The Destroyer Book 2 (23 page)

“It was at this age when I first met Nadea and I was impressed. Nanos, by all accounts a very normal child, could not do more than grunt, cry and make out a few words, while my niece of the same age engaged me in a conversation that was more enjoyable and intelligent than those I had with many of my advisors. I remembered her curiosity and her polite demeanor. Beltor was quite proud of her as you can recall, and I felt more jealousy, though I hated myself for it.

“Our various responsibilities kept my brother and I apart, but we still made a point to see each other and our families twice a year. So I watched the young child grow into a woman. While Nadea was exceptional in every way, I never noticed any cause for concern. It wasn't until recently I learned that when the girl approached puberty, she developed an alarming physical characteristic on her ears. Much like our current enemies, they grew long, and the cartilage came to a sharp point that was easily seen as something alien.

“Once the growth became apparent, my brother and Nadea feared that questions would be asked. They decided that it would be prudent to perform surgery on the ears so that they appeared human."

Maerc paused to look back up at me. Or more precisely, my ears. They were covered by my thick brown hair and I unconsciously brushed the locks away from the left side of my head to expose them. It was a move I practiced thousands of times with my father until he told me it looked natural. We had been so afraid of what would happen if anyone found out I was something different. With two opposing mirrors I could see the area where the operation had left a slight scar. The cut lay on the top helix of each ear, but was difficult to notice unless someone studied the cartilage closely.

I remembered when he had first told me that I was not his natural child. I was devastated. I cried every night for months. The bond we had felt severed, and I no longer felt close to him, the easy comfort and trust we had with each other was gone. I avoided him and the pained, pitying looks he gave me. Finally, I made myself talk to him and we discussed what this revelation meant. I grew to understand why he had kept this important secret from me until I was old enough to handle the information. I realized that he had always known I was not his blood and it had not mattered to him, so I was able to forgive him for the lie and allow myself to trust and love him the way I had before. He was still my father, he still loved me and wanted the best for me.

He told me the entire story, how he had found me, his theories on where I may have come from, and what we both could do together to make sure I cultivated a successful and happy life. It took almost a year for me to accept my heritage and the importance of lying about who I was to everyone I knew and loved.

"We explored the mountains for months and never came upon the building where he found me," I said at last. "He was so frustrated that he couldn't remember where it was. Perhaps he believed he dreamt of my rescue. But since I was here, it had to have been real." I looked over to Runir and he nodded at me and gave me a half-smile. I felt relieved that he didn't look at me with fear or disgust. The blonde man and I had been friends for so long he seemed like my brother, although I knew he did not look at me as a sister.

I wiped some of the tears from my eyes again and then did the same for my runny nose. While I was surprised by the direction of this attack, I had prepared for something like this to happen eventually. My emotions were more under my control and I began to plan my next steps to ensure I retained stewardship of the army. I could no longer claim royal blood entitled me to be the leader. I quickly ran through what I knew of Nia’s dynastic history and could not recall a precedent for adoption within the royal line.

"So it is true then?" Maerc asked. His eyebrow rose as if he still didn't believe the king's words.

"Yes," I said flatly, wondering for a moment if I should try to lie. Would Maerc believe me now over his late king? It was a fantastic story and I could claim the king was insane or corrupted by someone. I decided it best to simply confirm what my uncle had revealed, lying was exhausting and it was too late to change what the king had done. "Is there more to the king's letter?" Now that I had overcome the shock, I was morbidly intrigued as to why the king wanted me dead. The stoic general nodded and continued.

"When Nadea approached the end of her teen years, she suddenly became interested in the Ancients, the O'Baarni, and the various ruins that explorers had stumbled upon in the forgotten wilderness. I wanted to join her with one of the noble's sons, but my brother convinced me, after many attempts, that she would be more of an asset to Nia if she pursued her interests instead of my political agenda. I canceled my plans for her to marry and she traveled the world doing research. Of course, I sound bitter now, but I let Nanos do the same thing and he chose to stay in Nia, enjoying his privilege and position while contributing nothing to the interests of the kingdom.

