Golnar sat in a chair in his room with his head in his hands. He was exhausted, he felt weak. He had not slept well in weeks. He could not close his eyes without dreaming. The dreams woke him up several times a night. They haunted him even during the day. They were always different. Some took place in the palace, and some out in the kingdom. They all had only one thing in common. Every dream he had included Gryphon Keene.

In one dream, she was constantly asking him questions. In another she was only staring at him with her dark blue eyes. In another, he was making her drink poison after poison, but she would not die. Even now in the bright light of mid-day, Golnar shivered remember last night’s dream.

He had been standing outside the temple looking towards the palace. The sun was just starting to set when she came up and stood beside him. She was wearing a dark blue gown with a golden sun stitched on the bodice. Her hair was down, and she wore a golden crown with tips all around. She seemed to be giving off her own light.

“Why do you insist on doing this?” she asked looking at Golnar.

“It is the only way to balance the kingdom. It is the way it was meant to be.”

“You don’t even believe what you are saying,” said Gryphon with a harsh small laugh. “Tell me why you are really doing this.”

“I don’t know what you want me to say,” Golnar said harshly. “Why can’t you let me be?”

“You are destroying my kingdom. You are hurting my folk, yourself included,” said Gryphon sadly. “Golnar, look at me.”

Golnar didn’t want to, but he turned slowly. He looked at her to see her dark blue eyes swimming with tears. He felt conflicted. At first, he wanted to reach out and touch her. He wanted to fall at her feet and beg for her forgiveness. Quickly those feelings faded away. He wanted to flee from her presence. He wanted to find a way to destroy her.

“I know what you suffered. I know how she suffered, but what you are doing will not make things right,” she said as she reached out her hand towards Golnar.

Golnar moved out of her reach. “Don’t touch me,” he said angrily. If she touched him, he wasn’t sure he would survive.

Gryphon put her hand down and looked at him sadly. “You are too far gone. I wish I could have helped you, but you are out of reach. I ask for your forgiveness. I am afraid I have failed you. I would grant you mercy, but it is not mine to give.”

“I don’t want or need your mercy, Miss Keene,” said Golnar looking up at Gryphon with defiance.

“Miss Keene, indeed. You know who I am,” said Gryphon. She held out her hand and a staff flew to her. Her eyes turned dark as she took a deep breath. Her hair blew all around her. Golnar found himself trembling with fear. “I don’t want it to be this way. You are of my folk, but you have gone too far. I will find you, and I will stop you. There will be no mercy whether you think you need it or not. The gods will not stand for evil.”

She turned, and she was gone. Golnar had woken up shaking. He wasn’t sure why the dream scared him so much. He wasn’t sure why she frightened him. Who was she but some woman who called herself a queen now? She was nobody. She was mortal. He had seen her bleed. He had seen her sick. He had seen her nearly die. Even as Golnar said it, he knew it wasn’t true. She was not just some woman. She was much more. She must be dealt with. She was in Golnar’s way. He had to find a way to get rid of her soon.

He had hopes for his sickness plan. He had heard reports that the sickness was spreading in the Great Surrounding. He doubted Gryphon could ignore it much longer. He hoped she would come out of her hiding place. He hoped she wouldn’t send scouts. He needed her to come out into the open for his plan to work, his and Philo’s plan.

They did have a plan. They realized that if they had a full force of soldiers out at all times, the queen’s protector would never let her go to the folk. They needed to be more discreet. They would let the sickness spread unchecked. They would let the old magical folk see the sick folk first. Then after a time they would unleash a trap that would rid the kingdom of Gryphon Keene for good.

They would have to find a time when her protector wasn’t being vigilant. The protector would either have to let down his guard, or be distracted, hopefully both. They would find her when she was vulnerable and end her. Hopefully when she was gone from this kingdom for good, Golnar could finally get some peace and sleep.

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Golnar flexed his fingers, finding they still felt cold and empty. His magic had not reappeared this time. He searched within himself for the now familiar sensation of magic coursing through his body, but there was nothing. He wished he could have made a potion of Gryphon’s blood before she left. He had tried to go down below the temple after Gryphon and the boy had escaped. He wanted to see if her blood was still there. He couldn’t make it down the stairs. Something wouldn’t let him enter. He tried, but found it impossible. Philo tried as well, but could not get much farther than Golnar. They ended up nailing the trap door shut and putting a small table over it. Golnar wished they could burn the whole building.

