Blood Of Gods

CHAPTER 9

Ahaesarus watched Karak’s soldiers retreat back from the wall, clearly frustrated by the wizards’ sealing of the breach. Knowing it was only a matter of time before the siege towers approached and the catapults resumed their barrage, the Warden descended into the pit. He had witnessed the carnage in the narrow corridor between the walls, seen the bloody, charred remains of the soldiers who had entered the breach, smelled their cooking flesh. He and Warden Judah took on the task of counting their dead foes while other Wardens and the human healers mended Patrick DuTaureau and his eleven brave companions who were injured but alive. In the end neither he nor Judah could come to an exact number, but they both agreed that number was greater than two hundred. Two hundred soldiers dead, while we lost thirty. So why do I feel we came out the losers?

Thirty was too many. After the interior gate was opened, the corpses of Mordeina’s fallen were separated from those of the soldiers and carried to the ever-growing rows of dead that littered the far grove, an open mass grave that was barely hidden by a makeshift wall of twigs and bed sheets. Given the rot that was beginning to infest nearly every corner of the sixteen-square-mile settlement, he knew those bodies would have to be dealt with soon, though he also understood it would be difficult to convince Isabel and the fat young king to take action. Mordeina buries their dead, and all that. Ahaesarus let out a disgusted grunt at the thought.

The next order of business was to fix the damage left behind by the boulders that had crashed down inside the settlement. There were another sixty dead there, fragile bodies crushed by the immense stones, and many more injured. Broken bones healed easily enough, but for some there was no choice but to remove their mangled arms and legs. Mothers cried for their children; husbands sobbed for their wives; sons and daughters wailed for their lost parents. For Ahaesarus, trying to soothe these people was worse than the carnage of battle. There was nothing he could say that could take away their pain. He could only hold them, caress them, tell them how their loved ones were in a better place now and that there was no reason for tears.

It was an act of kindness no one had offered him after the winged demons invaded his home world of Algrahar. Though it hurt, he was happy to give it.

All of this left him exhausted, and with the sky brightening as daylight returned to the world, he eagerly anticipated lying down in his bed and getting some rest. Even if the nightmares came, he would welcome them with open arms so long as he could put up his sore feet. But that respite still had to wait until he fulfilled the last of his duties.

“What next?” asked Judarius. The black-haired, green-eyed Warden walked beside him on Mordeina’s main throughway, passing between row after row of campsites packed with restless and frightened people.

“The Manse,” said Ahaesarus. “I’ve been ordered to keep your former student abreast of what happens during my watch, and so I must obey.”

“My student?” snorted Judarius. “My student, the one who should have been king, died two years ago. The whelp who wears the crown now in no way resembles the boy I trained.”

“So you claim no responsibility for Benjamin’s behavior?”

“I would had I been allowed to continue my tutelage. But Lady Isabel has taken him from me, molded him into whatever she wishes. As if Jacob did not soil him enough.”

Ahaesarus sighed.

“He seems to have put back on all the weight you made him lose. He also is prone to crying fits, more so now that our god is indisposed.” He passed his fellow Warden an inquisitive look, eyebrows raised. “Judarius, Benjamin was served rightly by your wisdom. He demonstrated potential for greatness when you mentored him.”

Judarius hawked a wad of spit to the ground. “Ben Maryll was never destined for greatness. I tried convincing myself otherwise, but the more I trained him, the more I wondered why Jacob picked the boy. The strength he showed when under my tutelage? A farce. A mirage, brought on by fear of my wrath. Without someone strong to keep him in line, he’s backslid into frailty.”

“What if you resumed your tutelage?” It was an idea Ahaesarus had been contemplating for some time, and with Isabel finally seeming to have conquered her grief over Nessa DuTaureau’s death, it grew stronger by the moment. Isabel was more protective of the boy king than even before, tugging him deeper and deeper into her protective bosom. Now Benjamin was so deep that he seemed to be an infant living in a body moving rapidly toward manhood.

“No, that would not do,” said Judarius with a grave shake of his head. “A true leader does not need someone above him to pull his strings. A true leader learns, a true leader leads. Benjamin will never be that. All that I could give him is the false strength I offered him before.”

“Sometimes the people need to see strength, even if it is false.”

“I refuse to believe that, Ahaesarus. And to be honest, I would not take him under my wing again even if I could. For nearly ninety-five years I have been something I am not, playing a game I was ill suited to play. I was a warrior in our past life. It is time I became that again.”

They paused at the base of the hill leading up to Manse DuTaureau, and Ahaesarus glanced over to see a gleam in his fellow Warden’s eye, a smile playing on his lips. Strangely enough, given what had transpired that night, Judarius seemed relieved.

