The House Of Blood and Dust, Book One: Darkness Rising

Blood Is Thicker Than Water, But Which One Did You Drink?

The castle in the north has a queer silence as I walk to it, it’s taken me a collective of three weeks to complete what they believe to be a single mission in a Kalhin occupied province, but her I return from a should have only taken two days mission with a young girl from a cult in the hills, battered and with my uncles shattered mask as some sort of trophy. I walk through the doors and no one is here, perhaps still in bed. Two guards come to me,

          “Arkness, the queen wishes to see you.” I nod and follow them Brunhilda follows me, soon to arrive in the throne room. There she sits with Malcolm king and queen of the north, sat pretty as a picture. Selventine smiles and he glares at me,

          “What is it that you require of me, your grace?”

          “I know what you’ve been doing, you, my son and your friends... you’ve been plotting against me, trying to steal the crown.” I laugh,

          “Where are the others if they are also accused?” She stands and walks down the stairs towards me,

          “The others have gone, where I do not know nor do I rightly care but you’ll find your wench in the room you defiled... you have been exiled Arkness, I’ll give you enough time to gather your things.” The guards look at me and at the mask in my hand,

          “Fine... farewell, your grace.” She climbs back up the stairs and I walk back out and towards the room which I’ve been occupying myself. I fear to see her and the child, we’ve been in this castle for shy over a year and yet she said she never loved me, she just wished for my seed. I hold on the door handle and turn it, the stench of death lingers in there as I walk in I tread in blood and there upon the wall in her corpse, the corpse of the woman that I loved and I feel nothing no anger no hate just nothing as I stare at the corpse. I hear an infant cry in the middle of the room there is a cot and a dead son under it, blood coming from his opened up throat. I walk to the crying and look in the cot, a blood soaked boy lies there,

          “Are you okay?” I grab the boy in my hands and look at him; he looks too much like me,

          “I’m fine, but we need to clean him first.” I walk with him into the bathroom and clean the blood off of him,

          “They don’t plan on letting us leave here do they?” I look at the young girl and smile sorrowfully at the scared girl I’ve got to know in three weeks.

          “I don’t believe they intend to no, but we shall dear.” I wrap the boy in a towel, “We’ll have to buy him clothes but I’m sure he’ll survive.”

          “Is he yours... and the other?”

          “I believe he is and yes, he was called Benjamin.” I walk with the infant in my arms, my legs are tired and so is my body but I must fight, I must survive.

As soon as I walk out of the bathroom there they are, Selventine with her new men clad in the armour.

          “She gave birth to him two days ago, I’ve been waiting on your return... she was so fragile after they fucked her and dismembered her and here she is presented so neatly.” I pass the boy to Brunhilda and release the blades, “You dare threaten your queen... men kill them all.” They come forth and one by one they fall, cutting through the weaknesses in the armour. Selventine runs and more of the guard comes to her aid, I feel the rage and the torment collect into me and I scream to transform into the beast I’ve been blessed with, Brunhilda screams and I turn to her,

          “Do not be scared child, I am with mind intact.” She nods at me and I run at them, to tear them apart and that I do, tearing through armour and flesh. Some are craven and run but I disembowel them. The halls run red and my heart lingers in my miserable mouth; I stop at the wreckage and stare at the queen. A blast of power comes from her hands and I’m torn back to man,