When Heroes Fall Page 7

  “Do as Prince Jursten says.” Farrell prepared to enforce his will if necessary. Fortunately Vregar had led enough details to order the others to relax. Turning his attention back to his friend, Farrell asked, “What’s going on?”

  Jursten frowned. “Let’s talk in my quarters.”

  “What…? Fine.” Farrell nodded. If he’d known his visit would cause so much trouble, he’d have stayed home. “Lead the way.”

  Farrell didn’t speak on the brief walk to the royal suite. It still felt off walking into these quarters and not speaking to Clement. He pushed those thoughts aside and followed Jursten through the rooms and out the “back.”

  When designing the king’s suite, Clement had requested a place that mimicked a courtyard. Farrell had modeled the space after one of the main squares. It had taken some effort, but he created an area with forty-foot ceilings and a changing light system. Clement added the benches. Not perfect, but psychologically it served the purpose.

  They maintained their silence until they entered the open space. Jursten turned and grabbed Farrell’s upper arms. “It is good to see you, despite the commotion you always seem to bring with you.”

  “Honestly, I just came to say hello. I didn’t expect to set off an incident.” He waited until just before Jursten spoke to add, “And as I recall, you created just as many incidents as I did. Probably more.”

  “No, you recall poorly.” He motioned toward the bench to his right and they sat. “You did at least twice the stunts I did, but unlike you, I got reprimanded every time I did something. Father only called you on things if it was truly serious. Even he didn’t want to risk overstaying his welcome.”

  “As if I would’ve sent either of you away.”

  Jursten grinned widely. “Father often employed the wisdom of Falcron.”

  “Unlike his son.” Farrell winked. He missed their banter. “So why did you set your guards on me? Did they have orders to stop me?”

  “Ah, that.” Jursten lost his amusement. “Word has come to me that Corvis is angry at me.”

  “For what?” He considered the ways to torture Corvis. “Is this about that incident over the markets?”

  Jursten shook his head. “Yes and no. He blames me for you and Horgon screaming at him, but that’s only part of it. Alicia is the other.”

  “What does she have to do with this?”

  “Despite being joined, Corvis made an advance at her. You can imagine how well that went over with Alicia.”

  Farrell laughed at what he imagined she’d have said. His humor faded after a moment. “When did this happen?”

  “Two weeks ago.” He shook his head. “And before you ask, no, we didn’t tell Horgon or Miceral.”

  “But she’s my… our guest.”

  “She means something to me as well.” A bit of color flushed Jursten’s cheeks. “It’s was trifling compared to the other issues the world and you face. And it’s also a matter of honor.”

  Farrell understood why his friend would want to handle the situation. That didn’t excuse Jursten not telling someone. “So why the extra guards?”

  “Alicia’s response was mild compared to mine.” There was a fire in his eyes that Farrell recognized. Just because Jursten wasn’t the military expert his father had been didn’t mean he was weak. “I marched to Corvis’s chambers with five hundred soldiers and threatened to cut out his tongue if he spoke to her like that again.”

  “You…. How did you get five hundred soldiers to Corvis’s rooms without a fight?” And how had this information not reached his ears?

  “In a bit of good fortune, there were no Respital guards along our route.” Jursten chuckled. “I, ah… I might have spoken to Bendict before I descended on his liege.”

  Farrell laughed. “I wonder what Corvis said to Bendict about that.”

  “My guess is very little. Bendict all but begged me to tell you about this.” Jursten picked a bit of string off his blue pants and flicked it to the ground. “I’m sure he reminded the king how he fared the last time he appeared before you.”

  “But if Bendict didn’t care you accosted Corvis, why the extra guards?”

  “Bendict is a good man. He warned me that Corvis is trying to hire someone to assassinate me.”

  “He what?” Farrell yelled so loud he feared the guards might have heard him. “Jursten, this is serious. You should have said something.”

  “I was going to.” He held up a hand. “We only got word yesterday, and you’ve been hard to reach lately.”

  Farrell shook his head. He doubted that was the reason. “Horgon or Miceral were available.”

