Erivale: The Lost Princess

Chapter 14: Part 1

I was engaging in a very boring conversation with Count Asger and his wife Fabia on the proper allocation of farmland when the page burst through the court room doors. My fake smiles and nods of acknowledgement to a topic I really knew nothing about was disrupted as everyone, including myself, turned to stare.

"My gods," Count Asger gasped next to me.

Framed by the large doors, and practically being dwarfed by them was a young Elf in his early teens. His clothes were rumpled and dirty and there was a smear of mud across his freckled nose. He wore the traditional tunic of the pages, with an additional yellow sash across his body that indicated he was part of the Ithican army.

"I come to give a message about the attack on the rebels." His small voice cracked with puberty at the end, but the words still hung heavily in the air.

"Well come on now child, tell us," Luciana eventually said after a long pause.

His large, doe like green eyes scanned the room and he nervously pulled his hat from his head. His thing fingers twisted the fabric anxiously before he spoke. "The attack on the rebels was unsuccessful."

More gasps echoed through the room and whispers soon erupted into a cacophony.

"Silence!" Luciana demanded and everyone snapped their mouths shut. "What do you mean the attack was unsuccessful."

"The majority of the rebels had already fled the area before we arrived, your majesty. The few the soldiers could get to were killed, but it is barely a dent in the resistance numbers."

"How could this be?" Luciana seemed to ask more to herself than to anyone else. The silence of the room was the only reason her words were carried to our ears.

"King Heinrich said it appeared that they had known ahead of time. Maybe from a scout in the woods."

"That or someone here, who knew of the attack, warned the rebels." Queen Luciana's voice was hard as glass and I felt a shiver run down my spine. "This action would be a danger to our king and our army's life and a clear effort to undermine the monarchy – this is an act of treason. If anyone here betrayed us, please step forward and confess to your guilt now." A wave of magical power swept across the room as she finished her sentence. The power of her persuasion wove around everyone's mind's like ghostly fingers, beckoning them to confess to their crimes.

When the feeling dissipated we all waited, wondering who exactly had done it, but no one stepped forward. As more time went on and the occupants of the room began to glance back and forth between one another with suspicion Luciana eventually said, "Very well then, no one here is a traitor to our country."

With a nod of her head everything resumed as if nothing had happened. A burly guard directed the page of out the large hall and the doors closed behind him. Most conversations resumed, but there were still whispers of speculation of how the rebels knew.

As I left court later that day I heard Marleen, Onna, and Odelia gossiping with Guinevere about who they thought could be the traitor. Apparently one of the cooks had always seemed more partial to the ideologies of the resistance, or so Guinevere thought. Odelia thought Duchess Victoria was a better candidate.

Of course, I had also overheard Duchess Victoria tell a group of counts that another man, Marquis Clearwater, had been acting strange lately. There was enough blame and finger pointing to go around that I was thankful when I was in the quiet, empty hallway outside.

The silence was interrupted by a very familiar voice, "Amberleigh," he said.

I had heard my name on his lips many times before, most often when he barked orders at me from magic or combat lessons. Today it was much gentler.