Alaric raised his mug in the midst of everyone at the Kampfergilde. “Prost!” In a matter of seconds, his pint mug of mead was empty as he gulped it down. He walked over to where Lucullus, Johannes, Olivia, and Aela were standing. “Gute arbeit!”
Lucullus looked over to Johannes.
Johannes chuckled. “He’s congratulating you.”
“It was a pleasure to work with your guild, Alaric,” Lucullus replied as he extended his hand toward him.
Alaric vigorously shook Lucullus’s hand with a sly smile. “You gute man, Lucullus.”
Lucullus scratched his head and looked back to Johannes. “I thought he didn’t speak Dasosan.”
“A man can learn. Besides, I think he’s heard enough Southern Dasosan from the three of us to pick up on a few things… Though he still has gaps in his knowledge.”
Aela interjected, “Why didn’t he just speak to Lucullus in Dasosan before?”
“Even now it would be easier for me or you to just translate. He is still limited to simple sentences, but his progress is remarkable.”
“Regardless, I appreciate his effort,” Lucullus added. “But more than that, I appreciate his help in rescuing Princess Olivia. I never could have done it without Alaric.”
“I know the boss is glad to hear it. And I would like to thank you for all the help you have given to the Kampfergilde.” He turned to Aela. “Though the Aerasites may have their differences with the Rigmatites, I can see that your heart is in the right place, and your prowess with Mystiko is worthy of much praise, Sister Aela.”
She smiled softly. “Perhaps I will visit you when I become a Mystic. I at least know the Kampfergilde is somewhere I am welcome.”
“Your help with our guild is the first step to reconciliation.” He turned to Olivia. “And I hope the events that have transpired in Immergrun serve to one day create a strong bond between Lucium, Immergrun, and Emporikos.”
“I shall try to convince my father of this,” Olivia said softly.
Lucullus cleared his throat. “Johannes, I have a final favor to ask of you.”
“A round of mead?”
He shook his head. “It’s about those bonds you mentioned between our nations.”
“You have my attention.”
“In order to eliminate the Chaodite conspiracy King Titus told me to bring him proof of it.”
“You already have so much. Is it not enough to let him hear his own daughter’s testimony?”
Olivia replied, “Unfortunately, I don’t know much of the conspiracy. I can only speak on their torture methods. He hardly listens to me anyway.”
“I have Aela, but she is only one witness. The Princess could count as another, but not on matters which will convince Titus of the conspiracy in his realm. I can not be my own witness.”
Johannes nodded. “You make a fair point, Lucullus.” He turned to Alaric and spoke with him before turning back to Lucullus. “The boss grants my request of leave to travel to Lucium with you. I shall do my best to help you convince your king to act, but after that I shall depart from you to return here.”
Aela glanced over to Alaric with surprise. “I didn’t think he would let his best soldier go so easily.”
Johannes chuckled. “I doubt it would take much longer than one of my missions to the outer islands. I’ve never taken leave before. Not once in my entire time with the guild. The boss understands the importance of your mission, and my place in it.”
Lucullus nodded. “Then prepare to depart in the morning. We will sail to Castle Burgerin. I know someone there who can get us back to Lucium.”
“You do?”
“I don’t think I ever mentioned her by name, but one of the friends I had made along my journey to the main island is Duchess Matilda.”
“I never thought of you as a diplomat.”
Lucullus shrugged. “I helped her with problems in her realm, which, I assure you, had nothing to do with me being diplomatic.”
The interior of Matilda’s castle had a comforting familiarity to it. It was certainly nothing compared to the Queen’s palace, but it was grand in its own right. The court guests all turned to look at Lucullus as he entered with thrice the companions he had last time. Whispers circulated around the room of Johannes’s name. I guess he must be a frequent visitor of this castle, Lucullus thought. Everyone genuflected briefly as they approached her throne.
Matilda smiled. “Welcome back, Lucullus. Your party has grown mightily since last you visited.”