  “This is personal.” The edge returned to his voice. “I wanted to tell you myself.”

  “Fine.” He stood and reached into his pocket.

  “Farrell.” Jursten got up. “Where… what are you doing?”

  “Finding out what’s going on.” Farrell removed the Ear and the Eye. “If Corvis tried to harm you or Alicia, he’s gone. I’ll execute him myself if need be. This is… I should have let Bendict depose him by now.”

  “No, you shouldn’t have.” He moved until they were facing each other. “Had you done that, none of us would have felt safe under your roof. We’d wonder when you’d tire of us and find a replacement to your liking.”

  “Throwing my words back in my face?” That had been the reason he gave Bendict when the subject was raised.

  “It was a shrewd and wise decision. As a devotee of Falcron, I can appreciate wisdom when it is presented to me.”

  “Don’t try to distract me.” He pointed to the bench. “Sit so I can find out what he’s done.”

  JAGWIN SQUEEZED and released the grip on his war hammer. He’d stationed hundreds of guards around the palace. He also had the military deploy troops across Trellham. Farrell nearly said something, but he noticed Thrinton toying with his weapon as well.

  Father Aswick advised summoning Corvis to Trellham to deal with the situation. His reasoning had been sound. Haven was the northernmost reach of Trellham. The kings of Trellham had jurisdiction.

  Calling Thrinton and Drendar to bear witness wasn’t as clear, but he trusted the priest. Miceral sent word asking their brother kings for help. Their instant acceptance reminded Farrell he didn’t understand dwarves.

  “They’re coming,” Rothdin said.

  Farrell also didn’t understand peregrines or unicorns. His father asked to be present and a moment later, Nerti made the same request.

  “Thank you, Father.”

  It didn’t take long until the familiar sound of dwarf soldiers marching filled the throne room. Greigel appeared a minute later at the head of the procession. Miceral had sent over a thousand dwarves to arrest Corvis. The show of force had been sent in the hopes the few guards loyal to Corvis wouldn’t put up a fight.

  Corvis shuffled through the doors, his arms bound in chains. The plaintive expression did nothing to cool Farrell’s anger. When Corvis glanced up, his gaze met Farrell’s and he recoiled.

  “You’re glaring at him like you want him to burst into flames,” Miceral said.

  “He’d be lucky if that’s all I did to him.” Farrell would have said more, but Bendict followed behind his king. Although not in chains, he also appeared to be in custody. “Why is Bendict under arrest?”

  “He’s not.” Miceral pointed as Bendict peeled off to join Zenora, Jursten, and Darg. Nerti, Rothdin, and Horgon stood opposite the other rulers. “I told the guards to bring him with them to ensure his safety. We’ll need to sort out who is still loyal to Corvis.”

  Shock turned to anger as Corvis realized Bendict wasn’t in custody. Farrell stood.

  “Bring the prisoner!”

  All eyes in the room focused on Farrell, but his attention stayed on just one person. He’d never liked Corvis. In truth, after the fall of Yar-del, he disliked all of Ardus’s monarchs other than Clement. Corvis, however, earned extra disdain for being inept and imperialistic. Now that dislike turned to hatred.
>
  “How dare you!” Corvis’s attempt at bravado only grated on Farrell.

  “No. How dare you.” Farrell flicked his hand to cut off Corvis’s response. “You will be silent!”

  The two stared at each other; then Corvis blinked and looked down.

  “Did you really think you could assassinate Prince Jursten?”

  “I… I never did… I never tried to kill him.”

  Whether anyone believed the lie didn’t matter. Farrell needed to prove beyond any doubt it was true. He removed the Eye and Ear and held them aloft.

  “I have seen and heard you do just that.” He nodded to Jagwin.

  “Bring out the prisoners!” Jagwin shouted.

  A company of dwarves dragged four men into the hall. The quartet looked worse for the experience as they stumbled under the weight of their chains.

  “You gave these four a dozen gold crowns each and promised them ten times that once they killed Jursten. The Eye of Honorus and the Ear of Lenore do not lie. But before you try to deny it, these men confessed. They even had your gold in their pockets.”

