Meaio stood a few feet from the banging door, the calls on the other side demanding she open the door, but she couldn’t help but tremble, ‘Why are they here, what do they want’ her thoughts played out as her fear and panic at what may happen if she does as ordered.
She had looked through the peephole and saw three men dressed in the tunics and trousers of the Baron’s men, the small pins on their chests that identified them as part of the house guard, but she knew one of them and it made her fear soar higher than the shouts and banging on the door.
The man leading the pack is Robert Trainer, he is a tall man built for war without magic and trained to a razor’s edge, but the cause of Meaio's panic comes from memories of his ruthless beating of her.
The sudden and hard bang followed by his voice made her fall backward, her eye locked to the door, the slight shifting of it with every bang, the calls now taking to shouts, and the sounds of harder bangs after a call to kick it down.
Each slam sent shockwaves of fear, ‘Is this it, will They get in and take my life,’ she crawled a bit back as tears welled up, ‘I am sorry Arcaio, please forgive me’ She saw the door bent inward a bit, ‘I please be safe with Darak, he is a good man’ she thought, and raised her hands at one louder bang, ‘please save me Darak’
With the sudden rush of wind, her blurred vision didn’t recognize the tall man, but he kneeled beside her and spoke to her in a calming voice that somehow reached over the sounds from the door, “Sorry for that my dear, can you hold our son, I will handle the men outside.” Darak’s voice was apologetic, as a bundle of her crying son was pressed to her, and she nodded and took her son.
She felt him run his hands over her hair and over her eyes before he stood and walked to the door, “Please make them leave.” She got out and saw him look back and nodded, while the air about them grew cold, and a feeling of dread washed over her and towards the door.
she watched as he called out for them to stop and then opened the door, The three men at the door seemed stunned at the sight of him, but Darrak immediately shouted at them, “What can I do to the rude thugs at my door, you have frightened my wife and son, had my familiar not informed me of your behavior I would have not come, so speak or be banished to the hells!” his voice was clear and hard like a king of a grand domain, the sight of the mana oozing from his eyes lock them in silence for a few seconds.
“The Baron has sent us to investigate a magic trace near his manor, the tail led us here you will allow us entry so that we may search your home.” Robert said back with a hint of annoyance as he tightened his hands into fists.
“I and my abode are protected by the queen’s law, and I do not see a reason for your entry, this trace is not cause for a search of my domain,” Darak said back with a cool tone he held then pointed at Robert’s chest, “more over your pins tell me you are not the baron’s men but the baroness’s men, giving me less reason to allow you entry.”
Robert sucked his teeth, “That does not excuse the use of magic near the baron’s manor, and we have a cause to look, one that is of importance to the Baron’s family.” he said back.
Darak took a step forward blocking more of the doorway, “And I was there investigating a source of malignant magic, and after erasing it I left, so what are you looking for exactly?” He said with a bit of a roar to cower them back a bit.
Robert inhaled hard then spoke, “We have a reason to believe that a runaway maid may have been taken by you, we are looking for her, now move and let us in, the search will not take long, and we…”
“Forget it, a runaway maid is not my style, Moreover, “ Darak said and gestured to Meaio, “The only ones here are my wife, son, and I. Do we look like the one you are looking for?”
Meaio gasped as the three looked at her, but their expression shifted and relaxed, then Robert turned to Darak, “I see, it seems that you indeed have nothing to do with her. We apologize for our rudeness.” he said with a fair bit of agitation.
“I see, however, I have to insist on asking, now that it seems that you understand your place, why is this maid so important to the baroness?” Darak asked back.
Robert shook his head and spoke, “I can’t speak of the reason.”
“I see then the baron nor his men or anyone under his employ are permitted to approach my abode, if I see you come close to my wife or son, I will take it as a declaration of war, as I am protected by not just the Queen but also the Sultan of Jerysalim, the Holy Emperor of Waino, and the King of Frankia, my home is my own domain gifted to me by the Queen at the request of her fellow monarchs, is considered independent to me and me alone, and I will punish any who dare to challenge me.” Darak roared, then settled down, “Now I ask again why is this maid of such importance to the baroness?”
