Chapter 3
Two weeks after they arrived, the Rhovan delegation left. It was a much shorter stay than anticipated for an official delegation, but it was in the best interest of all involved to make the new treaty official as soon as possible. Karigan had spent the early morning at the king's side as the formal farewells and personal best wishes were given. After a brutal training session with Drent and a brief lunch she was right back at the king's side in the study where he conducted much of his business. At the moment, she didn't like what she was hearing at all.
"Yes Majesty, that's what I said. My grazing fields are red, blood red," Ezra Witt stammered. Ezra was a poor sheepherder who had come from a neighboring town to report yet another strange occurrence. After the report of the stone forest clearing, King Zachary had made it known that he was interested in hearing about any oddities in hopes of finding patterns and causes. On public audience days there were usually a few tales to tell. Some of them could be explained, but most could not, at least not to the magic-fearing population. To the King and his Riders it was clear that magic was still seeping into the land from Blackveil and throwing off the balance of the land. Although the number of occurrences had plummeted when Mornhavon was brought forward, they did not stop entirely. And after messengers from the wall confirmed Karigan's visions, the number of reported occurrences jumped dramatically.
Scariest of all was the nature of the occurrences. Two years ago it was mostly oddities, but now it seemed far more dangerous. There were more mysterious deaths and disappearances, more disasters. Most disturbing of all were the blood fields. Ezra's report was not the first. Several other fields, most known as major battlegrounds during the Long War and the later Clan Wars, had been described as becoming saturated with blood. It was as if the blood spilled in the past was welling up to haunt the present.
After taking down Ezra's report the king tried his best to reassure the herder and gave him a voucher for hay from the king's stables. When the sheepherder had given his thanks and left the room, King Zachary turned to Karigan. He seemed to be at a loss when it came to the flood of incoming reports. Wanting to reassure him Karigan said, "Perhaps Captain Mapstone will return later this evening with some good news."
"I should hope so, given how long she has been gone," King Zachary answered, "Has there been any word at all?"
"No, Majesty. Connly was thinking of sending another Rider to Selium if she doesn't return within the next few days. Just to make sure nothing went wrong."
"Yes, that would be best. It's not like her to be gone for this long without word. Especially when the mission was not meant to be a long one," King Zachary paused before addressing Karigan more directly, "You are free to go Karigan. I'm sure you have other duties that need your attention before evening. I will see you tomorrow." She gave a small bow and left the room by way of the doors facing the courtyard. Walking through the gardens, along the graveled footpaths, she headed for the Rider barracks within the castle, the captain's office in particular. Duty schedules, accounting records, and inventories were all in that office and Karigan would have to look over most of it in search of errors. The monthly report was due in to King Zachary's accountants soon, and they could get rather upset when the reports weren't perfect.
It was early evening and the sky was just beginning to achieve a golden glow in the west. She paused at King Jonaeus' spring for a moment. Letting its steady flow calm her after the disturbing reports she heard made to the king. She sincerely hoped that whatever was keeping the captain away had nothing to do with Mornhavon's threats.
"Karigan, I haven't seen you in ages," a feminine voice said from behind her. She recognized the voice easily.
Turning Karigan responded with a smile, "I could say the same, Estora. How was Coutre? And how much trouble was your family?"
"Less than I expected. Can you sit and talk for awhile?" Estora asked, motioning to the stone bench beside the spring.
"Yes, but not for too long," Karigan replied as she took a seat beside Estora, "Tell me more about your visit."
"I don't know how much there is to tell. My family gave me the cold shoulder most of the time. Everyone that is except my youngest sister, but she's not old enough to care about court politics." Karigan had great sympathy for Lady Estora. Nearly six months ago Estora had broken her father's marriage contract with the king, citing a clause that the king had added to Lord-Governor Coutre's original contract. It was a traditional clause for marriage contracts meant to ensure true consent between the people who would be husband and wife. However, it was exceedingly rare for it to be invoked.
In short the clause would allow a bride to withdraw from the contract made by her father under certain conditions. She had to protest the contract within the first weeks, and the intended groom had to accept that the bride's signing of the contract was coerced. The wedding could then be canceled with few financial penalties, but the social consequences could be harsh.
Karigan had been at Estora's side as she gave the news to her family on a chilly, autumn evening. Once the shock started to fade, Lord-Governor Coutre was furious. The tirade that followed had shocked Karigan into silence for some time, but she still stood by a glassy eyed Estora. Karigan had finally regained her tongue and was about to lay into the aging Lord-Governor when King Zachary had interrupted the impending shouting match with his calm words. He simply stated that Estora was within her rights, and he accepted her reasons. Her wishes would be honored and no one would be punished for the decision. In less than a week the bustle of wedding preparations came to a crashing halt, and Estora's parents left for Coutre province seething in anger at the their embarrassment and loss of potential prestige. Estora chose to stay at the castle until her parents' anger subsided; all agreed it would be the best choice. Estora's latest trip to Coutre marked the first time she had been home since the marriage contract was broken, and it didn't sound as though the trip had been a pleasant one.
"It couldn't have been all bad?" Karigan asked, coming out of her thoughts.
"Well, by the end of the visit the conversations were less tense. I suspect that, given time, I'll be on tolerable terms with my family again."
"At least the anger is dissipating," Karigan responded as Estora sighed softly. She was once again happy for her upbringing as a merchant's daughter. There were far fewer expectations from her family and far fewer consequences if those expectations were not met. As they settled into less weighty subjects of conversations, a Green Foot runner rushed up to Karigan.
