Main Menu
Search
Donate
Help keep adnd.com online!
|
News » History of Mardon Castle - 14C
Amazon Games
History of Mardon Castle
Chapter Fourteen
Part 3
...
A soldier spoke from a window in the chamber at the top of the tower, “Come on down, Lord Axiste. There is nothing to fear.”
Those words really did not put the elder kevalla at ease. “You have found the wall, and the ground below.”
The soldier laughed before saying, “Just don’t look down and you will be all right.”
“You expect me to climb all the way down to the wall, then climb up to Kaervel’s room?”
The mage now came to the window to say, “Yes, I do. The first reason is that I am not going to presently expand the wall section, but I am going to expand toward the castle. Most of those coming down will thus be workers who do not need to bother me.”
More than just old stones have been revealed by the excavation.
History of Mardon Castle
Chapter Fourteen
Part 3
Axiste smiled upon seeing his son approach, but wondered about why he would be present. The lad did not look hurt, so the elder felt that he should be out hunting. The answer that came surprised him.
“I don’t hunt that often, father. I am working, as I have the responsibility for keeping meat in the camp, but I have a number of people working under me.”
Axiste tried to make sense of what he heard. “Kaervel has too many people to keep active, so he assigned some to hunting?”
“Yes that is part of it. Kaervel however plans on expanding, so wants to go ahead and set up an infrastructure that will feed them.”
“This is good experience for you, son. I actually have a very similar job with the nobility of Sekurd. I will be expecting you to take over those duties one day.”
“I would not mind your advice, father.”
Axiste felt pride in those words, but felt that he had to finish his own duties first. “Let me first go speak with Kaervel. Once I have finished discussing my business, I will come and speak with you about yours.”
The lad showed pleasure with those words. Axiste found himself wanting to go ahead and ask his son about the primary problems that he was having, but felt that if he did so he would stay. Making a promise to hurry his business with Kaervel, Axiste left his son.
He felt fear in looking down into the excavated area. The hole was very deep. A ladder made of thick lengths of wood dropped to the top of a section of wall. Barely more than ten feet of the ancient barrier had been revealed from the point where the tower came down. A soldier dressed in bright colors and polished metal walked in a very formal fashion usually only performed during ceremonies. Axiste received the impression that the soldier was not present to guard the ladder going down to what appeared to have once been the castle grounds, but simply having the military put on a show for those that worked in the hole seemed like a waste. He thus looked for signs of further trouble instead of moving down the ladder.
A soldier spoke from a window in the chamber at the top of the tower, “Come on down, Lord Axiste. There is nothing to fear.”
Those words really did not put the elder kevalla at ease. “You have found the wall, and the ground below.”
The soldier laughed before saying, “Just don’t look down and you will be all right.”
“You expect me to climb all the way down to the wall, then climb up to Kaervel’s room?”
The mage now came to the window to say, “Yes, I do. The first reason is that I am not going to presently expand the wall section, but I am going to expand toward the castle. Most of those coming down will thus be workers who do not need to bother me.”
Axiste accepted the words, and began his descent. He moved down with his eyes closed, but found himself not really relieved by feeling stone beneath his feet. While the smell of the swamp was strong, the rocks appeared to have been washed. The stones upon which the soldier marched in a very crisp fashion even looked polished. After watching the soldier for a time, he looked to the cylindrical structure wondering how to ascend the tower.
Kaervel stood inside an opening in the tower’s column. A solid floor of stone allowed passage for a soldier to move to another length of wall that presently still rested beneath the weight of boggy ground. While the stone walls of the column were thick, a hollow opening enabled one to step on risers leading up to the chamber above. Axiste expected Kaervel to speak upon the excavation, but found the words from the mage to be on a different topic.
“The soldiers are seeing ghosts, and put on the show for them.”
“Ghosts?”
“I haven’t seen them. I put a soldier here to help those coming down the ladder, but I soon found them putting on this display. They claimed that a spectral soldier would appear as if making a patrol along the wall, salute, then turn around. They took that as a sign that they were being recognized as holding this section of wall, so began to actually walk a patrol.”
Axiste looked around to find any kevalla working. There were no men presently working in the excavated area. Only one man, a soldier, held a position near the end of a canvas tube to signal for the use of a pump. The pit now descended to what could clearly be identified as solid ground. Those working on the excavation were above preparing for another descent Axiste thus climbed the ladder back up to speak to one of the new hires.
“Thussox, Kaervel told me that there are being seen ghosts down below.”
The kevalla named showed an expression of being glad to take a break as he replied, “Yes, Lord Axiste. I have seen them.”
“Them?”
“All that have been seen so far are soldiers, but one can tell that they are different soldiers.”
“I spoke with Helshain. He said that there were spirits bound by the curse, and would rise to oppose us.”