Meaio thought over his words, ‘he is the king of his home, this is a nation where he is a king already, to think he would call them out and demand an answer’ She looked to Robert and felt as though he came to the same thoughts, ‘he can’t leave now, it would paint the baron as incompetent if Darak reports this, he has no choice but to answer and hope that Darak lets this go.’
Robert swallowed hard, then straightened out a bit, “She has given birth to a child that is the son of the heir to the barony, we have been tasked with retrieving him.” he said slowly.
Darak let out a laugh, then waved his hand, “I see, I thought you were here to do something untoward to my wife, Meaio and I are now married and I have adopted her son as my own, the Baron and only the Baron may come and visit his grandson,” Darak said and gestured again to Meaio, this time the men seemed to recognize her, “She is under my protection and will forever be out of reach of the Baroness,” Darak took a step forward and leaned a bit towards them “Also tell the baron and baroness that I am back and happy to meet with them, and if they are smart they will meet and greet me as a master of the mystic arts as I am, and not as the son of a maid.” He said then threw the door, slamming it closed, before turning to her, and smiling wide, “That should take care of them, unless they are really dumb.”
‘Why would he go that far, why announce his return to the baroness and antagonize her,’ she thought as she watched him come closer and kneel down, placing a finger on Arcaio’s head and watching as her son calmed down and fell asleep. ‘He is still a mystery, but this needs an answer.’ She swallowed and looked up, “Why did you tell them about where I was and who you are?”
Darak took her by the arms and lifted her up, then smiled at her, “Because now they have a reason to fear us, and when we shatter all illusions they ward themselves in of their safety, the despair they will show will be all the greater.” he said in a tone that sounded sweet but was terrifying, “but I will make sure you get my brother.”
‘He wants to get them to panic and be scared, he wants a greater challenge, but this is so soon.’ she thought and looked up, “Did your rescue of me speed up your plans?” she asked and saw as he nodded, “I am sorr…” she started but he stopped her with a finger.
“Do not apologize, I did it because I was mad at the woman’s nerve to send men to my abode, on to other matters,” he said with a smile, “I found a maid called Merie, she will be arriving in the afternoon, her parents run a tavern not too far away, she has agreed to work here, moreover she has a mana point suitable for a seer, so I plan to train her a bit too.”
She nodded and stepped back, ‘he has fulfilled his vows still, and has pinned the danger that was shadowing me to himself,’ She looked up at him, the warm smile and jovial expression made it clear he was not regretting his actions just now. ‘He is a man of his word, and still found a maid as I have asked, how is it that I had this luck.’ She reached forward and pulled him in by his suit, pressing her head to his chest, ‘Even after this morning he cares about me and does things out of impulse for me, he got angry and malicious for me, all because I asked him to,’ she snuffled back her tears and shook her head a bit, “Thank you Darak, that was hard for me, that man you spoke with, he had beaten me badly a few months ago,” she felt him tremble against her, “I was too scared to do anything, so thank you for getting rid of them.”
She felt him swallow, and breathed out a long exhale, “Do you want him to suffer too?” he asked slowly.
‘I do” she thought and nodded before she could hold back.
“I will see it done soon, but for now, let us have some tea and discuss your training.” he said back and pulled her along to the sitting room.
As she reached the chair, she had taken the day before, he snapped his finger summoning a crib for Arcaio, and waved his hand calling a fresh tray of tea, with the pot steaming already. ‘He is still able to use magic so easily even after his spell at the graveyard’ She smiled and poured out the cups, pulling her hair back and looking at him, “Honey, right?” Getting a nod, she poured out a fine amount of honey for him and then handed him the cup, before getting her own ready, finally sitting down and looking over at him and his smile as he patiently waited for her to rest too. “Do you think the baron will come?” she asked after they shared the first sip.
He looked to the window and out over the street, “Not anytime soon, maybe after the baroness tries to come on her own a few times, maybe my brother will try too, but the baron himself will not come for a month or two, by year’s end for sure.” he said back and reached down taking a small cookie.