“Indeed it has. Your help in that journey has not been forgotten.”
She laughed. “My dear Altum, I merely returned the favor you did for me.” She darted her gaze to Johannes. “I didn’t expect you to be traveling here with him, though.”
Lucullus looked back at Johannes. “Him?”
“Alaric’s favorite captain in the Kampfergilde.”
Johannes responded, “Milady, with Lucullus’s help, and Aela’s, we were able to strike the heart of the Diebstahl. In fact, I suspect the days of the Diebstahl shall soon be nothing but a terrible memory for the people of Immergrun.”
“Then, Lucullus, I extend to you a warm gratitude on behalf of all in the Burgerin realm, and for all in Immergrun. Though your handling of those records was most clumsy, you have proven to be a man of action. You have proven to be the most reliable ally of Immergrun. Perhaps your work here will be the foundation of a future alliance between Immergrun and Lucium.”
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“Perhaps, but I must ask one last thing of you, Duchess.”
She stood up. “Before you do that, I must ask who this other woman is. I see your servant is with you, but who is the one in the tattered dress?”
Aela frowned.
“She is the one who I came here to retrieve. And she is the key to saving Lucium.”
“Olivia,” Matilda muttered to herself. “Take care of your precious cargo, then. Now, what was it that you wished to ask?”
“I need a ferry to the port of Admare.”
“Admare? Surely you could just take one to Emporikos. Many public vessels still make the journey, despite misfortunes that had recently befallen the Fahrmanner. None of the ferries that far. At least, none of the civilian ones do.”
“That is why I must ask you for assistance. My time in Emporikos ended in my official exile.” Under his breath, he muttered in Altum, “Certainly not my first exile.”
“I see.” She put her finger to her chin as if she was pondering a great mystery. “Since you have helped me, and all of Immergrun, so much… I shall grant you this final favor, and have you a private ferry to Admare by tomorrow morning. You and your party may stay in my castle for the evening in the guest chambers. Of course, since your party is twice what it was before, you must go two to a room.”
“That won’t be a problem.”
“Good. My servants will show you to your rooms.”
The cool sea breeze flowed through Lucullus’s hair. The silence of the night was both peaceful and eerie. It was slightly unsettling, but he reminded himself that he was safe. There were no sinister tunnels, whether a sewer or a mineshaft. The only danger that was left was his curse, but prayer, despite how much it took now to stave off the symptoms, could keep that danger away. As he leaned on the railing of the upper deck, he let his eyes close, and let the sound of the soft waves of the sea comfort him in any fears that threatened to overtake him.
“O-oh… I didn’t realize you were up here.”
Lucullus turned in the direction of the soft voice. “Oh, it’s you. Did you need something, Princess Olivia?”
“No.” She walked over to the railing. “And you don’t have to concern yourself with a formal address.”
“Formal address?”
She nodded. “You can just call me Olivia. Perhaps in my father’s court you will have to address me formally, but here I won’t ask that of you.”
“I appreciate it. A more relaxed environment is probably what we all need right now.”
“Think of it as an extended ‘thank you’ for saving me from the thieves and sorcerers,” she replied with a smile.
He chuckled a little to himself. “It’s sort of humorous now. For so long I could only ever see victory far off. Even when I was close enough to touch it, it still felt so far away. It always took a step back for every step I took toward it. Always ready to be snatched away before I can grab it…”
She looked with concern and curiosity. “What do you mean?”
“Well,” he paused to consider his word choice, “I suppose telling you wouldn’t hurt anything. After all, your father and Cicero know as much.”
She moved closer to him like a dog expecting a bone from its master. “What did you tell them?”
“I used to be a free man. Things were never perfect, but it was better than what I’ve been through the past few months.”
“A free man?”
