it felt strange and foreign. But all to quickly in began to feel overwhelmingly familiar. A voice echoed around him, as if he couldn't tell where it was coming from.
"...shh...Alfred..."
Alfred began to feel the the sensation of someone embracing him. It felt warm. Among all of the scorching, burning sensations of rage, it felt warm. He then slowly began to feel a pair of hands on his face.
"Alfred, it's okay..."
Alfred fought to open his eyes, and as they slowly fluttered open he slowly found his eyes focusing on two emerald pools. A single word seemed to roll effortlessly off Alfred's tongue.
"...Ar...thur?"
The familiar face smiled at him, small creases forming at the corners of his eyes.
"That's it, love..."
Alfred felt a hand trace past his cheek as the familiar pools of green slid closed and placed a kiss on his cheek. He then felt an embrace holding him close, another calming heartbeat overlapping with his own.
"...I'm right here, Alfred. It's okay."
Suddenly all of the memories of his current situation came rushing back to Alfred. Arthur was okay. And he was right here with him. Alfred felt so relieved that he almost wanted to cry.
"Arthur...!"
Alfred felt Arthur let out a puff of air in the form of a relieved laugh.
"That's it love..."
Alfred then felt his own magic being calmed and suppressed by a familiar force. He embraced Arthur closer and allowed his own magic to be quelled. The corrosively bright light seemed to lessen in intensity, and sound slowly began to return to the world surrounding him. The raging burning feeling in Alfred's heart and core began to subside, as every muscle in his body relaxed against Arthur's embrace. An intense feeling of exhaustion began to settle in over Alfred, but he barely took notice. In this moment, all that mattered was Arthur's embrace around him.
Alfred's magic finally subsided as the massively destroyed throne room came back into view. Alfred pulled away a little and looked at Arthur.
"Arthur...Are you ok?" He looked at Arthur's face, and while he looked visibly tired, he looked to be far from being dead.
Arthur nodded and spoke.
"I'm fine, Alfred. Don't worry."
Alfred pulled Arthur close to him as his eyes fell lethally back on Ivan.
Ivan looked shocked from what had just occurred and Natalia was still attempting to recover from having been knocked backwards. She seemed to have some sort of head injury. Much of the throne room was now in disarray, many stones from the floor and ceiling now dislodged and tossed haphazardly across the room, and the entire structure now seemed tilted and leaned slightly off of it's foundation. But Ivan was the main focus of the room. He was disheveled, and the taunting smile on his face had been replaced with a frigid scowl.
"How did the Queen of Spades..." He said, staring darkly at Arthur.
He then shot a look at the side entrance to the throne room. The other royals followed his gaze, and there, standing at the throne room's side entrance was the Queen of Clubs, a defiant scowl on her face. Ivan's face hardened further.
"...You." Ivan's voice dripped with disgust as he began making steps towards the defiant Queen. "You let him free?"
No sooner than Ivan spoke these words, Elizabeta held up her hand and quickly spoke in a strange and foreign script. Suddenly, the room surrounding the royals melted away in a burst of light, and seemed to give way to an endless field of dark clovers.
Elizabeta rushed forward, towards the Spades.
"It won't take long for Ivan to break this illusion spell. Quickly; come with me."
The Spades looked at each other, each equally shocked and confused of their current situation.
She spoke again.
"Quickly!"
Alfred thought to protest for a moment. He brought his gaze to Arthur who at first, seemed hesitant, but was quick to follow behind the other Queen. Without any other explanation, and no other options, the other Spades quickly fell in step behind her.
The field of clovers seemed to go on forever, but as the Queen of Clubs ran ahead of them, it was clear that she was dodging unseen obstacles.
"Stay close; I don't need you getting disoriented in this spell as well."
As they rushed through the distorted field, Alfred finally spoke.
"Why are you helping us?"
Elizabeta looked back over her shoulder at Alfred as she ran.
"Would you prefer if I stopped helping you?"
Alfred closed his mouth, deciding not to question her any further. He looked over at Arthur who was running beside him. He looked exhausted, but for some reason his eyes held trust for the other Queen, so without needing further information, Alfred decided to trust her too.
The Spades followed the Queen of Clubs until the field of black clovers gave way to snow once more and the spell-induced landscape around them dissipated, giving way back to reality. As they looked around at their new surroundings, Yao blinked in confusion, seeing as a coastal town was now in their view.
"This...is a great distance from the Clubs Castle." Yao said, audibly shocked and confused.
The Spades turned around and looked at the Queen of Clubs, who quickly explained.
"My magic is based in illusion and distorting space. I've brought you to Houtslet; our closest city to the border and the city of Valden." Her face turned stern for a moment. "In any case, You shouldn't all be traveling that close to the Clubs border like you were a few days ago. That was quite stupid of you. Ivan sensed you right away."
Alfred spoke up defensively, still not sure of the other Queen's motivations.
"It's not like we were all in the outskirts of Valden because we wanted to, we were trying to find the source of the magic disturbance you sent on us!" Alfred pointed at the Queen of Clubs accusingly.
Elizabeta blinked, genuine confusion showing plain on her face. She furrowed her brow.