“You look quite pleased with yourself,” Ahaesarus said.

“I am,” the black-haired Warden replied. He waved his hand at the Manse dismissively. “You can play politics all you like, Ahaesarus. Azariah can pray and practice his spells with his students. For me, for the rest of our kind. . we’re warriors now. Protectors. Innocent lives depend on us to kill, and so we kill. Is there not purity in that simplicity? Is there not an order that even Karak could appreciate?”

Ahaesarus understood completely. Though he was not the fearless and eager warrior Judarius had proven himself to be, he still had to admit there was a certain clarity about the battlefield that made him feel alive. Much more alive than the hours he was required to spend with the king and Lady Isabel.

“You were a sight to behold tonight, my friend,” he told Judarius. “Because of you, and Patrick and his Turncloaks, we can sleep this morning away, knowing we are safe.”

“We’re not safe,” Judarius said. “Not yet. But you may sleep without fear. I dare say that’s close enough.”

The Warden loped off, and Ahaesarus took a deep breath, trying to clear his muddled thoughts before climbing the hill. What had once been mild irritation became full-on dread once he reached the Manse itself. Isabel DuTaureau was outside waiting for him, wearing a satin nightdress, rouge painting her cheeks, her fiery red hair set just so. He let out a sigh of frustration. Mordeina was a place of war, of heartache and pain. Yet this woman still looked as if she lived in luxury without a care in the world. Had she learned nothing from the death of her daughter?

“Lady DuTaureau,” Ahaesarus said, inclining his head to her.

“We must talk, Ahaesarus,” said Isabel. Her voice was cold and full of disdain. She had been this way ever since she’d reemerged from her bedchamber, refusing to call him Master Warden and treating him more like a nuisance than a friend. She will never forgive me for releasing Geris against her will, he thought. That was one decision that Ahaesarus would never regret, no matter how much abuse the small but influential woman heaped on him for it. Geris Felhorn was hopefully far away from Mordeina by now, safe and with the young girl he loved by his side. If anyone in Paradise deserved a chance at happiness, it was he.

“What is it?” Ahaesarus asked.

“Your presence is not required. Go home.”

“Go home? I have duties to attend to. I must speak with the boy.”

“No. I forbid it.”

Ahaesarus felt flustered and angry. I tire of the games as well, Judarius, he thought. “Where is Howard?” he asked, a cruel edge to his voice.

“I gave him the morning to rest. Sir Howard spent the evening calming your frightened wards and taking complaints. He was quite tired.”

“Yes, and we did nothing but stand around all evening,” he said sarcastically. “In case it failed to wake you, our walls were attacked last night. Karak’s children almost broke down our gate. If not for those of us on the wall, if not for Patrick, we-”

She snapped her fingers in his face, cutting him off. “Do not take that tone with me, Warden, nor mention my son in my presence again. I am not blind to what goes on in my home, to my people.”

“So they are your people now, are they?” he shot back, his anger melting away his exhaustion. “I thought they were Ashhur’s-and after him, our noble King Benjamin’s?”

Isabel looked as if she was about to scream, but she snapped her mouth shut. Her whole body shuddered for a moment, like she were trying to rid her body of an invading demon, and when she looked up at him once more, her manner was calm.

“I will not fight with you, Ahaesarus,” she said, her tone once again devoid of emotion. “As much as I wish it weren’t so, you still hold your position within our society. We must work together to cure the ills of our people. Go to them. Leave here.”

She turned on her heels and stormed into the manse.

Clenching his fists, Ahaesarus followed after her.

“I told you to leave!” Isabel snapped.

“No!” he shot back at her. “You cannot stop me from speaking with the boy.”

Isabel cursed and stomped along the corridor. Ahaesarus remained by her side, refusing to walk ahead of her or trail behind. He took a perverse sort of pleasure in the way that made her fume. They passed the manse’s central hub in an uncomfortable silence. It was not until the double doors leading into the makeshift throne room came into view that Ahaesarus spoke.

“You do the boy a disservice, Isabel,” he said calmly, breaking the silence. “He needs to be among the populace. His people-your people-are hurting. It would do them good to see their king among them, talking to them, helping to quell their fears. It is what a king is supposed to do. It is what Ashhur wanted of us.”

Isabel smirked. “There will be no need of that,” she said. Gone was her anger, replaced by the coldness Ahaesarus had come to know so well. “Young King Benjamin has no need to hear what has happened, nor does he need to see the horror of its aftermath.”

Ahaesarus stopped short. “Then whatever would you have him do?”

“What a king is supposed to do-whatever is best for his kingdom.” A sick sort of smile came over Isabel’s face. “There have been many complaints coming in over the past few days that the rations are not enough to adequately feed the many families outside. King Benjamin is going to stop the rationing and allow all to have their share.”