Out of breath the sandy-haired boy said in a rush, "Rider G'ladheon, Captain Mapstone has arrived from Selium. You are supposed to report to her and the king in the king's study." Karigan quickly thanked the runner and excused herself from Lady Estora's company. It didn't take long for her feet to carry her to the king's study where she found her captain and her king waiting for her.
"It's good to have you back, Captain," Karigan said with a grin when she saw her Captain Mapstone sitting across from the king, who looked very pleased to have the captain back as well.
"I'm happy to finally be back. I trust that all was well while I was gone?" Captain Mapstone answered.
"Yes, Captain, but why the delay?" Karigan responded bluntly as she took the seat that the king offered her.
"The researchers were in the middle of a breakthrough when I arrived. I wanted to stay until they waded through an abandoned library that they found during the latest stage of renovations to the older buildings. Many of the texts dated back to the days of the Long War. Combined with heavy spring rains that turned many of the roads into quagmires, the trip took much longer than I expected."
"Well, now that we have you safe and sound amongst us again, what did you find at Selium?" King Zachary chimed in; clearly eager for any news that may help him with the reports coming to him.
"Quite a bit. There is something called the Blood Gem that could help us in several possible ways."
"The Blood Gem? That sounds ominous," King Zachary commented.
"Yes, well, it was created by one of Mornhavon's men, Hadriax El Fex." Karigan perked up her ears at the name.
"The defector that Karigan saw in her…travels, last summer?" King Zachary asked curiously. Karigan remembered then that she had never told the king or captain about the manuscript that Estral had sent her. Since everything had settled down, she hadn't thought it worth mentioning. She wondered if the captain knew already, after all Selium had the original manuscript.
"Yes, him. He left many writings on how he made the gem, how it could be used, and there are numerous writings on magic itself. Unfortunately, there's no record of where the gem went."
"If we did find it, how would this gem help us?" Karigan asked.
"The will of the wielder directs the surrounding magic. Because of the amount of concentration required, a magical object is usually required as a focus and conduit for the wielder and source respectively. The gem seems to be a very powerful conduit that is tied to the wielder's life force in addition to their will. It should be powerful enough to cleanse Blackveil if the right person were to use it."
"Whoever used it would have to face Mornhavon before the forest could be cleansed," Karigan added. At Captain Mapstone's quizzical look, Karigan filled the captain in on the basics of the visions she received two weeks before hand.
Captain Mapstone sat in silence, contemplating the news. Eventually adding, "I suppose this means it is even more vital that we find the Blood Gem."
"Do we even know if it still exists? And even if it does, is it the only option? There are numerous powerful magical objects kept in the tombs. Couldn't we use those instead of resorting to scouring the countryside for a lost artifact created by one of Mornhavon the Black's own men?" King Zachary queried.
"Several clues indicate that the gem was buried with El Fex, so if his tomb is intact the gem should still exist. And, yes I believe it is our only option. The writings suggest that it is the most powerful magical object we can hope to access. It would rival Morhnhavon's reputed Black Star."
King Zachary nodded in acknowledgment, "Where do we begin looking?"
"Black Island," Karigan interjected, remembering something from her childhood.
"That's what the researchers suggested, but how did you know that, Karigan?" Captain Mapstone asked.
Well, now is as good a time as any to discuss my heritage. "Over a year ago, a friend from Selium, Estral, sent me a recently translated manuscript that she thought I would find interesting. It was the journal of Hadriax El Fex."
"Did you tell her of your travels?"
"No, it's just a strange coincidence. But in the last entry he states his intentions to go to Black Island and change his name."
"What did he change his name to?" King Zachary asked curiously.
"Galadheon, Majesty." King Zachary and Captain Mapstone sat in silence for a moment before glancing at each other.
"I suppose that would explain some of the events from last," King Zachary finally said. "What does it mean, Galadheon?"
"Betrayer, he had a lot of guilt over turning against a lifetime of loyalties. And I suppose at not turning sooner. He was disgusted by Mornhavon for quite some time before he decided to defect"
"Yes, I suppose he would have much guilt to carry."
Steering the conversation back to the Blood Gem, Karigan added, "My father grew up on Black Island and I still have family there. I remember an old tomb from my childhood visits. It had a strange mixture of symbols. Some are Sacoridian but most are unfamiliar. Most people are uneasy around it." with a faint smile she added, "The children dare each other to touch it."
"Did you?" the Captain interrupted with a smirk.
"Several times, I was considered the bravest kid on the island for a whole summer," she answered proudly. King Zachary's eyes danced with amusement. "At least until my grandmother found out and refused to let me go to the cemetery. She didn't think it was the best place for a child." Karigan paused before admitting the next part. "Honestly, I never felt any unease around it, and I hate tombs. I think it is El Fex's resting place."
"It does sound like a good place to start," King Zachary agreed.
"Good, you can investigate the tomb," Captain Mapstone announced, "I think you should set out as soon as you are able."
"Yes, Captain," Karigan answered. She would finally be able to be on the road again, and she would be able to spend some time visiting some family that she hadn't seen in far too long. Karigan, Captain Mapstone, and King Zachary discussed a variety of topics related to Captain Mapstone's trip. As the bell tolled nine hour, Karigan realized that she had many tasks to attend to before she slept. She said as much to the king and captain as she rose from her chair. "Good evening, Majesty, Captain," Karigan said as she slipped out the door and walked towards her quarters where she would prepare for the journey ahead of her.
"Goodnight, Karigan," King Zachary answered.