"What magic disturbance?"
Yao stepped towards the other Queen and spoke.
"There is a considerably large open field near the border that has been completely stripped of magic. We assumed that it was an attack from Clubs and came to check for casualties."
Elizabeta's eyes widened and her expression darkened considerably.
"An area that large lacking magic...?" Elizabeta brought her hand to her mouth in horror and mumbled to herself. "So his plan is working after all..."
Alfred's eyes darted back to the Queen of Clubs.
"What plan?"
Elizabeta looked up at Alfred before averting her eyes downward, pursing her lips out of stress. Arthur quickly spoke up.
"Elizabeta, please tell us. This is a problem affecting all of Cards, not just Spades."
The Queen of Clubs let her eyes meet Arthur's before she let out a defeated sigh and a weak laugh.
"...I'm going to be facing quite the situation when I return home...I might as well, I have nothing to loose at this point."
She looked back over her shoulder from where they had come running to make sure they had no pursuers. Urgency entered her voice.
"Listen closely, because once I stop talking, I will not be helping you again. You will be entirely on your own."
Elizabeta turned to Yao and Matthew.
"All of you Spades are in danger here, but particularly you two."
Alfred and Arthur turned to look at the two other Spades who looked equally shocked at the other Queen's statement.
Alfred looked back at Elizabeta and was quick to speak.
"Yao and Matthew? Why is he concerned with the Jack and the Ace? Wouldn't he have a bigger beef with me and Arthur?"
Elizabeta quickly shook her head.
"You two are the most powerful heads of advanced magic in all of Cards. Picking a fight with you two directly wouldn't be wise. Especially after that display in the throne room, Lord Alfred. He is going to avoid a direct conflict with you. That's why he tried the Heartlocke poisoning and other methods that avoid a direct fight." Elizabeta turned back to Yao and Matthew.
"I'm not sure exactly what he wants from you, but you need to put as much distance between you and Ivan as possible. He is relentless and you are going to need to guard yourselves as much as possible."
Arthur spoke.
"But for what purpose? What does he want?"
"He...wants to use your Ace for something...something big."
Fear washed over Matthews face, and all of the royals' eyes fell on him. Matthew shook his head in disbelief.
"Me? Why me?"
Elizabeta looked down.
"That I cannot answer..."
"What?" Alfred said, annoyed that they were now being left with more questions than answers.
Elizabeta paused and looked back up at Alfred, a serious look in her eyes.
"But I can tell you who can." She paused for a moment more, looking as if she was hesitant on speaking any more, then she finally continued.
"...Very few of the current royals are aware of this because you need a certain spell to access it, but there is more to Cards than just the four countries. There is an island in the middle of the Sea of Cards; a mirage island that is said to be equidistant from the each country in Cards, yet belongs to no country. It has no royals. No citizens. A place so devoid of magic and life that only a King or Queen would be able to find it, or survive there for very long. This isle is called Wildcard."
"Wildcard..." Alfred repeated the name, feeling as though it bore a massive weight.
Elizabeta looked at Alfred and spoke again.
"Seek out the man named Gilbert there. Tell him that Elizabeta sent you. He will tell you what you want to know."
Alfred paused for a moment, unsure of if he should trust her on this.
"How can you be so sure?" Alfred said questioningly.
Elizabeta smiled sadly.
"Gilbert and I knew each other long ago. If you use my name, he will help you. I'm sure." She turned to look at Arthur. "He will be able to tell you what Ivan has done...and what he is planning on doing to Cards."
A silence fell among the Spades as they all took in the information that the Queen of Clubs was telling them. She spoke up again, resolve entering her voice.
"I know that given my position, you may choose not to believe me, but please listen to what I have to say. What Ivan is doing is a very radical and dangerous matter...he is not simply trying to bring down Spades...I think he is trying to bring down all of Cards."
All eyes flew to the Queen of Clubs at this statement.
"All of Cards?!" Alfred said, shocked beyond all other words.
Yao looked horrified as he looked down, his voice unusually quiet.
"That is not even possible..!"
The Queen of Clubs looked at Yao, her face very serious.
"Not only is it possible, but judging by that magic disturbance you spoke of, it seems his plan has already been set in motion." Elizabeta paused and let out a sigh. "That is all I can tell you. Do with this information as you wish."
A heavy silence fell over the royals as they stood in the chilly field of Clubs. Yao turned to Alfred and spoke.
"What should we do, Your Excellency?"
Alfred thought for a moment, weighing the possible options. After arriving at a plan, he turned to Yao and spoke.
"Head back to the Spades palace and let them know what is happening. And start building our defenses. Arthur and I will head to Wildcard."
Yao seemed extremely hesitant at the King's statement.
"Your Excellency...shouldn't you come back to the palace with us?"
Alfred shook his head firmly.
"Ivan has openly admitted to trying to trying to murder me in addition to capturing our Queen. And based on what Elizabeta has told us, he is not put off by the idea of war. We can't have the palace empty of royals during a time like this." Alfred tightened his hand into a fist. "But we also need to find out what Ivan's plan is. And if this Gilbert guy can tell us, we need to talk to him."
