The Scarlet King (2 page)

Heather nodded but let Daniel respond. He
explained, "We have decided to name him after my grandfather,
Geoffrey of Issip." A round of applause was given to the baby,
which caused it to awaken and begin crying. This in turn brought on
more laughter and noise, which startled the baby Geoffrey even
more. Heather finally soothed it only by putting the baby to her
breast and allowing him to nurse.

Jeremy was asked why they were going on this
journey.

"Well, you see, it is really my wife's
fault,” he said. “If she had not arranged for the capture of the
envoy from the Red in his house on wheels, there would be no
journey."

He sipped his brew and continued. "Turns out
this envoy is the chief military guy for those of the Red, and when
he saw that their invasion was failing he decided to negotiate a
peace settlement. The Southern lands have a king named Jason, who
decided he would be the envoy for all of our peoples to negotiate
the final peace and trade agreements with those of the Red."

Again he stopped for a sip of his beer before
continuing. "Apparently these peace agreements require a signature
from an official representative from each of our lands. Edna and I
will be representing the people of the Forest."

After another sip of his beer he added,
"Which means you all should be nice to me and buy me another
beer."

This was followed by a general groan and
catcalls, but the beer did mysteriously appear before Jeremy. The
stories were beginning in earnest and Jeremy as always was the
center of attention. The evening wore on much too quickly and soon
the hour was late. Heather whispered to Daniel that it was time to
go. They tried to discreetly depart but Jeremy would not allow it,
saying, "A toast to my friends and their new baby for all they have
done for those of the Forest!"

The loud cheering was enough to again awaken
baby Geoffrey, who responded with a loud cry of his own—which again
brought laughter and cheers from the crowd. As Heather tried to
soothe the baby, Daniel raised his glass in a toast: "And to Jeremy
and his bride Edna who have done so much for all of us, may they
have a most interesting voyage and return safely to us."

Another cheer was raised as glasses were
drained. Daniel and Heather walked back to their cottage in the
cool autumn night. They said little but both knew they would miss
their friends greatly. Heather needed to wipe the tears from her
eyes.

The remaining night was short and baby
Geoffrey made sure that Daniel and Heather were awake before dawn.
They had just settled the baby back down after feeding it when
Jeremy and Edna showed up for the breaking of the fast, dressed for
travel. Edna seemed a bit tired and anxious but Jeremy was in high
spirits and seemed not to notice the effect of so little sleep.
They shared a simple meal of fresh bread and dried meats with fruit
from the orchard. Daniel tried to get Jeremy to take one of his
notepads to draw pictures of any unusual animals they saw, but
Jeremy refused. "I will let Jason be the recorder. It is best if I
just pay attention to what is going on."

The goodbyes were emotional and all had tears
in their eyes and then they were gone. Daniel and Heather stood in
the doorway and looked after them long after they were out of view.
Heather asked, "Would you have gone on the journey?"

Daniel replied, "They will see much and of
this I am jealous. I would choose to be here with you and our
baby."

Heather held his hand and said not, but her
mind raced with the dangers that their friends faced. She feared
most the response of the Scarlet King, for the envoy himself seemed
to have fear of the Scarlet King. Her thoughts were interrupted by
Geoffrey again demanding attention at one end or the other, usually
both. She left Daniel and his thoughts to attend the baby.

For several weeks Heather and Daniel were
immersed in the joys and frustrations of living with a newborn.
Baby Geoffrey made sure that their lives were full of challenges,
leaving little time for worrying about other things. About the time
the baby began to sleep through the night, Daniel resumed his
healing and was often gone. If it were not for Betty's help,
Heather was not sure she would have been capable of managing. Some
of the simplest things like planning meals were very hard for
her.

Heather was both a mother and a wife despite
her warrior nature. The simple life of Issip agreed with her and
she missed not the intrigue of palace life nor the tension of war.
It often seemed that managing her small household was as much of a
challenge as orchestrating a battle, but she had no wish to change.
Her love of Daniel and their baby was great. The calmness of the
Forest had brought peace to her life.

