I glanced at my surroundings, desperately searching for an answer. Jakob and Cyrus were fighting back-to-back against the Huryl guards, while Fynn held his own a short distance away. I could see the determination in their eyes as they fought, convinced that they would not die. More soldiers were pouring from the citadel, surrounding us in a loose ring and preventing any escape. I turned to Will and Ellena, the sorceress' face shining with victory as Will kept his gaze firmly downcast. Finally, I looked to Roric, the soldier who had saved me in the woods, who had been first a friend and then an enemy. His face was firm, but there was some pleading behind his eyes, and I knew that although he didn't want to hurt me, he would follow his orders.
"Very well," I said. "We will surrender. Just swear that no one will be hurt."
Ellena nodded once and Roric moved his axe from my throat, holding out one hand to help me to my feet. As I took his arm, I saw Cyrus and Jakob staring at me incredulously. The Huryl disarmed them and tied their hands behind their back, but the whole time they looked at me as if I had betrayed them. I was spared this guilt from Fynn, who had his eyes on Ellena, looking as if he had seen a ghost. He barely objected as he was manacled in heavy irons and roughly pushed in the direction of the citadel.
I was kept unbound, but Roric held my arm tightly as he brought me to stand before the sorceress and the traitor. I avoided Will, keeping my eyes on the beautiful face of the Lady Ellena, and regretting any kindness I had shown towards her.
"If I see a single spirit, your friends will die," Ellena warned me. "Come, the King is expecting you."
Taking Will by the hand, she turned and entered the citadel through a small doorway. Roric pulled me after her, and I heard my other companions being shoved behind us. In spite of Ellena's warning, I sent a silent plea to the spirits around the city, asking them to stay near my friends and protect them from harm. The mark on my palm itched in reply, and I could advance feeling slightly better about our situation.
We were brought through twisting corridors which opened into a large pillared hall, decorated with pendants and war trophies. People were milling about, speaking to each other in hushed tones lest their words echo through the massive hall, and they stared at us as we were brought past. I kept my eyes straight ahead, ignoring their hostile eyes and muttered curses. Ellena led us up to a pair of polished wood doors and pushed them open without hesitation.
I had first met the Huryl King after my brief imprisonment in the Tower, when he had brought me to his tent city to test my powers. I was not surprised to see that the fat toad-king had not changed. He lounged on his wide throne, his bulk spreading to each side. He wore only purple pants with golden threat woven into them, his upper torso bare. His body was decorated with massive gold chains, and thick bracelets disappeared in the folds of flesh on his arms. His chubby fingers were decorated with large precious rings. His black hair had grown longer, still hanging in greasy threads from his wide head, with a tiny crown perched on top. His long thin mouth curled into a smile as we approached, and unlike our last meeting, this time I did nothing to hide the contempt in my gaze.
"Welcome," King Cedrik said to his prisoners.
I could almost see Jakob tensing behind me at his words, spoken as if he were greeting distinguished guests. Ellena bowed to him and the figure who stood beside his throne, dressed similarly to the king but with far less jewellery, his face masked in shadow.
"Well, Leila," Cedrik continued, focusing his beady eyes on me, "I have been more than patient with you. I should be angry, but you have come with such wonderful presents for me."
He gestured with one fat hand to my companions standing behind me. I noticed that both Ellena and Will had inched further away from us, standing to one side as if avoiding any association with us.
"The Woodwalker, a Dyrel soldier, and the two traitors," the king named my friends almost eagerly.
Will raised his head at last to look at the king. He looked haggard and defeated, but he refused to turn his head in my direction.
"Forgive me, Majesty," he spoke up, "I was promised forgiveness."
The king shot a look at Ellena, who put her hand on Will's shoulder and whispered something to him. Will's eyes widened in surprise and his face lost what remained of its colour as he dropped his eyes once more to the ground.
