Tales of the Vangen: The Dead King of Danic (Book 3)

Chapter 21: In Service to a Higher Power

Brand tugged at his stiff collar for the thousandth time as he waited for the others. He sat on a bench in the antechamber where the dining room lay further beyond, legs kicking, fingers fidgeting, thoughts racing. Damn, but it was hot. The warm, downy woolskin of his coat was nothing compared to the kaleidoscope of candles, lanterns, and sconces burning throughout the tower, a million tiny lights flickering all about, each generating their own mote of warmth bouncing off the black glass discs stitched into his outfit.

And it all added up to an uncomfortable atmosphere that reminded him fondly of the Iron Round. What with the sweltering, magmatic heat and the near impossible task it was to breathe in such an environment. He sank into his bench, wondering what was taking the others so long, wondering if it would be rude to at least take his heavy jacket off. A stray thought struck him as he sat back up, seized by the question at hand.

Where had Keela gone too? A few people had passed him in the hall as he waited, and none of them were her. She'd disappeared at some point during their meeting with Shayn, and had yet to turn up. It wouldn't have been difficult to know. Her aura beetled against his skin whenever she was near, and he hadn't felt so much as a prickle since arriving at Middlefort. She was gone then. Off on some new adventure or scandal, he reckoned. So Elba and the others had been right all along. She was nothing more than a conniving schemer, and now she'd thrown them to the wolves and left them for dead.

Just like his mother. An older memory bubbled up from the mire in his mind. The night she'd whispered goodbye as he lay at death's door. She'd abandoned him too, wringing out her sorrows before whisking off into the night. And now here he was clutching at straws as if she might pop up out of thin air.

He was running in circles, chasing faeries, going nowhere. But he had to try. He had to do something. He needed answers and Danic would give it to him, one way or another.

Cloth fluttered in Brand's ear. He sat up straight, eyes widening at the goddess-like presence before him. Tergrid stood in a sea of stormy clouds and juicy plums, her dress gray and tight knit, falling clear to her ankles. Wrapped around it was a padded leather apron stained a deep purple in honor of Jarl Kriggith's colors. A circlet of copper ran around the top of her fiery hair, a single stone agate fixed into the center.

"You look stunning." The words flew out Brand's mouth before he could even stop them. His ears immediately started burning, hotter than the sweltering heat of the antechamber.

Tergrid's neck flushed an equal cherry red. "And you finally look decent for once. The Danic style suits you much better than those stuffy old robes you had on before." She turned away to look at a tapestry beside her, razor chin cutting at the air.

Brand felt his cheeks go crimson next, a kernel of anger rising in his chest. He'd tried being nice and now here she was nipping at him again. Part of him wanted to say something smart. Part of him wanted to storm off to the dinner table, but the fire slowly burned away as a third option presented itself. A better path than the negative spiral he was starting.

"It does rather suit me, doesn't it? I especially like the cut of this one. The use of glass is especially interesting. Can you tell me more about it?" Brand ignored her jab as he plucked at his jacket, pointing at the glass discs sewn into the fabric. There were several sets about his shoulders and chest, the abdomen equally plated. A military pattern he realized. In case things got out of hand. But what was Jarl Kriggith expecting in the first place? They were only having dinner.

Tergrid faltered for a moment before she caught her second wind, the breeze blowing in a new direction this time. "I'm not surprised you've never heard of Black Glass before. It's a material only found here in Danic. No one else but the Wyrd Women know how to craft it."