Maroz 9 - Florencia

Keen Vass stood on his terrace looking to the east. The setting sun painted a golden red glow over the evening sky, broken only by the horizontal streaks of clouds. “Have you had word from Tomas yet Caralla?”

Thinking about Tomas made Keen feel much older than the sixty-three years he truly was. Tomas would be twenty-two the day after tomorrow and had been a new recruit when Keen had taken the throne. At the young age of only fourteen, Tomas showed the first signs of being able to manipulate water and though it was highly irregular, the previous ruler had allowed him to join his army. That recruit had become his most trust worthy officer and had left on an expedition over three months earlier and had been expected back weeks ago. Word had reached Keen that something evil was happening in the far eastern coast of Maroz but Malok showed no interest in finding out what it was. Still some of the rumors had been disturbing and Keen had decided it would be best to know what was happening.

“Husband, you know well that I would let you know the moment I hear anything. Tomas knows what he is about. He will be fine. Besides, you ordered him to investigate but to not take any chances that even might put him in danger. He will not go against your orders.”

Keen turned around to consider his wife. Shorter than most women, Caralla was still a handsome woman even into her years. Her dark red hair cut above her shoulders and her green gown only added to her air of royalty. Without her, he would have failed as a king a long time ago, but she pressed him to keep a level head and to consider his options. A wiser woman he had never met and if he should ever die, she would be an excellent Ruler in his stead. “You are right my dearest. I am sorry. I did mean nothing by asking. I only worry about him is all! Tomas along with what evil might be out there. I have a bad feeling about it.”

Walking to stand in front of her husband, Caralla had to tilt her head up to look him in the eyes. His black hair was thinning and was being replaced with as much gray as black. His beard was neatly trimmed and now had far more gray than black. “Tomas will be fine Keen. He is an elemental remember and possibly the strongest ever to manipulate water. I myself have seen him draw water from a rock.”

Sliding an arm around her waist he turned to stare to the east once again. “Do you think the rumors could be true?”

“That an evil arises from Mt. Caldor? I suppose they could be true and likely they are, but what is more important is what kind of evil? Is it an army gathering, or some strange creature? Something darker?” Snuggling tighter to his side she considered it all. She always felt safer when he held her closer. “Some rumors have it that this evil will not stop until it consumes the world. God willing it isn’t so awful as that.”

“What of my decision to send Nikoli with Tomas? I cannot help but to wonder if I have spread us thin.”

Caralla chuckled slightly, a low and deep chuckle for a woman. “Keen, you have asked that question every day since you made the decision. I agreed with it the first day and I agree with it now. Malok shows no sign of wanting to attack us and has not in years. We have been on friendly terms with Aries for twenty years now as well. It was more important to give Tomas the best men we have, to give him the best chance possible of a successful mission. Nikoli is not as strong with air as Tomas is with water but he is still strong nonetheless and two elementals together have a much better chance of coming back to us. We do not truly need an elemental here in Florencia at the moment anyway.”

When a knock sounded at their doors, the two separated and waited for the guard to enter after the allotted time. “Tomas is asking for your presence Sire.”

Finally! Though Caralla was still in her day clothing, Keen was in his robe and slippers and he did not want to bother getting dressed to go down to the sitting room. “Send him in if you would please.”

The guard made a formal bow, his head almost touching the floor. “I would please Sire.”

The wait was not long before the door opened again admitting Tomas, the dust from the long travel still on his coat. Short and wiry thin, Tomas was the image of quickness, his slightly darker skin hinting at some foreign blood but the man insisted that he was born and had grown in Florencia. His father had raised him and he had little memory of his mother. “Tomas, please have a seat. You must be exhausted from your journey.” Waiting only long enough for Tomas to get a glass of wine and have a seat, Keen began to urge his captain to tell what he had learned.

“It is not good Keen.” Keen and Caralla had long since done away with the formalities with Tomas when alone with him. “There is a, a darkness growing from Mt. Caldor that is quite unnerving. Men have gone in to investigate and in a couple of cases had gone in larger numbers with weapons. None have ever been seen again. Nikoli and I went to have a look and…” Seeing the look on the Kings face, Tomas quickly amended. “We did not go into the darkness, only up to it. The sun was bright that day with not a cloud in the sky, yet one hundred paces ahead of us the ground looked as if it was under a large shadow. We studied it for a full day and I was about to head back when Nikoli noticed the shadow had grown. I had been focusing on looking for movement within the shadow and had not paid enough attention to the shadow itself. He was right of course. The shadow had moved. So for three days we watched it and every day it continued to move steadily, just enough that you could see it move if you watched it.”

Lifting the glass to take another drink, Tomas was surprised to find it empty. Standing up he strolled to the table where the cooled pitcher stood and poured another glass before continuing. “We asked around and there are some who say that it grows when it takes a life. One man said he left his village with his wife and child before it reached it and practically had to outrun the shadow as it swallowed his village. He swore that once the shadow swallowed the village, it began to grow fast enough to almost catch him and his wagon and he whipped his team of horses for three miles before it slowed down again, if he speaks the truth. I do believe he exaggerates though, I do think that kind of strain on his horses would have killed them. There is also another story of an old man who had left his village when the darkness began. He claims that Death himself with his minions was behind it all. Personally that sounds like foolish talk to me. Even more so than the former.”

Keen sat down in a chair beside Tomas considering the news. “If this darkness is not stopped, it might swallow the world. How much will it grow if it reaches a city?”

Draining his second glass, Tomas thought about a third then decided to set the glass down. All the wine in the palace would not quench his thirst right then and it would not help any if he became drunk. “Yet how do we fight it when nobody seems to return once they go inside?”

Keen tilted his head back and rested it against the back of the chair. “We don’t yet. At this time it is more of a threat to Maroz than it is to us. We cannot risk a war with Maroz by sending more men into this darkness unless we are sure we ourselves are in danger. For now I am afraid we will have to wait and see where this takes us.” As the silence between them extended, Keen could not help but to wonder what would happen if they waited too long. Yet he dared not do more than wait for now.

Continue to .... Maroz 10 - A Match With Malok