A knock on his door interrupted Golnar’s thoughts. He got up and answered it to find Till and Philo both at the door.

Golnar nodded and let them inside. He supposed it was time for their daily meeting. He wasn’t sure what time it was really.

“Sit down,” said Golnar walking to his chair. They all sit down in the sitting area in the middle of his room.

“Do you have any news for me?” asked Golnar.

“The next gatherings in the city are scheduled for next month. Camelia says Teryn will be well by then. We will start with two community meals for our poorest folk. Teryn and Camelia will oversee them,” said Till sitting back in his chair.

“Very good,” said Golnar. “We do not need to lose sight of what needs to be done for our magical blooded folk as the sickness spreads. What news have we heard of the sickness?”

Philo shrugged. “We have reports it is spreading wildly in the East Village. It has made its way to Clarton and the West Village as well. Soon it will be all over the Great Surrounding. Beyond that, I have heard nothing.”

“So, we don’t know if anyone from Abscon has visited the villages?” asked Golnar.

“No, I have heard no reports. Of course, how would the folk in the villages recognize anyone from Abscon. If they come, any magical folk will try to blend in, surely,” replied Philo.

“They can’t stay hidden forever,” said Golnar. “They will want support for the coming war.”

“Perhaps,” said Philo. “Hopefully, we will get word soon, so we will know when to strike.”

“Why are we so bought in to this plan to kill this so-called queen? What harm can she really do? She is just one woman. Even if she has the forces of Abscon behind her, they won’t just quit if you kill her. They will find a new leader,” insisted Till.

Golnar grunted in response. How could he explain to Till that she was not just some woman. She was a force. If they didn’t stop her, she could ruin everything Golnar had been working towards. Golnar wanted nothing more than to never see Gryphon Keene again.

“You will have to trust me on this, Till. We need to rid the kingdom of Gryphon Keene,” said Golnar passionately.

Till turned to Philo. “What do you have to say about this? Aren’t we using too many resources to kill one person?”

Philo looked at Golnar searchingly, and Golnar stared back. He wondered what Philo wanted to know from him. Philo turned back to Till. “We are accomplishing more than killing one woman. We are helping to weed out the non-gifted. If we can kill Gryphon while doing that job, it is not a waste. Besides, if she dies, I suppose the boy will be king, but who will protect him? I’m not sure Ansel will recover if we will kill his queen. Perhaps we can kill him at the same time. Then we will be done with the line of Protectors.”

“I’ll have to take your word for it, I suppose,” said Till.

“You just worry about Aurumist,” said Golnar. “Do all you can to make sure we keep releasing magic users. We will need the city ready for the coming war no matter what happens.”

Till nodded. There was a tapping at Golnar’s window. Golnar looked over to see a dark shadow slowly making its way through the cracks in the windows.

“What in the kingdom is that?” asked Till. He quickly stood up.

“It is only one of my shadow spies. It will not harm you,” said Golnar. He walked over to the window, watching the shadow slowly enter the room.

The shadow fell through the cracks in the window like streams of water. After it was completely through it formed together in a large black mass. It hovered before Golnar. Golnar reached out his hand, and the shadow reached towards Golnar. Suddenly the shadow surrounded Golnar with its mass. It swirled around him, causing a breeze to fill the room. Golnar saw Till watch in fear. Philo watched in mild fascination.

After circling for several moments, the shadow flew through Golnar. It disappeared inside of him, speaking to him. Golnar listened to its whispers. He felt a smile come upon his face as he heard what the shadow told him. After it was finished talking to him, the shadow exited his body and hovered before Golnar once again.

“Well done,” said Golnar to the shadow. “Go back to the forest and keep watch. If you see anything I need to know, come to me.”

The shadow flew back to the window and slowly made its way outside.

Golnar went back to his seat. Sitting down he looked at Till. “Sit down, Till. It is over. You were never in any danger.”

Till sat down and stared at Golnar.

“That was one of my shadow spies, and it brought us interesting news. The queen left Abscon to visit the East Village. She traveled with her protector, two guards, another man, and Kedan.”

Philo smiled. “I think we can assume this won’t be her only trip. I suppose it’s time for me to travel to Clarton.”

“Yes,” said Golnar. “It’s time to see if our plan will actually work. Remember if you can rid me of Gryphon Keene you will get what you want and possible more.”

“Consider it done,” said Philo. He stood up and walked from the room.