Ringwall's Doom. Wolf Awert

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СКАЧАТЬ is wrong, my prince?” Auran-San whispered. “Have you taken leave of all that is holy? What crown is it you speak of?”

      The prince pulled back his black hood and removed his bandeau. “The red band of the desert.”

      Sergor-Don bent over and picked up a simple black shawl from the ground. Upon it was a long red line, coiled up like a snake. In its center there was a silver ring, and from the ring hung a simple smoky quartz. It shook as the band moved.

      “Wrap the band around my head, Auran-San. I command it.”

      The old councilor took a step back from the throne, then turned around and ran into the middle of the throne room.

      “Prince Sergor-Don has dismissed the crown and the king’s grace with it!” he shouted to the throng.

      For a moment there was deathly silence. Then the crowd broke out into screaming and shouting, cursing and threatening. Several blades were unsheathed. Haltern-kin-Eben retreated as quickly as a cat. He knew where he stood and what he stood for, but this was not his fight. That was Auran-San’s concern. He suddenly noticed how worryingly small the number of sorcerers was. And he saw that Sarch had pulled out his weapon just like Astergrise. How would the old marshal act? And what would the other generals and captains do?

      Sergor-Don had risen once more from his seat and now looked down at the crowd from the dais that held the two thrones.

      “My crown is the red band of the desert. It is the old symbol of power all the tribes know. It is the only crown I will ever wear. The crown of gold you see there is my father’s crown, and it is heavy with the magic of falsehood, of treason, of broken trust. Auran-San, wouldn’t you agree that it suits you rather better than me?”

      Before the councilor could respond the prince raised his voice to a roar.

      “You betrayed the old king and now you want to do the same to his son! Did you really believe I knew nothing of your plans? My body may have been in Ringwall all this time, but my heart and my ears and my eyes were always here in Gulffir. The only reason I haven’t already had you drawn and quartered is your past services. My parting gift to you, my childhood teacher, is this chalice. Drink deep from it. The hemlock’s bitter taste is all but hidden by nectar and the sweet smells of plainsflowers. I wish you no discomfort in death.”

      Sergor-Don picked up the goblet from beside his throne and made for Auran-San with determined steps. The councilor smacked the cup from his hands and the milky substance spilled onto the floor. The smell spread through the hall. It was sweet, but not the smell of flowers. It was the sweetish smell of decaying flesh. The breathing in the room grew shallow. Only Auran-San seemed unfazed by it.

      “Fool! You believe I would bow to a child? This is the end of the line of Herfas-San. For generations my family has served the kings of your lineage. Each more foolish and weaker than the next, until finally we have this pitiful boy right here who humiliates dutiful generals, ignores border security, and abandons a flowering city to hardship to hide in the shadow of Ringwall. I too am a San like the Herfas, and can trace my father’s fathers back to the first rulers. Little prince, I am Auran-San of the line of Auran-San. My name itself is a constant reminder of my ancestry, and none of my family has ever forgotten it. I will promise you one thing, however: your end will be quite the show. I will grant you renown eternal. You will become a legend, and the people will tell of you in hundreds of years, of the death of the boy king who wanted everything and did nothing.”

      At the last word he unleashed a wave of fire; the prince managed to deflect it, but the force of the attack knocked him flat on his back. Uul ran forward and strengthened the barricade. Auran-San flung fragments of meteorite at Uul, but they melted down to glowing droplets and hit the floor. Splitters of rock sliced at Sergor-Don’s skin. Auran-San called roots from the ground and sent Water to follow his Fire in an effort to boil the prince’s blood, and he pushed his foe through the hall.

      Prince Sergor-Don was no match for the old sorcerer, but he fought back. Now was the moment to see whether his chosen guards were up to the challenge. Auran-San’s Metal attacks were held back by Uul, whose shield was flawless and did not give an inch. But Metal was not Auran-San’s only weapon – he switched between the elements at the speed of a galloping stallion. It was clear that he drew pleasure from playing with the prince.

      “Enough!” he suddenly shouted into the din of crackling air and sparks. Silence descended on the hall once more. The flames flickered out and died. Into the silence the old sorcerer pointed a finger straight at the prince. Sergor-Don let out a scream and pressed his hands against his head. But as quickly as the vice had tightened around his brow it relinquished its grasp. For a moment Auran-San seemed uncertain. He stretched out a second finger and the pain shot through the prince’s feet into his legs, where it evaporated and left only a tingling sensation. The sorcerer raised his second hand to the ceiling and threw something at the prince. Sergor-Don was hunched over in pain and could no longer make out what was happening around him. He did not see a great stone loosen from the ceiling, just above Auran-San. It cracked like a nut that had been thrown in a fire as the stone came down upon the sorcerer’s head and crushed his skull.

      “Take him away,” Sergor-Don coughed once his tongue could form any coherent sound again. “And open the doors for the King of the Fire Kingdom. Or is there another San who would deny my claim?”

      The young king stepped out into the open, his magical guard behind him. The crowd and many soldiers in it burst out in cheers. Only the court sorcerers remained subdued. Sarch had sheathed his blade, Astergrise still held his weapon drawn. Haltern-kin-Eben was nowhere to be seen.

      It was a day of joy, and Gulffir celebrated the first step into a new age. But many of the elders remembered earlier festivities that had been far more joyous. Too many shadows tainted the air. The Fire Kingdom finally had a new king, and the time of waiting and uncertainty had passed. But what a king they now had, who turned everything upside-down, who killed a court sorcerer with magic, whose chosen guard made up of half-arcanists had defeated as experienced and powerful a sorcerer as Auran-San as handily as a griffon kills a dove.

      Those blessed with property could only lose under King Sergor-Don. Those with nothing could only win. And so there was drinking, dancing and laughing, but the royal household retired early. Worldbrand hung over them like a black cloud. No, security and trust had not been won that day. Instead, fear and unpredictability would rule the future of the Fire Kingdom. However, brave minds knew that limitless possibilities were open to them. The king had no more councilors; his guard was made up of just five sorcerers. The troops were disquieted and veteran generals trembled for their ranks. The almighty Haltern-kin-Eben had fallen from grace, even though he still held his position. The only one who had made it through the events unscathed was Astergrise.

      King Sergor-Don reveled in the celebrations in his name. He had achieved what he had set out to. He was the new king and had destroyed his opponents. Nobody near him was strong enough to challenge him, and with every day the sun gave him he would grow stronger still. And yet his triumph too was not perfect, his smile even thinner than usual. He had underestimated the old man. The body might falter with age, but magic was seldom great in youth. He had hoped to subjugate Auran-San with the aid of his new shields, that they might together destroy the magic of the Other World. But Auran-San’s attacks had been too surprising, too wild and strong. He had not accounted for such ferocity. That was a mistake he loathed himself for.

      The fact that he had won the fight was little encouragement; he had been unable to loosen Auran-San’s vice-like grip on his head, unable to stop the pain in his legs, unable to hear the last, fatal cast the sorcerer had attempted. Whatever had happened, he was not the victor. At least, not alone. Which of his guards was strong enough to break Auran-San’s СКАЧАТЬ