“Why would the baroness come first?” Meaio asked as the thought came to her, then took a sip.
Darak placed the bitten cookie down on his saucer, then took a sip as he thought it over, then finally spoke after swallowing, “She will want to verify who I am to challenge her authority, you see, her marriage to the baron was one of politics, and her power stands as long as her son is the only son of the baron, I am technically the eldest son, so I am next in line for the title, but my aims are higher. She will not care, it is the reason she can’t have you around, because if you push for your son to be recognized as the son of the heir, the baron may have to have you marry her son to avoid a scandal, which in turn will mean the Baroness will lose all of her power when the current baron dies.” he said slowly.
“So, she wants to remain as a baroness for as long as she can have that power, is that why she always had a way to keep her son home from balls and events, I think the only one he ever attends is the queen’s birthday, and he only does so at his mother’s side.” Meaio said aloud as she thought it over, then took a sip and looked at him “So, if you have a connection to the queen will we be invited?”
This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.
“I guess so, but the Sultan will be inviting us first, then the Emperor, and the King of Frankia, then the Queen.” Darak said back calmly then looked at her.
‘What, we are going to meet all of them…’ Meaio thought and felt a raised embarrassment at the idea of being in front of so many forms of royalty, but daraks hand rubbing her cheeks got her to look up.
“Don’t worry so much, none of them expect much, with the exception of the queen, they will overlook any breach of protocol, they all owe me a fair bit.” He said with a smile, then pulled back and sipped more of his tea.
Meaio looked at him for a few seconds, ‘that's right you had helped them beyond the skills of anyone would do, you went to heaven and hell for two and saved the princess of Frankia after she was cursed.’ she took a sip of her tea, then looked up, “So, about my training, how will it begin?”
“We will start with meditation, then tonight before you go to sleep, we will expand your mana channels.” he said carefully, then took a second cookie.
“Why before I go to sleep?” She asked him.
Darak cleared his mouth with a sip of tea and then looked at her, “Because, when we expand them, it will be tiring for you, it will be easier for you if you can rest quickly after, the process will be a bit slower this way, but it will be safer, and the end results will be far greater than my own channels.”
“Does that mean I should be dressed to sleep?” Meaio asked pointedly and watched as he blushed a bit at her tease.
“It would be wise to. I will need easier access to your skin as the fabric will interfere with the mana.” He said while looking away, “But access to your back will work fine.” he added quickly.
‘He is easy to make embarrassed, to think he is as powerful as he is yet this nervous around me’ Meaio smiled a bit, “Then my back it shall be, as for this meditation will I need to be undressed or something?”
Darak smiled back at her, “No, you can do it anywhere whenever you like, it is a simple meditation, but you have to stay awake and aware of your mana as you do.” he said with a controlled tone.
Meaio was about to speak when a knock came at the door, looking over she heard a voice calling out, “Excuse me, I am Merie, Darak Lordarn hired me.”
Darak waved his hand, opening the door with magic, and said, “To the sitting room, just past the door, please close it after you.”
Meaio watched as a girl about nineteen walked in with two old and worn suitcases, closed the door, and walked to the sitting room, looking about for a second then locking eyes with her and bowing, “Hello, I am Merie, your husband hired me to be a maid within your lovely home. If there is anything you see I need to improve on, please inform me right away.” she said in a clear and concise tone and tempo.
Meaio watched the girl closely, thinking about the girl, ‘she had been trained a bit, based on her presentation just now, and her choice of words showed she was not one to flatter needlessly,’ but smiled and gestured to the couch, “Please have a seat, I have a few questions.” Meaio said calmly and watched as the girl sat down but maintained her posture over resting back. “I have a few simple questions if you please answer them.”
Merie nodded and shifted a bit, a clear effort to straighten out and be respectful.
“First, what skills do you possess already?” Meaio asked and watched the girl’s eyes look down as she thought over her answer.
Merie finally looked back up after a few seconds, “I have been working in my parent’s tavern for a while now, but I did attend a maid school, I am confident in cleaning, laundry, and childcare, however, I need some more practice in cooking before I would claim I can handle that task.” she said with a fair bit of determination while smiling.
