The Knight and the Peasant [FIRST DRAFT]

Chapter 39

Elias knelt before the framing in his dank tank which was one of the hundreds. No, thousands of tents. He was in a war camp, with the colorful sigils, banners, and tents lining the field to the horizon. It was almost like one of the festivals from back at home. In Réaltimar. He closed his eyes and savored the memories. The smell of sausages, roast beef, pork, ale, beer, and anything else Réaltimarine. It was nothing like this wretched, humid, blistering Carabaí heat. The air was cool back at home. Always a frosty breeze on the air, even at the height of summer. But better yet, the war camp reminded him something of his campaigns back home. The campaigns against Lyeona, where battle after battle he would fight by the side of Karl Altendorf, the late High King. Together, they had conquered Lyenoa. Réaltimarine men and Élirian ships had prevailed against the Lyeonians. Those had been during simpler times when they were fighting for glory and domination. When it was known that the Élirians were beneath Réaltimarines. When Karl had been alive. But when died, the cracks began to show.

Peter, the son of Karl, a man who carved an empire in Evrúopa, was failing. The Élirians encroached more and more on the Imperial Diet. Before the dynastic union with Élira, there had been seven Prince-Electors in the Imperial Diet. There were now thirteen. Six Élirians, seven Réaltimarines. But the alliances shifted and warped every day. The Élirians now completely controlled the Royal Fleets, the very thing granting Peter the ability to even make it island to island. And now, with the addition of the Barbarudi Queen, rumors had begun to spring up about Peter and her... Of course, Elias knew they weren't true, for Peter was but a boy and the Barbarudi Queen in her middle ages, but they were damaging to the boy king's reputation.

He's destroying what you created, he thought to the painting framing of Karl as he knelt on his knees. It depicted the king in his most extravagant garb, green shot through with gold. In the crutch of his right arm, he held his battle helm, a burgonet with the wings of a peryton. In his left hand, he clutched his greatsword, made of faesteel. Weeper, it was called because the banding and mottling of the blade vaguely resemble tears. It was a dark beauty too. A terror to behold.

"My lord," came the cry from outside. "The emperor wishes to see you at the Imperial Diet today."

"Emperor?" he shouted back.

"It is what His Imperial Majesty wishes to go by."

Elias's mouth curved downwards. A foolish move. And one surely to peeve the Prince-Electors. As he stood, he turned to face the painting Karl Altendorf once more. "I shall find your daughter, Your Majesty. I shall counsel your son. I shall save your kingdom." He turned and exited the tent.

The hot, humid, Sersalvonian air hit him once more. But it was the same everywhere in the Isles. Rumors of the hurricane which had hit them continued to circle. Just yesterday, the host of ten-thousand men had burned a village with a small tower just north of where they were now. But before they had set the tower alight, Elias had taken the time to study some of the messages which had been sent. Most he couldn't understand, but a few were written in white the Sersalvonians called the "Merchant Tongue," which was the Common Tongue of Evrúopa. One included the writings of a great storm. This letter seemed to imply it was different from the one which had battered them in Grenaserrat. It had utterly destroyed some island principality east of Grenaserrat. The letter claimed that nothing was left but the few remains of the walls and the keep. He called it the "Wrath of Iusphiel." Whatever that meant. He wondered where that hurricane was now.

He mounted and unhitched his horse. Spurring it to ride off to the large clearing designated for the Imperial Diet. Passing the unorganized columns of tents, nothing like what had been in Lyeona, he felt his disgust deepen for the boy king who sat on the High Throne and played with fire and sword. But there was something else different... he could feel it in the air.