Ascendants of Ancients Sovereign (Worlds of the Crystal Moon, Book 1) (86 page)

There were four tunnels into Seth’s cavern. Each was guarded by two reptilian soldiers. The guards were not there to defend their king from outside invaders, but rather, they were chosen to protect the king from his own kind. Every now and then, an ambitious up-and-coming serpent champion felt strong enough to take the king’s rock. For the most part, the guards managed to spoil the attack, and life went on as usual. But Seth’s relative, Sotter, had succeeded, and he seized the throne.

Fellow soul ... a quick fact. Unlike other kingdoms, the serpent’s throne was volatile. If a serpent was powerful enough to kill the king and the eight guards that protected him, by default, he was given the throne, and he would remain the monarch until he was either killed in turn or passed of old age. The crown remained in this new monarch’s bloodline beyond his seasons unless another champion rebelled and was able to seize the throne.

When the Mischievous One showed up in front of Seth’s boulder, the snake was napping. The Serpent King’s guards were quick to attack, but Lasidious put up a wall of force, and the reptiles simply slammed into it.

The god made sure Seth was the only one who could hear his voice when he spoke. “Seth, I need to speak with you. Have your guards stand down.”

The serpent hissed, “Who are you to stand before my rock?”

The Mischievous One was annoyed by the Snake King’s ignorance as he responded. “My name is Lasidious.”

The reptile knew the name belonged to a god, though he had no previous knowledge of what Lasidious looked like or what he stood for. But Seth did know his ancestors worshipped Celestria, and she was believed to be the mightiest of serpents. In many of the stories of old about his great-great-great-grandfather, Sotter, there was mention of Lasidious’ name. Lasidious often fought at the serpent goddess’ side.

Seth ordered his guards to back off. “What issssss the purpossssse of your visssssit, Lord Lasidiousssss?”

The king’s hissing was going to drive Lasidious mad. The Mischievous One decided to tell the snake everything he had to say, without interruption, and let the snake dwell on it.

“Seth, you’ve proven to be a wise leader over your kind. You’ve continued the ways of the kings before you, and this has kept outsiders from crossing your borders. I’m here to tell you that a great threat has emerged, both in Brandor and in Bloodvain, that will destroy your way of life. The human kingdoms will be at war before the season ends.”

“War?” Seth hissed. “I sssssee. Over what do they fight?”

“Over what matters not. This war will spread beyond your borders, and it won’t stop until you’re destroyed. The only way to protect your way of life is to ally your kind with the barbarians. A new king has ascended to the throne. He’s powerful, and although he’s not a barbarian, he defeated their king in battle and took the crown. If you align yourself with this human, your kingdoms can work together to defend the advances of Brandor. Once their bid for power has been stopped, you can continue life as normal. This is a friendly warning, Seth. What you do with this information is up to you. The man you need to find, if you choose this path, is called George Nailer. I wish you good fortune in whichever decision you make. I must take my leave.”

Before Seth could hiss a response, Lasidious vanished.

Agitated, the Serpent King looked at his soldiers and then called for the Council of Serpents to convene. He would announce a trip to Bloodvain.

City of Brandor

Sam woke early on the morning of Keldwin’s viewing. After he left the room to grab breakfast, Shalee opened her eyes. She rolled out of bed, stretched, and then she asked her servants to prepare her morning bath. She was about to drop her towel and step into the hot tub of water when she let out a shriek. Shalee ran across the room, pulled the covers off the bed and then threw them around her. She looked back across the room at Mosley who had materialized next to the bathing tub.

“What are you doing popping in on a girl like that? I was fixin’ to take a bath. Can’t a girl get some privacy? ”

Mosley gave a wolfish grin. “Don’t worry yourself, Shalee, the look of your hide doesn’t appeal to me. You don’t have enough fur, or a bushy enough tail for me to find satisfaction in your appearance.” The wolf paused. “Now, if you had a tail ... I might—”

“If you finish that sentence, so help me, I’ll turn you into a god-frog!”

The wolf laughed and then turned around. “Please cover yourself.”