Meaio smiled and nodded, ‘so a maid school, i wonder…’ she thought then looked back at Merie, “Which maid school did you go to?” she asked.
Merie looked up at her and smiled before speaking with a bit of pride, “Saint Joanna’s school for maids, Miss Lordarn.”
‘That is not a grand school but the maids there are trained well, but I want to do my best to protect this family.’ she thought then smiled at the answer she gave before asking her next question, “I want to know something more important to me, how much would your loyalty cost?”
“Meaio, thats…” Darak started but was cut off by Meaio as she glared his way.
Meaio looked back to Merie who was in deep thought, her hands starting to fidget a bit, until she made her mind up and looked back to her, “My loyalty can’t be bought as master Lordarn has already offered everything I would ever ask for.” she said sternly while watching Meaio.
Meaio eyed the girl for a few seconds, ‘Her voice sounds right, and her expression is determined, her posture is the same, and she hasn’t broken eye contact.’ She let out a sigh, “I am sorry for that question, my husband and I have unfortunately rubbed a noble the wrong way, I wanted to make sure that our son would be safe, but you spoke honestly now so I will trust you.” she said then looked back up and to Darak, who had nodded along with her explanation, “Now on to the last thing I want to cover, your tasks, they are not much, we just need someone to watch over Arcaio when my husband and I are busy, that may happen a few times throughout the day, will you be able to handle that?”
Merie beamed a smile, “Yes, I would be happy to keep an eye on him for as long as you are willing to employ me.” she said quickly.
“Good, when you are not watching over Arcaio, please clean any room if you see it in need, My husband has a habit of using magic to do that, for the most part, but do not hesitate to take over.” Meaio said slowly, “Lastly, if you require something from outside the house please notify us before you depart. Is all of that clear?”
Merie nodded, “yes, I will see to doing as you have tasked.” she said with a respectful tone.
“Any questions you have?” Meaio asked and noticed the slight surprise in Merie’s expression before the girl thought it over, but noticed the nervous glance she gave her and Darak. “You have a question about our relationship?”
Merie nodded, and Meaio gave her a wave to go on, “I don’t fully understand something, your questions just now didn’t feel like a noble lady looking for a maid but a head maid testing my resolve, so I have a feeling that your relationship is one born of a master/maid interaction, not that I am judging you, just want to know why?” she asked in a clear and concise tone and tempo to keep the conversation respectful.
The effort from Merie was a bit ruined as Darak stifled a laugh, but got a glare from Meaio, before she looked back to Merie, “Our relationship is born of need and circumstance, Arcanist Lordarn is not the father of Arcaio but his uncle, and I was a maid in his father’s employ until recently, my now husband took pity on me and my son and took us in, in return I have agreed to marry him to ensure my son’s safety.” She explained in a clear tone, then looked up to Merie, “However that should not belittle the vows he has made to me and I will not turn a blind eye to this information leaving this house. Do I make myself clear?”
Merie quickly nodded.
“Come on dear, you are being too hard, after the job details, I offered and the benefits, I am sure that Merie here may beg to stay even after we don’t need her any longer.” Darak said from her side.
“What was the offer you gave exactly?” Meaio asked back, still a bit confused by the earlier declaration of loyalty and now this statement.
“Well, it was two silvers a day, three meals a day, room, training in magic, curing of ailments to her family within reason, Blessing to family members at her call, magic tools for her protection, and two days off when we are not busy or have meetings.” Darak said back.
Meaio turned to face him ‘are you insane, that is like paying for a…’ she let out a sigh, “Darak, even the head maid at your father’s estate doesn’t get paid that well with that many benefits.” she said in an exasperated tone, but Darak looked confused “a maid at the level of Merie would be paid five coppers a day and get one meal and shared room, with no benefits.” she looked to Merie and smiled, “I apologize, though I am a bit reluctant to agree to those conditions, I know my husband gave that offer to make sure you would not worry for your safety. I will not overturn it, however, I will add one condition for you, you will visit your parents every night for dinner, if they tell you anything out of the ordinary you tell us right away.”
