The Oreans

Chapter 59

Chapter 59

A Grim Promise

At another time, even in broad daylight, the old graveyard would have been frightening enough. Now, at midnight, it was like something out of a terrible nightmare. Horned and tailed creatures with hideous faces manned the entrance while rising here and there were seemingly alive grotesque figures. The blackened soil, dotted by crumbling headstones, had also sprung gnarled things that looked like bony, long-fingered hands from afar. They in fact were roots of enormous, now leafless trees that lined the cobbled pathways whose branches rustled even in the absence of the slightest breeze.

Nobody had gone in there. Not for a long time. The final resting place of outcasts of Florea's more cruel regimes, the last person having been buried there was from a decade ago: A man of rank that had greatly offended the royalty. Since then, nobody had ended up there — and nobody ever will. It was a forgotten place.

Except by one.

That very person had just gone past the gate. Wrapped in a maroon cloak, only his face was showing, a fine-looking one despite the obvious lines of age. Trailing him was a black stallion, a priced possession, for even having come from a long journey it trotted along with a proud gait. But the majesty of the animal just matched that of its master. Unconcerned by the unsightliness around him, he ambled like a king. Even without light. Sure of the way. Certain about his goal. Different from the man he had been the first time he had come here. Broken by a discovery, full of remorse and bitterness, he had staggered down this same cobbled lane. Not anymore. That same night long ago, he had made his peace with the departed and took a vow: a promise of revenge. That same night, hehad been reborn, with a title worthy of his royal lineage: The Dark Prince.

The clouds shifted overhead. The moon shone on his path from behind. His shadow appeared, preceding him. With a smile at the aptness of it, he hastened a little.

The lane ended where a bronze statue, the only handsome thing for miles around, rose. It was of a man dressed in royal finery, standing guard over the remains of its once living self. The Dark Prince stood before it, glad it was still there. It was the third of its kind, the first two having been destroyed. The Circle wished nothing but ugliness for this place. So it would be shunned. But he had defied the Circle, the idiots who knew little but pretended otherwise. Not only by rebuilding this monument. They still have to know him as the one behind it all. They yet have to learn that it was all for the man banished here: The man who should have been king... his father.

"Father," he breathed as he knelt before the statue. "I have great news for you."

Gazing at the bronze face, he smiled proudly waiting for a question that he alone could hear.

"He's gone," he blurted out as if in response to it, "Guilem, the son of your archenemy."

He heard the approving reply and another question, which he hastily answered, "We'll get there soon, Father. I'm sure by this we're rid of the other obstacles. Your other son promised to take care of them. The final leg will be easier for that....

"And what about Elfred's children? You already know what I did to the boy. He'll never find out who he really is, and as he's worked against me he'll have his due. As for the girl, I might forgive her if she cooperated; but then, if she proves to be a problem as well, I will get rid of her, too....

"Shemil might put up a fight in their defense if he knew who they are. But does he? As far as I am concerned, the grandmaster is an idiot. If not, how else can he have failed to recognize me for what I really am? As for his power, I'm sure it has diminished with age: I can equal it any time. No, he isn't a threat to me anymore....

"How sure I am that it's Roseana? Who else can it be? Reishina and Leinardei are both gone; it doesn't seem it is Reihan as he did not fulfill one of the terms of the prophecy. Besides, I learned that the last two gems were freed by a girl....

"What about Medea, Father? She is with me now. You know I loved her long ago. I still intend to revive her once I get the gems at least for our daughter's sake....

"You think she will not cooperate, do you?"

The wind started to hiss around him, but it was his father's voice he heard.

"Revive her but only to use her?" The Dark Prince stared thoughtfully at his own hands. "It is not that I still care. I don't know what I feel for her anymore or if I even am capable of feeling that way, but the girl— You want me to keep the girl from knowing that her mother is still alive? She needs her...

She had survived thirteen years without a mother, the voice murmured.

"You have a point there. But Medea will ask... Tell her the girl is gone? But..."

You are not an idiot. You can fool her.

"If that is your wish... I shall deceive her. I shall make her tell me the terms of the prophecy again and the way to get to Mystical Chamber..."

Then, get rid of her.

He shook his head. "You're not leaving me any choice at all?"

You can not?

His throat constricted. He never thought that such a decision could be difficult to make after all these years. "All right, Father, if that is your will. I shall do anything: Nobody else matters ....."

The little princess should. Our link to the future must survive ....

"Of course, she will ... Through her, your name will be known all over Anturea. She'll have more than the power they denied you. I shall make sure that anyone who goes on defying us will feed on dust."

Clouds sailed past the moon. Shifting shadows made the statue appear to nod and beam, but for the Dark Prince it was real.

From the forest beyond the grave, a roar echoed through the night. His blood leapt: He thought it was time to go to the lion's den and get his prize.