“A few years after the girl went on her first exploratory trip, we began to hear rumors of conflict in the Northlands. Six months later, we knew that the Ancients had returned and had somehow harnessed the Northern tribes to their war machine. I never suspected a connection between Nadea and the Ancients. I thought Nadea was my blood, and could not imagine that she would have any other motive than the prosperity of Nia. The impeding war and political dance occupied my time and energy, I did not think often of the duchess. It wasn’t until later that I puzzled out that Nadea’s first excursion had been to the Northlands, and that she did something there to bring the Ancients to our world.”

“That’s fucking bullshit!” I screamed in panic. My heart was beating so fast I wondered if it would jump out of my chest and run away. I started to shiver and felt incredibly nauseous. Bile moved up my throat but I forced it back down and it left a bitter taste of betrayal in my mouth.

“So that is not true?” Runir asked. No. It was more like a plea. He didn’t want the king's accusations to be true.

“No! Why would I bring back Ancients? All of our legends spoke of the horrible atrocities they committed against us. It is--“

“You say us, but you aren’t even human,” Maerc interrupted me. His statement chilled me to the core and filled the room with a stale emptiness. He seemed surprised that the words had left his mouth. The three of us said nothing for a minute.

“I . . .” I began as I wiped back my tears. My head hurt as bad as my chest. “I’ve known you for as long as I’ve been alive, Maerc. Father and I never knew what my exact lineage was. All he would say was that I was a blessing that came to him when he most needed it. I don’t look like the Ancients, except for what my ears would have been.”

“I’m sorry Nadea. I spoke out. I . . .” the general paused and looked at his son. “It’s been a rough couple of weeks. This letter isn’t helping anything.” He set it down and leaned back in his chair and cupped his face in his hands.

“You did travel to the Northlands though?” Runir asked. I gazed at him through the tears. His eyes bore concern and I realized he didn’t want me to say yes.

“Yes, I did. Father and I heard news of another temple similar to the one where I had been found. We had never located the one in the Teeth Mountains. I went to the Northlands to see if I might find it and perhaps some hints as to my own origin.” My memory drifted back to five years ago. The Northlands were an unforgiving land of endless snow, rocky peaks of ice, and sharp cliffs. I could still hear the scream of the winds and feel the pain of coldness as it tried to claim my body.

“Did you find it?” Runir probed deeper.

“Yes. It was empty though, and half-buried in ice. It was similar to what my father described. The walls were made of smooth rock that seemed like fossilized wood. Inside were long stone beds. I didn’t know exactly how they worked, I still don’t, but they are able to transport people across time. We found Kaiyer on a similar pedestal in the Vanlourn temple.”

Kaiyer’s resting place was different from the four others I had discovered. His shrine was more of a small, smooth sphere concealed deep in the earth, like a seed planted into the soil. The others had been larger. Where Kaiyer’s contained hundreds of stone pedestals, his had only a single bench, as if it were crafted just for him.

“The king mentions him later in the letter, but we have spoken enough for the day. I think you need to rest, Nadea. We can continue this tomorrow morning,” Maerc said. Concern touched the corners of his eyes and mouth. It gave me hope that he wouldn't order my death. At least not today.

“Finish,” I told him. I felt as if the worst part of this interrogation was over. They knew my secret and I could not change that. I was curious about the rest of the king’s message.

“Very well.” Maerc looked down to the letter on the desk and then continued.

“Nadea explored several other areas of the world; she was gone for a whole year when she went to Astical. When she came back, she convinced her father and I that she knew where the O’Baarni was located. She was confident he had been imprisoned by the Ancients thousands of years ago. It was a theory she had told me about a few times before, but now she seemed almost possessed by the desire to journey to Vanlourn.

“Nadea claimed that the only way that the O’Baarni could be awoken was through a series of phrases she had found in a book. There were only two people in the kingdom who could speak the language. I’m sure you know the rest.

