The Clash Of Drakkon: Book Four Of The Drakkon Series

Chapter Five

Titus Tyrni

Seneschal of the Draka Alcazar

"Where are they!" Aldrich roars like a little child not getting his way, the ikari building had been completely empty, there was only the slightest trace that they may have been here at one point, but it was old.

"I do not know, my king. I was under the impression they would be here." He yells in frustration and swipes everything off the table, metal buckets and glass vials clang and shatter across the floor, but no one so much as moves, too worried about drawing out the temperamental king's ire.

"I want them found! I don't care how it is done! They must be found! I will not let some imposter, walk around under my wife's name!" His face was red with rage and when he cast his gaze towards us, we all bent our heads, knowing that if he were to find the slightest reason to punish us in this mood, it would not be an easy punishment to bear.

I knew that his wife was a sore spot for him, but compared to how he acted towards his own daughter, this was surely an overreaction of the feelings he truly had. In truth I was surprised that they were not here, I did not see it being in the Solveig's nature to retreat from a fight. Not without good reason, which made me all the more nervous, there were hundreds of them on this planet, many of them having their own ikari, they were not a threat we could take lightly, and yet I also wished that they would just disappear, that they had never been found, because otherwise Queen Alessandra would still be alive, that she had never gone searching for her father.

"Of course, I will send some men in to search the forest immediately, surely though you do not need to wait here, you must be tired from your long trip, should we perhaps return to the Alcazar for some refreshments and rest?" I was treading a very thin line, the old Aldrich would never have punished me for suggesting that he needed to take a rest and rethink things, while this new one was a complete stranger, I had no idea what he would do.

"Very well, make sure that they don't stop searching until they are found." I nod, though I am frowning on the inside, I knew as well as most of the primaries here that if the soldiers did find the Solveigs, they would be killed before they could report back, Drakkonian's were strong, but they were no match against the Solveig's who were born and bred for battle.

If we were lucky the Solveig's would only take the soldiers hostage, but I doubted that after the death of their Queen they were feeling so generous. I still viewed her as our Queen, the Queen of both empires, but I doubt they would see it as such with the new king on our throne being her father and the one who had killed her in the first place.

I send orders through my sheeve to get men to search the forest, it was strange, in the Queen's guard absence, there were many upper military positions left empty, Talon would be the person I normally would send this type of order to, but with his absence I merely picked the only other spliced I knew. Beth may not have a high rank among the spliced, but she was still a spliced, they had their own type of hierarchy that I couldn't dream of understanding, still they would listen to her at least.

I was grateful in that aspect that the spliced soldiers hadn't outright rebelled yet, the Drakkon empire couldn't afford that right now. They had worshipped Queen Alessandra for freeing them and giving them basic rights, she had their eternal loyalty, they would not stay loyal to Aldrich for long. But perhaps that could work in Taarique's and my favor, they could be a key piece towards our rebellion.

Aldrich seemed to have no notion there were people unhappy with his return as king, he was usually so observant of traitors, but he had yet to notice anything suspicious about me, not that I wanted him to, but surely, he knew what a mistake he had made in killing the former Queen of Drakkon. She had been much beloved by the people, they would not take her killer being on her throne sitting down.