A human soldier said, “I was there with you, Lord Axiste. I know that Sergeant Beshaub went with Helshain to help him fight. The druid however said that those of us born after the curse can find ourselves bound by the evil influence of our land. These are the spirits that were present at the time of the curse. Their souls have not been tainted by the evil, only trapped by it.”
Axiste moved to look down into the excavation. He saw Kaervel climbing out, but focused upon what might be seen on the top of the wall or down on the ground. Seeing nothing, he turned back to the one he had first approached.
“Thussox, do you agree with those words?”
“I trust the humans. The kevalla soldiers work where their bodies can bask in the sun. The humans hold the stations down in the pit. They are thus the ones that have confronted the ghosts, and you can see their response. The human soldiers are also veterans of the recent war, and I have heard their stories of the evil they faced. If they even suspected what they saw of being evil, they would not act as they do.”
Kaervel had joined the group, and he now spoke. “Those are my thoughts as well. The soldiers that came with me were those that worked with me during the war. I trust them, and they trust me. I am sure that most of you know that the human soldiers spend time in my tower chamber. We are friends that have risked our lives with each other. I have heard them speak of being honored by the recognition of the spirits that have maintained their patrols for centuries. If I heard them speak of suspicion that they could be in danger, I would be on station with them.”
Axiste said, “But we will be working toward the castle and the center of the curse.”
“Will be working? These men ARE working. I believe that this present section will just move us across the courtyard. Once completed, the next section should have us find the walls of the castle itself.”
“How fast do you believe this section to go?”
“Without any preservation work to slow us down, we could be down in little over a week.”
Kaervel reached out to put a hand on Axiste’s shoulder while asking, “Why do the ghosts bother you?”
“The morning I was to come back after placing the men aboard the ship, we were attacked by werewolves. The quality of the soldiers and the blessing of the rising sun had the lycanthropes stopped without any being hurt. As a display of our desire to remove the curse, I was bringing the cursed men back for you to restore. The druid however arrived and did the deed while speaking of his encounters with spirits. His words had Sergeant Beshaub join Helshain.”
“I was wondering where Beshaub was at.”
Axiste nodded as he considered this place as good as any for giving his report to the mage. “The druid said that between the surface and the ground was soil cursed by the movement of those bound. He said that the taint was a part of the food we eat, and worked to corrupt us all.”
Kaervel stood without any concern that those around him were listening to what was said. “I have not noticed any emanations of the curse. Do you believe that the castle is protected?”
“No, as the castle is the center of the curse. Helshain said that he grew up learning of the land, so felt that what he saw around him to be the natural state of the land. It could be that you don’t notice the taint, as you consider the taint normal.”
“I don’t believe that, as I have been gone for four years. As horrible as conditions were during the war, I was not eating food cursed by the history of Mardon. Surely my body and soul was able to recuperate from any destruction being worked upon it. I also developed my talent while studying curses. I thus feel that I can purely sense and identify any malignancy in the auras around us.”
Thussox said, “Sir Kaervel, confidence can be its own malignancy.”
“No,” the mage spewed in response. “It was as I gained in confidence that my power overcame that of my enemies. It was my confidence in being able to defeat my enemies that had me take one of the most beautiful ladies in the world as my own. I would not be here leading you if I were not confident of our eventual success. There might be set-backs, I recognize that, but our work will not be in vain. This land will be restored.”
A human soldier standing a ways off said, “Don’t get too confident, Kaervel. You should know to stay wary.”
While the head of the mage spun as if to reprimand the speaker, his features settled. A smile then actually broke on Kaervel’s face. Axiste received the impression that the soldier was truly a friend of the mage, and while they had a difference in rank, they had a more equal relationship when off duty that allowed for a more honest communication. The posture of Kaervel was more relaxed when he turned back to speak to the workers.
“We will probably begin to see more ghosts as we reveal more of the castle and its grounds. Let me know if you fear any of them.” He then turned to Axiste to say, “I believe that you were coming to me to give your report.” Seeing a nod, the mage continued to speak. “Well, I like spending time in my tower chamber, but I believe it is better if our words stay more open. There is a fire over there, and I believe that I see a pot keeping some coffee warm. Is that all right with you?”
“I believe that it is a friendly place to speak.”
“Well, we are all citizens of Mardon. Even if we are not friends, we can at least face each other honestly. Come on, Axiste, let us go talk.”
The elder kevalla felt it a good decision. After speaking to the mage, he could then go and speak to his son. In each case he felt wisdom could be transmitted resulting in proper responses to problems.
The military ship moves out onto Lake Nemistry.
Posted by TerishD on Thursday, February 04, 2010 (12:34:21) (57 reads)
|
|
Related Links
Article Rating
Options
Last Posts
Last 10 Forum Messages
Total Hits
We have received 15538743page views since April 2003
|
Search
Downloads
News
More about Bards, Tails & Poetic License