  Corvis’s jowls quivered as his eyes darted everywhere but to Farrell and his prisoners. Finally he looked up. “You have no authority over me. This is matter between Respital and Endor.”

  “Wrong!” Miceral stood and marched down the stairs. If Farrell had been visibly angry, Miceral’s ire boiled quietly. “Heminaltose didn’t know when he opened his school, but Haven is part of the Kingdom of Trellham. As kings of Trellham, we’ve allowed Haven and its people to remain, but you are still subject to our laws.”

  Drendar and Thrinton rose and stood beside Miceral.

  “Fracturn and Colograd stand ready to defend Trellham’s borders,” Drendar said.

  Corvis’s triumphant expression vanished and he started to shake. Farrell ignored it and reminded himself what the man had tried to do.

  “For your acts, we are ready to impose our sentence.” He paused for the expected objection.

  “No! Please!” Corvis tried to move closer, but three dwarves yanked the chain and pulled him back. “Farrell…. Your Majesty, please. Jursten invaded my land.”

  “Your land?” Spit flew from Farrell’s mouth when he shouted. “Your land? Didn’t you hear what Miceral said? All of Haven belongs to Trellham!”

  “Be calm, Farrell,” Miceral said.

  “But… but he threatened me. Five hundred…. He marched five hundred troops to my door. Why isn’t he charged?”

  Farrell expected this defense. If he and Miceral ignored it, they would appear capricious. He looked across Miceral. “King Drendar. If King Thrinton made an advance on your daughter despite being joined, what would you do?”

  “I’d confront him in the strongest way possible.” He patted the head of his hammer. “He would know my displeasure.”

  “Would you notify King Miceral or myself before you took action?”

  “I would not. Though I respect Your Majesty, matters such as you described would be a private matter between Thrinton and myself. The high kings would have no authority to get involved.”

  Farrell raised an eyebrow. “Not even if you took an army to confront Thrinton?”

  “Not even then.”

  “Would you hire an assassin?”

  Despite having rehearsed this exchange with Drendar, the older dwarf looked as offended as when he’d first heard the question. “No honorable dwarf would ever hire someone to kill an enemy in stealth. If any dwarf under my rule made such an arrangement, I’d kill him myself.”

  Farrell turned to his left. “King Thrinton? Is there any law that addresses a situation like this?”

  “None directly, Your Majesty. Our laws have never contemplated that rulers in exile would take up residence inside a dwarf kingdom.”

  “What if one of your joined subjects propositioned an unjoined female?” Miceral took up the conversation to blunt the criticism that Farrell was protecting his friend.

  “Though it would be extremely dishonorable, it would not be a crime.”

  Corvis appeared more hopeful, so Farrell moved to squash that optimism. “What if they attempted to hire an assassin?”

  “Such an act is foreign to our kind, but if one dwarf sought to have another killed, the law is clear, Your Majesty.” Thrinton turned toward Corvis. “Such an act is punishable by death.”

  “But I didn’t kill him!” Corvis yelled. “Jursten is alive. I demand you release me.”

  Farrell didn’t react right away. The easy answer was to chop off his head and end the problem. But to a world concerned he’d become his father, he couldn’t be quick to execute someone.

  “Prince Jursten. Please approach the throne,” Farrell said.

  Surrounded by his guards, Jursten ignored Corvis as he moved closer to the bottom step. He bowed deeply. “Your Majesties?”

  “What is the penalty for plotting to kill a king of Endor?”

  “If such a crime were proven, the sentence would be death. Typically by impalement, but the king may designate the method.”

  “If I were to release the prisoner, do you lay claim to him to answer for his crime?”

  “I do.”

  “This is a sham!” Corvis tried to move again, but his guards had a firm hold on his restraints. “I am the King of Respital. You can’t treat me like… like….”

  “Like you treat your subjects?” Farrell asked.

  “You’ve always had it out for me.” Corvis tried to turn toward the crowd. “This ‘trial’ is a fraud. There is no evidence of any wrongdoing. Farrell and Jursten… they’re friends. They are conspiring to remove me because I embarrassed Jursten.”