“I never believed she would be successful in bringing back the O’Baarni. The man is dead now so it matters little if he was or was not this mythical hero. What does matter is that a night ago I received another letter from the empress. It arrived by messenger crow and was brought to me by Nanos.”

“
Now this is starting to make sense,” I interrupted. Anger rose in my stomach again. No. it wasn’t anger. It was rage. I wanted to claw Nanos’s face off of his skull and show it to him while the fucker bled to death. He must have set up this whole affair to discredit me in case his coup failed. Maerc nodded before he continued.

“In the letter, the empress told us that Nadea was one of her agents and she had several more moles in the kingdom. I didn’t want to believe it, but the empress was able to pinpoint the exact dates that the duchess investigated the ruins. Apparently, she helped the empress perform a magical rite that allowed her people to come back from whatever place they lurked.”

“This is ridiculous. Nanos is the traitor. He knew exactly when I was leaving to do each exploration and he has been working with the empress from the beginning. He either forged the letter the king is speaking of or he asked the empress to send it on his behalf.” I looked at Runir for support and saw him nod. His face was blank though, and I couldn’t tell if he agreed with me or if he was just acknowledging my statement.

“There is a little left,” Maerc said.

“Please continue.”

“The letter the empress gave me was probably a distraction. I do not want to believe that Nadea is a traitor.” The breath left my chest again with a relieved sigh. Runir's father paused to look at me. His mouth made a half-smile.

“However, there are many holes in her story that make me consider the possibility. What did she do at the various ruins she visited? How did she know where to locate Kaiyer? Where did she come from? Why did the empress specifically write to me about her? These are questions I can’t answer now, but if I live through this siege I intend to find out. If I die during this war, then you must ask them for me or force my brother to give you the answers. He is blinded by love for the girl and would never dream of her being malicious.

“If Nanos, Beltor, and I are dead by the time you read this, I fear she might seize control. Nadea cannot be allowed to rule the Kingdom of Nia if she does not have a valid explanation of these events. The people still believe she is of the royal bloodline, and beloved as she is, they will rally behind her if you attempt to expose her secret.

“Find Nadea, ask her these questions, and kill her if she tries to evade them. Make it clear you know the truth of her history. Then rescue my daughter.

“I am sorry my friend. It is a horrible burden I have placed on your shoulders. I have always loved you as if you were my brother and trust you to resurrect the kingdom if the worst has transpired.”

“Then he signed it. It is his handwriting,” Maerc said finally.

“Nanos organized this. He must have influenced his father. The letter also said the king didn’t believe that I was a traitor. I am not. I love Nia and have only tried to do what I can to protect us from the Ancients. You both have known me for my whole life.” I looked back and forth from Runir to his father.

“We’ve known Nanos his whole life too,” Runir said in anger. “If we believe you, we must believe he is the source of the betrayal.”

“I didn’t lock myself up in the dungeon.”

“That is true. But the king had some doubts about your motives. Perhaps Nanos did as well. Can you answer his questions? I want to believe you Nadea, but you admitted that you are not of the royal bloodline. What else of the king’s assumptions are close to the target? Why did you visit the ruins? How did you know about Kaiyer?” Maerc leaned forward and his blue eyes burned into mine.

I sighed, leaned back in my chair, and debated what to say. How much should I tell them? They would think I was insane. Perhaps I was. I was so desperate to find out more about my past that I almost ignored him these last few years. I should have just been happy that I had been adopted by a kind man who raised and nurtured me. Father never complained about my wish to understand more about my past, but I guessed he must have thought that I had not been satisfied with his love.

I would give anything to see and speak with him again. All the journeys and time spent on the Ancients and the O’Baarni were not because his love was not enough. I wanted to tell him that I loved him more than anything else in life. Memories of my childhood flooded into the darkness of my closed eyelids. He had been a wonderful father and I never spoke this truth clearly to him.