Shalee dropped the blanket and wrapped her towel around her.

The wolf turned to face her. “Shalee, I have come to speak of things you need to know as a sorceress. I want to ensure my message weighs heavy on your mind during every moment. This will keep you alive when other magic users pass.”

“Holy cow, Mosley, you really know how to ruin a girl’s bath. You pop in unannounced, tell me I don’t have a cute butt, and then say you have something I need to know that might be the only thing that keeps me alive. Nice. Are you the God of War, or are you the Wolf-god of Bad News?” Shalee walked across the room and ruffled her hands through the fur on the top of Mosley’s head.
Damn dog,
she thought.

Despite the fact the wolf came for a serious discussion, Mosley enjoyed Shalee’s affection. After a moment, he pulled away and asked Shalee to take a seat on the edge of the bed. “Shalee, I need you to take me seriously. I cannot tell you why I’ve come, but I can tell you it’s for a good reason.”

“You’re scaring me, Mosley.”

“You should be scared.” The wolf’s green eyes narrowed. “You need to watch out for that which does not seem normal. Have a plan prepared for when this happens. Shalee, you have the power to take control of most any situation. You must heighten your senses.”

“What are you trying to say? Stop talking in riddles.”

The wolf looked up at the ceiling. “I’m being summoned. Remember, Shalee, you must be ready ... no matter what. I’m sorry I can’t explain, but this warning was meant to save the lives of those in your pack.”

Mosley’s voice echoed throughout the room even after his departure, leaving Shalee sitting on the bed, shaken and trying to decode what he said. After taking a faster-than-normal bath to make up for lost moments, she headed out to find Sam.

Aaron decided to change the venue where his father’s body was to be viewed. The young king ordered Keldwin’s corpse to be moved to the Royal Theatre of Brandor.

As usual, Double D had his mask on when the order was given, but during this series of moments, the assassin was standing directly behind the king’s throne. Aaron was sitting in the chair delivering his instructions to a room that was filled to capacity, and the tip of Double D’s blade was pressed against the back of the chair. The assassin was ready to shove the blade through when the command was given.

Double D pulled back the knife and smiled. This change of venue would provide a grander stage for a killing. Better yet, this would make his job even easier when the moment came to escape. Unlike the confines of the throne room, the theatre was spacious and had many exits. He immediately departed to familiarize himself with the layout of the structure.

With the assassin standing on a stage where a few souls were preparing for the viewing, Double D kept his mask over his eyes as he dodged between them. He was plotting both Aaron’s assassination and his escape, and it was not long before he felt like he had a plan.

The morticians entered from the back of the theatre to avoid the mob that had lined the streets for more than 500 breaths. They placed Keldwin’s casket not more than three paces from the curtain at the center of the stage. Seeing this placement and understanding his escape route, Double D could only marvel at how simple his execution was going to be. Not only was this going to be the ultimate assassination ever witnessed on Grayham, but he would not even break a sweat when he escaped.

Double D listened as the head mortician spoke, “We should usher the people onto the stage to say goodbye. They can walk up from the left, pay their respects and then exit to the right. We should bring the nobles in first to keep them from standing in the rain, followed by the Senate and then the high-ranking officers of the army. Everyone else can fill in what’s left once they’ve been seated.”

The next part caught the assassin’s attention.

“The king has decided to address the people. Ten guards, five on each side, need to be placed next to the casket.” The mortician walked across the stage and stopped three paces from the edge of the stage. “The casket needs to be moved away from the curtain and placed here. I also want it parallel to the curtain.”

Double D smiled. The back side of the casket would be wide open for his approach.

The mortician continued as he pointed. “I want King Aaron’s throne placed on the far side of the stage over there. His advisor, the General Absolute, and their wives will join him.”

The assassin shook his head in amazement. He could not have dreamed of a more perfect scenario. Double D stepped behind the stage curtain and waited.

As the Peak of Bailem passed, the doors to the theater opened. As planned, the royal family was ushered to their seats, followed by the members of the Senate and their families. These first two groups were placed, one behind the other, in the first three rows of seats directly in front of the stage.