Alfred thought for a moment before shaking his head.
"Wildcard can only support Kings and Queens; it has to be us." Alfred looked at Arthur out of the corner of his eye. "I would actually suggest that I go alone, but..."
"There is no way in Cards that is happening." Arthur chimed in definitively, Alfred knowing that there was nothing he could possibly say to change the Queen's mind. Alfred glanced back at Yao with a 'you-heard-him' look, and the Jack of Spades let out a defeated sigh. The Jack then turned to Elizabeta.
"Normally...in this situation, I would be extremely hesitant to accept the Queen of Clubs word as truth," He paused. "...but you have already saved Arthur...and us." He took a step towards Elizabeta. "How long does it take to reach Wildcard?"
"No more than one day by sea."
Yao thought for a moment, then turned to the King.
"Very well then Your Excellency. Go, and return swiftly. Matthew and I will begin fortifying our defenses."
Alfred nodded firmly. Arthur then turned to the other Queen and spoke.
"We are going to Wildcard, Elizabeta. Can you lead us to the closest port?"
Elizabeta looked over shoulder back at the direction from which they had come. She turned back, and quickly spoke.
"We have ten minutes. Come, follow me."
The Spades split up, Yao and Matthew heading in the direction of the border, back towards Valden, and Alfred and Arthur following after the Queen of Clubs into another space distorting spell. As the King and Queen of Spades disappeared after Elizabeta, Yao paused and looked back over his shoulder towards the direction of the Clubs capital. A pained and sad expression took over his face.
"Ivan...why are you doing this to us?"
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Elizabeta's spell let them out a short distance from the Houtslet port. The Clubs city of Houtslet was situated at the mouth of a broad gulf that opened up to the Sea of Cards. Although most of Clubs' trade was accomplished through other coastal cities, Houtslet was their largest fishing city, and much of the coast was lined with fishing boats.
Elizabeta led the pair to a misty dock away from the main city ports. The wood from the old dock creaked under their feet as they went. The small dock had a solitary boat, but was surrounded by similar docks with identical boats. She turned to the royals in front of the floating vessel.
"Take this boat. This type of boat is used for seasonal fishing, so it is not currently in use."
The pair of of Spades looked up at the boat in front of them.
It was a moderately sized fishing vessel with the wheel and helm in a small room atop the deck. It appeared to be fit with a steam engine, but also had sails that were drawn.
As Alfred and Arthur went aboard the small ship, Elizabeta quickly caught Arthur's arm. She took Arthur's hand into hers and began tracing characters on his open palm.
"Recite this spell as you take the strongest current off the coast of the Granrick Peninsula. The current will take you there without fail."
Arthur looked up at the other Queen questioningly.
"Elizabeta...really. Why are you helping us?"
Her face darkened sadly.
"I just desperately don't want Ivan's plan to come to fruition. Please. Listen to what Gilbert has to say. Find a way to stop the plan Ivan has set into motion." She let go of Arthur's hand and stepped back onto the dock. "And please; don't lose each other."
Elizabeta looked over her shoulder and spoke.
"I have to go. My spell on the castle will soon be broken, and soon Roderich will become very vulnerable."
Arthur offered a small smile.
"I understand. Thank you Elizabeta. When I return to the Spades capital, I will try to think of a way to help you and Roderich."
Elizabeta smiled genuinely.
"I look forward to that, Queen Arthur."
And with that, Elizabeta ran down the dock and disappeared into another one of her spells.
The pair of royals entered the helm room on the boat. Alfred sat down on an overturned crate, near the helm, still exhausted from expelling so much magic at the Clubs castle. Then a thought crossed his mind.
"Uhh. Arthur. Do you know how to sail a boat?"
Arthur walked further into the small room and flashed a confident smile.
"I've been sailing boats since I was nine. You couldn't be in more capable hands."
Alfred relaxed a little as Arthur took the wheel into his hands. Arthur shot a look over his shoulder at Alfred.
"Let's go then."
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Elizabeta watched as the fishing boat slowly pulled out of the harbor. She looked out on the distant horizon of the Sea of Cards and thought of the man they were going to see.
"Gilbert...I hope you decide to help those two..."
She looked down a little, guilt entering her eyes.
"And I hope you've forgiven me...it's my fault you're there."
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Author's notes:
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-Phew! Sorry about my long absence! I moved! And started my new job! And as an animator, I don't have nearly as much free time as I used to...BUT! I'm glad I was finally able to finish this chapter. This story only has about three or four more chapters left, so I hope you'll stick with me 'til the very end! ^^
-Someone once told me that nothing smells quite as good as the person you love. It's kinda true.
-Arthur calling Alfred 'love' will forever slay me, sorry not sorry
-Looks like the Clubs family has problems of their own...hang in there, Hungary!
-Less steamy scenes and more plot in this chapter...but just get ready for the next one ;)
-What is Ivan planning? And what does this Gilbert fellow have to say...!? What will become of our heroes?
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Thank you SO much for reading The Last Spade thus far! I honestly have no clue if you all are enjoying this story, so please leave a comment if you are! It really encourages me to churn out chapters faster if I know people are actually enjoying it! ^^
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