The Master Warden stepped back, his anger overtaken by horror.

“Are you insane? Our stores are almost empty! Even with rationing they will last two weeks at most. Winter is fast approaching; plants are not taking root in the soil; and there are entire communities forced to camp on much of our farmland. And you wish to give everyone what they ask for? What would you have us do when our food runs out?”

She huffed at him. “You think this war will last long enough for that to occur?” she asked. The venom had returned. “Our god, my creator, is useless. He is already defeated. Karak will overpower us, and all you see before you will be no more.”

Ahaesarus couldn’t respond. He didn’t know how to.

“Do you not see, Warden?” Isabel continued. “We have lost. We are done for. Let the people drink and eat to their hearts’ content before they die.”

“You. . you’ve given up.” He couldn’t believe how sure the woman sounded, how resolute.

“I have accepted reality. Karak is the stronger, Ashhur the weaker. If Nessa had been Karak’s child, he never would have allowed her to perish the way she did. He would have put those who ended her to the sword. While Ashhur lies on a slab, doing nothing, Karak brings forth the justice our god claims to represent.”

Ahaesarus’s mouth dropped open. It seemed Isabel was enjoying how much horror he expressed at her words.

Isabel laughed. “Do not look so shocked, Warden. I know you have thought the same.”

“I have not. I would never surrender my people to die as you have.”

“We shall see. In three days, you will have your wish. Ben will exit the manse as you desire. He will walk among the people, and he will convince them to throw open the gates of Mordeina to Karak and his army. The Eastern Deity desires order? We will give it to him. All our people will bow before his grace.” She huffed and turned around, storming toward the double doors.

He stepped up to her as her hands fell on the handle.

“We will stop you,” he warned. “We will not let you defame Ashhur so.”

Isabel’s green eyes bore into his. “There is nothing your fellow Wardens can do about this, nor my monster of a son. You serve us, Warden, not the other way around. If my people demand this course of action, you will step aside. Humans were given free will in this land, not your kind. Now leave me and my king be.”

With that, Isabel shoved open the doors. They swung wide, slamming against the walls on either side, the echo reverberating down the long hall. When she stepped into the old dining hall, Ahaesarus still kept pace with her. She was so tiny compared to him, so frail. He could snap her in two if he so desired. A strong part of him wanted to do just that.

Then he heard the sound of soft, joyous sobbing. He looked up and what he saw stole away his breath and all his vengeful thoughts.

Ashhur sat up on his slab, luster in his pearly white cheeks, his glowing eyes filling the room with light, his hair like streams of woven gold. Ben Maryll was before him, arms wrapped around the god’s massive right calf. It was his wailing Ahaesarus heard, the boy king soaking the deity’s shin with tears as he happily proclaimed, “You haven’t abandoned us, you haven’t abandoned us!”

The god was staring at the boy as he patted Ben’s head, and very slowly his gaze lifted. Ashhur looked healthy, vibrant, and angry. Ahaesarus had never seen him that way before, and it was one of the most frightening sights he had ever gazed upon-more so than Geris slitting Ben’s throat, more so than the battle in the passage, more so than the demons slaughtering his wife and children on Algrahar.

Ahaesarus fell to his knees.

“Your Grace,” he said.

“Stand, Master Warden,” said Ashhur. He then leveled his angry gaze at Isabel, who gawked at her creator, hands shaking, eyes wide and brimming with tears. “It is not you who should kneel.”

Isabel collapsed to her knees. “Your Grace, I am sorry. . Your Grace, I thought you were gone. . you were gone. . ”

“Enough!” the deity shouted, and Lady DuTaureau clammed up. Ashhur stood, crossing the distance between them in two giant strides. Ahaesarus stepped aside, allowing the god room to squat down in front of his second creation.

“You have disappointed me greatly, Isabel,” he said. “You would willingly sacrifice your brothers and sisters when the last breath has not exited my body?”

“I. . your Grace, I didn’t know. . ”

“You are hereby relieved of your station, Isabel. Get out of my sight, and find solace in the fact that I do not tear your body asunder for the treason you proposed.”

Isabel seemed as though she would plead some more, but she thought better of it when the glow of Ashhur’s eyes intensified. The woman scampered to her feet and left the room as fast as she could. King Benjamin looked on from his place on the floor, having not moved since Ashhur stood to approach them. There was a queer mixture of relief and despair in the tears that ran down his cheeks. For not the first time, Ahaesarus felt sorry for the boy. . a thought that exited his head as soon as a giant hand wrapped around his shoulder.

“And you, Ahaesarus,” Ashhur said. “Prepare your Wardens. Prepare my children. You have done your best, but a proper defense of our home begins now.”