“A good friend of mine was murdered by a Chaodite. I didn’t know who I was dealing with at the time. Or rather, what I was dealing with. Regardless, I wanted to find the man responsible and make him pay. I thought I could rely on my closest friend at the time. We were so close to unraveling the mystery, or so I thought. To think we had known each other since we wore swaddling clothes… I thought I knew him, but no matter how long you spend with a man, you never truly know him until he has the opportunity to stab you in the back.” He grimaced
“What did this friend of yours do?”
“Former friend. I was arrested. I guess friendship meant nothing. I spent a month or so in the Avarus Wall. A small price to pay for him, I suppose.” He shrugged.
She shivered. “The Avarus Wall? But no one ever leaves once they get there.”
“I’ll explain the details of that another time. But I would eventually get my chance to pay him back for that dagger. Or so I thought. That warden,” he gritted his teeth, “and Sabina were factors I didn’t count on. Once more, I was so close, yet so far off.” He sighed. “It seems like all I’ve done the past few months is just chase one hopeless errand after another. Just a string of favors for this or that faction. Never seeing an end to the madness. But now, with you on this boat, I feel hope for the first time in months.”
She blushed and looked away. “I’m glad you feel that way, but I have many questions about your story.”
“I’m sure you do. I’ve kept many secrets. Many of them were for the sake of the mission.”
“What did you do to end up in the Wall?”
Chuckling to himself, he answered, “Legally? Nothing. In truth, my ‘crime’ was attempting to expose that conspiracy. But they can’t put that on the official record. It doesn’t matter now. None of it does.”
“What made you take interest in Cicero’s religion?”
His eyes began to feel heavy. “It was many things. Chiefly, though, it was a spirit.”
She gasped. “A spirit?”
“It visited me three times. Once in each cell I was in.”
“You were in three different cells?”
“The village jail was my first. This was just after I had been arrested and scourged. It was this otherworldly presence. I had never felt anything like it before.” He paused as he recalled the experience. “At the time, I hardly understood a word it spoke to me…”
“Was it speaking in another language.”
Shrugging, he continued, “It may as well have. All the riddles it spoke were in our tongue, but it said things to me that were very strange. ‘Your sacrifices are hollow… You give time to idols.’ Only now do I understand that it referred to Lucium’s pantheon. That was the visit where it prophesied my three trials.”
“What trials?”
“The first was my scourging in the jail. It told me that ‘one was, and two are to come’. The second was my escape from the Avarus Wall.”
“How do you know that these were the trials?”
“All the mentioning of warmth being withdrawn made it obvious once I had passed the trial. But I have no idea when the third one is coming, or if it already has.”
“What is the third one supposed to be?”
“A trial by fire.”
Her stomach lurched. “Fire? Is someone going to burn you at the stake?”
He laughed. “I doubt it. The spirit said that no man would scourge me any further. I suspect that only applies to the three trials. The second one had more to do with the weather than with what any person was doing to me, so I imagine the last one will be similar. I don’t know if that means I’ll have to cross hot coals to reach my house, or whatever the case is.” He sighed. “To be honest, I haven’t thought much about the spirit the past few days. I guess I’ve been to busy with the mission to have a quiet moment for that.”
“Do you think this spirit really is related to Cicero’s religion?”
“There can be no doubt. But it certainly didn’t look like any depictions of the Savra I’ve seen.”
“Maybe the perception of them changed from how they originally looked.”
He shrugged. “Maybe. Either way, I’m glad we talked. Sometimes the silence makes me more uneasy. I guess my mind will forever expect an attack to follow it.” He looked down at Olivia and smiled. “I think it’s time I get back to the others. Aela and I need to do our prayers,” he clutched his head and grunted, “before we retire for the night.”
Olivia rushed over to help him. “Are you okay?”
“I’ll explain that later. I just need to go pray. You can join if you want. I’m sure you’ve heard Cicero pray enough to pick up on some things.”
She followed him closely as he went below deck. “I don’t think I know any full prayers from him, but I will at least listen to your prayers.”