The king laughed and began speaking again, but my attention was focused on Will. I wondered what the sorceress could have said to cause him so much alarm so suddenly. As I watched him, he raised his head slightly so his eyes met mine. I thought I saw him flinch, but his gaze didn't waver as he stared intensely at me. I knew he was trying to tell me something, so I watched closely, trying to decipher his message. Suddenly, his eyes moved to his right and then back to mine. I blinked as Will did it again, and this time I allowed my own gaze to follow Will's. He was gesturing to a thin pillar that stood next to the toad king's throne. I looked more closely, noticing that it was covered by a glass lid, and beneath it was something small and silver. I nearly gasped out loud as I realized what Will was showing me - it was the silver acorn!
"Forgive my interruption, Majesty," the shadowed figure interrupted smoothly in a voice that sent a chill down my spine, "but perhaps we should escort our guests to their chambers? They are probably tired from their journey."
My eyes snapped back to the throne as the figure stepped forward and realization struck me like a physical blow. It was Mattis, dressed like a Huryl prince. He wore blue pants and silver sandals, his chest bare with a few heavy silver chains around his neck and a single delicate locket. He wore a diadem on his forehead and smiled down at me from his position next to the king.
"Mattis!" Jakob hissed, vocalizing the anger I felt.
Mattis raised a finger in objection. "Prince Mattis now. His Majesty has granted me the kingdom of the Dyrel as my own, as a reward for my service."
I glanced over my shoulder and saw Cyrus pale and fall to his knees. Tears shimmered in his eyes, but his jaw was locked in anger. My own thoughts were racing at this sudden declaration. If Mattis was proclaiming himself prince, then what had become of Damaeon?
"I believe you're right," Cedrik agreed. "Bring the traitors to the dungeon. Leave the Woodwalker with the prince, and keep the lovely Leila with me."
"The dungeon?" Will repeated. "Majesty, I did as you bid. You promised to break the curse upon me if I delivered Leila to you."
"What?" Jakob exclaimed as he and Cyrus were surrounded by Huryl soldiers. "You gave us to the Huryl to save your own skin? You gave them Leila?”
Will kept his eyes on the king, who responded to the former soldier’s request with a deep, throaty laugh. I stood frozen in one spot, the full weight of Will’s betrayal sinking into me. I had trusted him to lead us to the Huryl city so we might end this war, never thinking that the victory Will was working towards was not our own. I barely felt the guards holding my arms behind my back, as the king’s cruel laughter rumbled through the hall.
“You demand a reward for your treachery?” the king asked.
“I was cursed by the elves retrieving the acorn for you, Your Majesty,” Will protested. “I was imprisoned in the Tower and left to die on your order. I have brought you the Warrior of the prophecy, and all I ask is that my mind be restored.”
King Cedrik listened thoughtfully for a moment before nodding once to Ellena. The sorceress put her hands on either side of Will’s head and closed her eyes. I could smell the fragrance of lilacs drift through the room as Will’s eyes widened in surprise and a smile spread slowly across his face. As Ellena released him, his eyes moved back and forth as he searched for lingering traces of the elven curse.
Will bowed deeply and opened his mouth to thank the king. His lips moved, but no sound came out. The happiness in his eyes froze at once into terror as he put one hand to his throat and tried in vain to make a sound. The king and sorceress watched him impassively as he stared at them both with pleading eyes.
“You are still a traitor,” Cedrik told him plainly. “Take him to the dungeon.”
Unable to scream, Will’s face contorted in rage as two Huryl guards dragged him, Jakob, and Cyrus out of the throne room. Both Cyrus and Jakob were silent, the one mourning the loss of his country while the other kept his eyes firmly on mine, until our eyes were blocked by the heavy wooden doors.
“Well, Mattis,” Cedrik said to his newly appointed prince, “you have your wish. The Woodwalker is yours to do with as you like.”
Mattis bowed to his king and snapped his fingers at the two guards who stood on either side of Fynn. Even though he wore iron, Fynn stood tall and strong , his face betraying no emotion or thought on his captivity. As the guards pulled him out of the room behind Mattis and Ellena, he winked at me reassuringly. I tried to smile back, feeling anything but reassured at having my friends separated in the Huryl citadel.