Merie looked a bit confused, and asked, “May I ask why you are adding that condition?”
Meaio smiled, “As I have mentioned earlier, there is a noblewoman who may use anything to undermine us, including your parents, for their safety we would like to know about anything as soon as it happens, or before if it can be helped, this woman loathes myself and Darak, and she will not stop even if it hurts people that are loosely associated with us.” she said then turned to Darak, “Can you make a charm or amulet to protect her family?”
Darak nodded and thought about it before speaking “I think we should accompany her and have dinner with her parents, that way I can cast my spells on their tavern too, as for the charms or amulets I think I can pull something together before we leave, but I may have to skip lunch if I do.”
“Please this is too much already, I can’t ask you to do more than you already have, my family will never be able to repay you.” Merie calls out of turn, her fear of the unfolding situation clear in her expression.
Meaio leaned back in her chair and called back to her in a cold and slightly annoyed tone “On the contrary, you are now in the employ of Arcanist Darak Lordarn, acclaimed by the King of Frankia, the Sultan of Jerysalim, and the Holy Emperor of Waino. Traveler of the Hells and Heavens, master and maker of the Hundredfold Spell, and titled by the Archdevil Lucifer as the Dark Prince of Magic. If he wishes to protect your family as he does me and my son, you shall not counter it, he is a man of greater talent than most nobles of this land, yet acts with the kindness befitting of a king.”
Meaio watched as Merie heard everything and saw the slight shudder in her posture, the expression shifted a bit from fear to mild dread, her eyes glancing at Darak like prolonged eye contact would put her under a spell.
Meaio sighed, “So, I ask you to consider all his actions over the time you meet him and tell me what you think of my husband.” she said and thought as Merie reacted ‘There you go, think it over,’ she watched as Merie looked down and thinking over her experience, ‘what kindness did he show you beyond the offer of this job’ then Merie looks up.
“He is a kind man, and even after everything I heard, I feel as though denying him would be both wrong and if I tried to repay him he would not accept it even if I beg,” she said slowly and then bowed, “I will not stop you if you are going to protect my family, thank you so much.”
“See Darak, she is smart and quick.” Meaio said with an open palm.
Darak said back, “My dear, we want her to want to stay, please go easy on her.”
‘You are too soft to commoners,’ Meaio sighed, “Merie, with everything that has been said, would you still like to be employed under us?”
Merie glanced around a bit as she thought over the idea, but looked at them and nodded, standing up and bowing before she spoke “I would like to work for as long as you will have me.”
“We accept!” Meaio said back quickly, “Now sit back down please.” getting the newly hired maid to sit again. “Darak, you mentioned she can use seer magic right?”
Darak nodded and put his cup down after his second drink. “Yes, Merie’s mana point is perfect for it, not that she could use anything else, I am thinking of teaching her the basics, then after Arcaio can take care of himself mostly, and at her permission send her to study under Jason, he will piss and moan about it but he is a good teacher.” he said as he leaned back.
“Umm, sir, do you truly plan to teach me magic?” Merie asked with a bit of hesitation.
“Of course he is,” Meaio replayed quickly, “He believes that magic is the right of anyone that has the ability to, not just the nobles, he will teach you and anyone he finds that has the necessary magic power within them, right?” she turned to look at Darak.
“Yes, but I plan to open an official school were parents can bring their kids and enroll them at the age of six,” Darak said while scratching at his chin “with time I may even invite you, Merie, to be a teacher for seer arts, if you study hard that is.”
Meaio looked over to him, ‘that will be problumatic, the nobles will be outraged by his school and they will push back and harass the students’ she thought then shook her head, “right, that should do it for now, Darak shall we start our training,” she looked down to Arcaio, “it seems Arcaio is asleep, so lets give merie a tour then start the training we each need.”
Darak nodded and stood up, “right we will start with the room for merie then cover the upper floor, and move on to this floor and end in the basement.” He said, as they got up and got ready to walk about a bit.