Chapter 2

Jason awoke early, before the rising of the
sun, for today he hoped to see the island where
the bird which
flew not
lived. They had journeyed for four weeks now and had
kept mostly at sea, sighting only occasional seabirds. Now they
were to see a land filled with strange critters and plants. They
traveled very comfortably in the ship called Red Dragon, which had
been outfitted with great care to provide for comfort. The envoy of
the Red traveled not without his luxuries. The sailing crew were of
those of the Red as was the Captain, but all security personnel
were of the Southern Kingdom. The negotiations for peace had
carefully spelled out the personnel to ensure that those of the Red
could not seize control.

Jason was met by Jeremy as he proceeded
towards the dining facility. Mostly they ate food prepared by
Jason's chef, but occasionally shared a meal with the envoy. These
meals were always prepared by both chefs, and all food tasted for
possible poisons before presenting at the table. The breaking of
the fast was the quietest meal of the day, but Jeremy still had
stories to tell. Jason tired not of hearing Jeremy's stories. Today
he relived their first adventure on the Island of the Flightless
Bird. By the time they arrived on deck, daylight was developing
fully and the eastern sky was painted in oranges and reds. They
found Larby stomping around the foredeck with his peg leg, looking
somewhat unhappy.

Jason asked, "What bothers you on such a
beautiful morning?"

"It is the color of the sky that bothers me
such,” said Larby. “You see beauty but I see a storm coming and the
Captain sees it not."

Jason asked, "What would you have us do?"

Larby chewed on his lip before responding. "I
would make a run for the harbor of my people. We may yet be able to
beat the storm."

It was Jason's turn to be quiet. He looked
forward to visualizing the island he so wanted to see, but no land
was yet visible. He thought again about the stories Jeremy had told
about the storm they had experienced. If he thought only of himself
he would risk the storm to see this magical island, but others were
aboard. He turned towards Larby and asked, "The harbor of your
people would be secure if the storm does approach?"

Larby but nodded his head and spoke not. They
stood in silence while Jason considered his options. If he were to
believe this young man he really had no options, for the safety of
the entire mission may be at stake. With a large audible sigh he
turned from looking forward and told Larby, "I so wish to see this
island where you were rescued but I would not endanger the mission
for my own desires. Inform the Captain that I would change course
to the harbor of your people."

It was midmorning before the envoy, Don the
Great, appeared on deck. He noted their course and asked, "Why have
we changed course?"

The Captain responded in the high tongue of
those of the Red and pointed towards Jason. The envoy nodded a
reply and walked forward to where Jason was sitting with Jeremy and
Edna. He asked, "You changed your mind about seeing this island
with the flightless bird?"

Jason replied, "I would see this island, but
fear for the mission if the storm does arise. Larby is of the sea
and knows of the storms in this part of the world. I would trust
his knowledge."

"As you wish,” the envoy responded. “The
Captain thinks but a little rain is coming and sees not a storm
using his weather glass."

Jason asked how the weather glass worked and
the envoy just shrugged his shoulders and said, "Something in the
air causes the fluid in the tube to rise or fall depending on the
weather. Our sailing people seem to trust it."

Darkness was approaching and a line of clouds
was visible on the horizon. They would arrive at the harbor of
Larby's people about dawn. At sundown the weather glass was again
checked. The Captain was obviously surprised, for the fluid was now
much lower. He told Jason, "It appears that your fishermen may have
been correct after all. Hopefully we will reach the harbor before
the storm arrives."

The sky was full of reds and purples after
the sun dropped below the horizon, but off to the south was only
darkness. The evening meal was a feast to Jeremy and Edna, but to
those of the palaces—the envoys from the two kingdoms and the
military leader of those of the Red—it was a very simple meal
suitable for travel. The food and wine were plentiful and the
stories well received, but by the end of the evening the
approaching storm was making its presence known.

