Ancient Guardians The Legacy of the Key (33 page)

Navarre returned
Levi’s stern expression, “Believe me when I say that we are trying to solve
that mystery as well. I should have never granted that man’s passage to leave
our land! I should have handled his abominable behavior differently. However,
Simone has still not admitted that he was involved. She only told of us
Michael’s involvement, and we could only assume Sterlington is behind his
nephew’s scheming.”

Levi exhaled and
stared out of the window behind his father. “Why would Michael consider
plotting something like this? Sterlington’s motives are transparent, but
Michael’s?” He shook his head as he muttered to himself. It was clear that Levi
was hurt that an old friend would be capable of such treason.

“Your father and I
have relentlessly questioned Michael’s motives. Regardless of whether
Sterlington was involved or not, we cannot understand why either Michael or
Simone would have wanted to go into the Ciatron dimension. It is all inexplicable
to us.”

“Sheer spite,” Levi
responded. “I’m sorry to say it, Samuel, but I’ve seen it in Simone before.
Everyone knows the Ciatron do not negotiate, especially with a Pemdai. If there
was no malice involved, either Simone or Michael would have told us what they
had done to ‘resolve our problems’ right away. Instead, not a word was
mentioned, and Michael is still missing. Michael has always had a streak of
envy in him, but I thought he’d grown out of it. Could that be a reason for his
betrayal—to outdo me? But why Simone? Why would she—” Levi’s face became fierce
and he turned toward Reece. She immediately knew that he understood Simone’s
motive.

He didn’t say it,
though, and Reece was thankful.

“But,” he said, “We
waste our time by sitting here and deliberating why we were delivered into the
hands of our greatest enemy. We must decide what to do. You say Michael is
missing. Was he questioned before he disappeared?”

“No,” Samuel said.
“Simone claims he went back to Earth. We certainly haven’t been able to find
him in Pemdas.”

Levi’s eyes were
fierce, and with filled purpose. “Then that settles any idea of remaining here
with Reece, hoping they return our men to us. If Michael Visor and Sterlington
are among the Ciatron, they must be retrieved and brought back to Pemdas. I am
fearful of the knowledge they may have obtained already, if those traitors are
amongst them. Even though I didn’t encounter either of them while we were being
detained, we can’t be sure, so we must assume they are. We are forced to
initiate the plan Harrison and I developed to return with Reece.”

“If we return with
Reece,” Samuel said, “they’ll expect us to trade her. There’s no point in
bringing her, unless that’s what we intend to do.”

A tiny smile drew
up the corner of Levi’s mouth. “That is precisely my point.” He leaned forward
resting his elbows on his knees. “On no account would I consider trading Reece,
but we will make it appear as though that is what we are doing. We are defeated
in every way, and are forced to bring her back; but if we can release our
captive men, and regain our armies while she is being presented to the
council…we will reject their demands, and return home with our men and Reece.
In bringing Reece back to Earth, the hardest part will be getting her through
the vortex without the Ciatron overpowering us; it is where all the guards will
be waiting. This is why Harrison is arranging a distraction at the vortex, to
give me a chance to get her through.

Navarre looked at
Levi with concern. “They have guards positioned at all of our vortices?”

“Not currently, but
when Harrison and I came through the Philadelphia vortex, they were in the
process of deploying them. That’s why Harrison had to return immediately after
bringing me here, before they noticed him. Right now, the Ciatron will stop at
nothing to intercept Reece. They know we are outnumbered, and they have no
intention of letting us make it to the council with her. They plan to intercept
us at the Bonnybridge vortex in Scotland, and that’s where the heaviest guard
will be. So, of course, Reece can’t be brought through that one, and we can’t
use it.

“Instead, Harrison
and I plan to return Reece through the Philadelphia vortex. Even with
Harrison’s distraction, we know they will pursue, but with enough of a diversion
we can get her to Washington, where our aircraft is. After that, we’ll have her
safely in the air, until we land in Scotland and bring her to the council.”

Navarre’s eyebrows
drew together. “Son, I can appreciate this plan…but I am not convinced it is
wise to bring Reece back to Earth. If we do, as I believe it is our only chance
at getting our men back, we must be certain this will work.”

Levi nodded. “I
would not entertain any idea of returning her to Earth if I was uncertain of
the outcome. Either way, we must force ourselves to realize we have no other
option at this time. As Samuel has mentioned, we do not have enough men left to
be successful in any attempts made to retrieve our men. As you have declared,
we cannot sit here and be cowards. We must trick them into believing that we
will trade Reece. You must present her before the council, Father, as if you
were adhering to their demands. This plan will require us to be careful in
every way, because there is an enormous risk involved. Samuel
must
be
successful with the release of our men.”

Samuel looked at
Levi. “This will be complicated, but with Reece as a distraction, we should be
able to manage it. If she
is
a distraction, that is—how confident are
you that they will be distracted?”

“Once Reece is at
the castle, I promise you the Ciatron will focus on her. Given that their
dearest goal is to take her, they’ll be relentlessly trying to prevent her from
walking into that meeting.” Levi looked at Navarre. “As long as they are trying
to capture Reece, they will not think that we might come through their back
doors to recover our men.”

  “Levi, this may
work,” said Samuel, “but I will need every last Pemdai guard with me. You and
Reece will be on your own going into the castle. Are you prepared to handle
that?”

Levi gazed out of
the window and exhaled. He turned back to Samuel, “I will need at least one
other Guardian with us. I need to have someone else protecting her, if I become
distracted by an unexpected attack.”

Navarre exhaled.
“Do you believe that you will be that easily overtaken, Levi?”