  The absurdity of the statement took a moment to sink in, but Farrell began to laugh. When he stopped, he shook his head. “Corvis, you are a fool of the highest order. The only reason you have not been deposed already is because I prevented it. Your own people want to replace you.

  “But King Miceral and I did not act without thought and consultation. We presented all the evidence in this case to Kings Drendar and Thrinton. They agree with our assessment. If that wasn’t enough, we called the heads of the six temples to ensure we acted properly. Father Odis, can you attend us, please?”

  The elderly dwarf leaned heavily on his staff as he moved closer. He stood next to Jursten and as befitted a high priest of Honorus, he did not bow. “How may the temple of Honorus assist the crown?”

  In normal times, the pompous statement would irk Farrell, especially given his status as Servant, Chosen, and Champion. But today, he needed those words. “Greetings, Holy Father. Thank you for coming. Can you advise the crowd of our meeting yesterday?”

  “With pleasure, Your Majesty.” He turned around so he could face those in the room. “Yesterday the high kings made the unusual request that I convene a temple council. They explained what they’d learned using the Gifts of the Gods and wanted the advice of the temples.

  “King Farrell allowed us to review the evidence he’d gathered. We also spoke to the prisoners about their role and who hired them. Then he and King Miceral left. My brothers and sisters and I discussed what we’d seen and heard. We advised the kings an offense had been committed inside the boundaries of Trellham. Such a crime could not go unpunished. Our counsel was they should arrest and execute Corvis of Respital.”

  Odis turned back, inclined his head toward the kings, and moved to stand with the other clerics. The room was eerily quiet as the crowd reflected on Father Odis’s words. The temples couldn’t overturn the kings’ decision. But had they disagreed, it would have given some credence to Corvis’s claim of bias.

  The silence continued longer than Farrell had planned. To some it might seem he did it deliberately to leave Corvis twisting under the weight of his impending fate. The truth, however, was Farrell didn’t want to execute the man. He disliked Corvis and was irate when he learned about the assassination attempt. But killing him?

  “Corvis.” Farrell’s voice shook a bit and he swallowed
to regain control. “I will admit, I dislike you and I always have. You heard the advice Father Odis gave King Miceral and me. You also heard King Thrinton recite dwarfish law. This should be an easy decision for me, but it is not.

  “We could allow you to challenge your accuser to a fight, but we will not. Despite the fact you would lose, we will not set that precedent. Someone who commits a heinous act cannot challenge the person he tried to wrong. Because your crime involved Prince Jursten, we could hand you to him and allow Endor to pass sentence. But we don’t believe in passing our problems off to someone else. So we find that we must punish you ourselves.

  “We can’t exile you, for you would surely betray us to our enemies. Instead of executing you, we could send you to work as a slave in the mines, but that would be cruel and merciless. You wouldn’t last a week. Which leaves us few options.”

  “King Farrell?” Drendar said. “May I speak?”

  Drendar’s question surprised Farrell. They hadn’t discussed Drendar speaking at this stage.

  “Of course, Brother. We welcome your advice.”

  “Thank you.” He moved down two steps until he was beside Jursten. “It is clear to me you do not wish to execute Corvis. A year ago I’d have thought you weak for refusing to do what you should. But a year ago I hadn’t met you. Hadn’t seen you stare down an army, hadn’t seen you throw yourself into a deadly storm to save Trellham.

  “If you will give him to me, I will spare you the pain of making this decision. I’ll take him to Fracturn and keep him locked up until he dies. It won’t be pleasant. He’ll have no freedom, no staff, and no luxuries. But it won’t be laboring in the mines and it won’t be death. My only condition is Prince Jursten must agree to the sentence. I will not spare the accused if the victim objects.”

  Jursten appeared as surprised as Farrell felt. He’d never discussed possible sentences with Jursten to avoid shifting the burden to his friend. Drendar’s actions, though well-intentioned and generous, had done just that.

  “I have your word he will not be pampered?” Jursten asked.