Those who had imbibed too heavily now paid a
price as they made their way to their sleeping quarters. Edna was
not happy, having never experienced a storm before, and Jeremy
tried to reassure her. He requested some ginger tea, which they
brought back to their cabin. Jeremy was still full of energy, but
Edna was feeling the effects of the sea and had not yet learned to
dance with the ship. The ginger tea helped a little but lying
quietly in bed seemed to be the most effective remedy. Jeremy used
their capes under the sleeping pad to create more of a cocoon,
which would keep Edna from rolling about as she tried to sleep.
Then he went topside.

Standing at the rail, for Jeremy the crashing
of the waves against the bow was invigorating. The clouds created a
greater blackness of the sky and almost all of the stars were now
gone. He enjoyed his solitude only a short while before Jason
joined him. For a long time they just stood and watched. Jason
finally said, "I know I should fear the storm but somehow it
invigorates my soul."

Jeremy replied, "Captain Cook was always
saying how we needed to learn to dance with his mistress, the sea.
He seemed to enjoy the storms, but most of us of the Forest had
trouble with the sickness of the sea."

"How is your bride handling these unsettled
seas?" asked Jason.

"Only fair. The ginger tea seems to help
some."

Jason said, "The Captain is unsure we can
make the harbor before the worst of the storm, and said we may need
to run before the storm. It seems he fears the envoy greatly and
wishes not to disturb him."

Jeremy shrugged his shoulders and said, "It
is surprising how much fear that small man instills in others. I’d
best go check on Edna."

Jason stood his watch in the darkness by
himself, watching the glow of the sea in the turbulence of the
waves. The freshness of the air seemed to bring the skin alive and
made his nose tingle ever so slightly when he breathed in. He had
never felt so alive while in the palace. The rain began ever so
gently but with the wind was enough to sting his face. He
maintained his watch at the rail until the chill of the air drove
him below.

He returned to his cabin and tried to sleep,
but the pitching and rolling of the ship were now enough to keep
sleep at bay. The rolling of the ship was becoming ever more
pronounced and he began to worry. Things began to change and he
could feel the ship turning. Gradually the rolling subsided and he
had to deal only with a more gentle pitching of the ship. Sleep
finally came.

When morning arrived the sounds of the storm
continued. Jason made his way slowly topside. His girth was a bit
of a problem in the narrow companion ways, and others would have to
make way for him. He held tightly to the rail as he climbed the
ladder topside. He was met with enough wind that it seemed to suck
the breath out of him. He concentrated on breathing slowly through
his nose and made his way to the pilot house. The Captain had
obviously been awake all night and appeared to be under great
stress. He began apologizing: "If only I had listened to that
fishermen we could've avoided this and Don the Great would not be
suffering. His suffering will undoubtedly increase everyone else's
suffering."

Jason responded, "I would expect my desire to
see the island with the flightless bird is the cause of our present
trouble. I would speak to the envoy of this if you desire."

The Captain nodded in appreciation, but said,
"The one you speak of as the envoy is not known for tolerating
discomfort. It is probably best if we not bring any further
attention to the matter."

Jason asked, "Where are we?"

"I was concerned for the safety of my ship
and turned to the southeast to run with the storm,” the Captain
replied. “I expect we are somewhat south of the great peninsula
that divides the waters of my country from the rest of the
world."

Jason asked, "What lies beyond our
position?"

"To the south is a great ocean with but few
islands. To the east lies the country from which we emigrated many
generations ago. To the west is a vast unknown and to the north is
my home."

"How far to the east lies this ancient
country?” asked Jason.

The Captain replied, "It is said to be a
journey of over a month but few have ever made it. The storms make
it a most perilous journey." He added, "Traders who have attempted
the journey were poorly received and many did not survive the
attempt."