“Navarre,” Reece
spoke for the first time, “Is there a possibility that someone could possibly
help to prepare me, so that Levi is more confident about bringing me through
the castle alone? I mean—I don’t know if I can really defend myself against
anyone, but—”

Levi immediately
interjected, “Reece, I will not put you under that kind of pressure. The
training you would have to undergo will be demanding, and I’m not sure—”

Reece stared
intently at Levi, “I want to help. If Samuel needs all his men, then it’s the
least I can do. If there is some way you can prepare me, I may be able to do
this.”

Levi exhaled as
Samuel spoke, “Levi, I will need all of my men, as it stands now, I may not
have enough. If Reece is willing to undergo some training, it will help us.”

Levi’s features
darkened. “No! I will not put her in a position to protect herself if I am
unable to do so.”

“Levi, I am
stronger than you are giving me credit for, at least let me try.”

Levi looked over to
Reece, studying her. After a moment, he looked back to Samuel. “All right, but
I’ll be the one to prepare Reece for whatever we may encounter. If I’m
confident that she’s ready, I’ll be fine to bring her through the castle alone.
It will not be easy, but as long as she is prepared, I can protect her on my
own. If, for any reason, I am not confident that she’s ready, I will need
Harrison, or at least one other warrior, to go with me. I understand that you
need every man available, and it is vital that we free our captive men.
However, we must make sure there are no weak areas in this plan, or we will
fail, and possibly lose Reece.”

Navarre looked to
Levi. “Levi, do you have any idea about how many are being used to guard our
men at Castle Ruin?”

“That is unclear to
me, Father, but I would presume that they are being heavily guarded. We must
remember their collective minds will all be preoccupied with Movac’s thoughts
about Reece. They will never consider that we have our guards on the way to
attack them and retrieve our men.”

Navarre nodded.
“This may indeed work. You must understand, though, that I will be forced into
a holding area until Reece arrives. I assure you that the very moment I set
foot in Scotland, I will be their prisoner, especially if Reece is not with me.
There will be nothing that I can do to help any of you.”

“Then we will plan
for no less than six of your personal Imperial Guards to go through the
Scotland vortex with you,” said Samuel. “The warriors and I will enter
separately to secure the airport where Harrison and Levi will be landing. If anything
is done in haste, the Imperial Guards will protect you. They may not be trained
the same as the Guardian warriors, but they are highly trained to remove you
from hostile situations.”

Navarre laughed in
return. “The Ciatron will not harm me, Samuel; if they did, they’d lose their
hold on all the other worlds. I’m only concerned because I won’t be able to
help Levi, if he’s having trouble coming through the castle.”

“If Levi is unsure
about bringing Reece alone, I’ll arrange for a Guardian to go with him. I’ll
need Harrison,” Samuel said to Levi. “He is superb at tactical planning, and I
will require his skill. Be sure you tell him that.”

Levi nodded.

Navarre spoke again,
“We must not forget that Reece is our highest priority. We cannot allow her
into the hands of the Ciatron.” He looked at Levi with pride. “Son, you and
Harrison have proven yourselves to be Pemdas’s finest warriors. For that reason
only, I approve of this plan of action.” Navarre leaned back into his chair,
and exhaled loudly. “Indeed, I believe this will work. We already have the
advantage, being at a disadvantage.” He let out a soft laugh. “They will not
expect us to try and fight with the thirty Guardian warriors we have left, and
therein, we will take them by surprise.”

Before another word
was spoken on the subject, a servant entered the room and announced. “Emperor,
King Nathanial awaits.”

“Thank you, James;
please show him in.”

Chapter
24

A l
arge, angry man erupted into the meeting room. Levi
and Samuel stood. Navarre came around the desk, making his way to King
Nathanial.

“Navarre, is there
any new information—anything from Harrison or Levi?”

Navarre reached for
his brother’s hand, and clapped him on the back, “Nathaniel, Harrison is well!
Please sit, Levi returned to us nearly an hour ago, and has been informing us
of the situation.”

Nathaniel relaxed
somewhat as his gaze fell upon Levi. “Nephew, you’re back!” He approached him
and brought him into an embrace. “Good to see you, even if you’re looking a bit
battered! Please, tell me, what has become of Harrison?”

“Harrison is in the
process of helping us in a strategy to recover our men, my Lord.” Levi
answered.

“Come, sit, and I
will explain,” Navarre said as he directed Nathaniel to an empty chair.

After explanations
were given to King Nathaniel, he seemed somewhat reassured, and thanked Reece
for her willingness to help put this plan into action.

Not long after the
King had been caught up to speed, Levi took the opportunity to dismiss Reece so
that she did not have to sit through any more of the men’s strategic
discussions.

As he and Reece
strolled down the corridor, she felt the exhaustion of the past week set in.
While she had feared for Levi’s safety, her nights had been disturbed, and her
days had been a battle to maintain a presentable appearance. Now that he was
safely at her side, she felt her mind and body beginning to fade, and found it
hard to concentrate. She smothered a yawn.

Levi chuckled and
brought his arm around her. “You are tired, my love. Allow me to escort you to
your room so that you may rest before dinner.”

Reece tried to
protest, but another yawn betrayed her. She shook her head with frustration. “I
am fine. If there is anyone who needs rest, it’s you.”

“Reece, I could not
rest if I wanted to. There is still much to discuss with my father, and I must
arrange some things in order to prepare you for our return to Earth. I’ll go
over all of the details with you later this evening.”

Reece shook her
head again. “Levi, I’m fine. I’d feel guilty lying down to rest, knowing that
you all are working. It was my idea to make sure no other Guardians went with
us into the castle—”

“That is why I need you to rest,” Levi interrupted her. “You have your
work cut out for you now.” He teased.

“Exactly my point, I volunteer myself for a military mission, and now
I’m going to go lie down and take a nap? I don’t think so. I think I need to
start—”