Alone with the king, I faced the throne with my head held high. I had already proven myself to this man, long ago when I had been forced to fight their greatest warrior unarmed and alone. I had learned a lot about this world and the spirits I controlled since then, and I found that I felt no fear towards the fat toad-king.
“Leila,” Cedrik said almost hungrily, spit falling from his mouth and dribbling down his chin. “You have failed to fulfill the Dyrel half of the prophecy. This leaves only one way to complete your destiny and return to your world. Give me the powers of the three worlds.”
“I don’t think so,” I replied smugly. “The prophecy says I must give the power to the mightiest Huryl, and you’ve done nothing to prove yourself to me.”
The king’s beady eyes narrowed dangerously. “So, you require a demonstration of just how powerful I am? Foolish girl.”
He snapped his fingers, and the servants and courtiers who had been milling about the hall quickly made for the exits, disappearing behind curtains and down shadowed hallways. In moments, only the king and I remained, facing each others like adversaries in a duel – which, I quickly realized, is what we had become.
The king pressed his hands together at the wrists, keeping the open palms facing me. He gritted his teeth, and suddenly I was picked up off the floor and tossed across the hall like a plastic bag caught in an updraft. I crashed into one of the tall columns that supported the vast ceiling of the hall, and slid to the ground. I sat, stunned and winded, wondering what on earth had just happened. Obviously the Huryl king could use magic, but what did that mean? Had he sold his soul to the faerie, like Damaeon had told me long ago?
Humans have always been known to be unable to use magic. It is in the blood
of the spirits, the elves and the faeries.
I felt myself being picked up and
dragged back to the throne, where Cedrik sat with a smile on his stretched
face. He dropped me unceremoniously to the ground and began to laugh.
“Well, Warrior,” he said. “Have I
proven myself to you?”
I stood up and made a show of
brushing myself off. The more the king toyed with me, I thought, the longer my
friends would be safe. I met the king’s eye squarely and smiled.
“Tricks,” I told him. “Anyone could
do it.”
Cedrik’s skin turned red with anger
and embarrassment and his face wrinkled in anger. My heart lurched, and I
wondered if perhaps I had insulted him too much, but before I could do
anything, I was in the air again. This time, I slammed into the ceiling of the
hall, held spread-eagle facing down. The king continued to push at me, the pressure
making me feel like I was being shoved through the stone ceiling.
“Tricks?” Cedrik roared.
His magic released me and I
plummetted head first to the ground. I kept Ellena’s warning firmly in my mind,
knowing that if I saved myself from Cedrik’s attacks, the others would die. I
knew the king didn’t want me dead, not until I had given him what he wanted,
but I wasn’t entirely sure how alive I had to be. Inches above the tiled floor,
I stopped. He turned me until I was floating above the ground but facing him in
a standing position, unable to move on my own.
“That is enough, for now,” Cedrik
said. I could see the sweat pouring off his brow and his chest heaving with
exhertion.
He snapped his fingers and the two
guards who had brought me to the throne room appeared. Cedrik lowered me into
their waiting grasps and gestured to a curtained off area at the back of the
throne room. At his motion, the curtains parted and I saw a large cage behind
it.
“Make sure she is secure,” Cedrik
ordered as the guards dragged me towards the cage. “I’ll deal with her in the
morning.”
I was thrown inside only to discover
that the bottom of the cage was lined with straw. There was a bucket in one
corner that was empty, and other filled with water. I curled my nose in disgust
as the curtain was once more drapped over the cage and I was lost in silky
shadows.
Sitting on the ground, I drew my knees to my legs and thought of my friends. I had sent spirits with each of them, and now that I was no longer behind watched, I knew I could easily check on them through the eyes of the spirits. The thought gave me some comfort, but I knew I would be left vulnerable while my consciousness was out wandering. I sighed. Should I risk a glance, or stay aware and in my cage? If I did decide to peek at my friends, who should I spy on first?