Across Eternity: Book 6 – Chapter 12

Upheaval

The sounds of footsteps and swishing fabric moved through the royal bedroom, reaching Galvin’s ears as he slowly awoke. He sat up in bed, looking at his hands as though he hadn’t seen them in months. His mind was racing, like his thoughts were trying to make up for lost time. Seeing him rise, the maid rushed over. Young, pretty, and sweet, she spoke with concern.

“Your Majesty, you’ve finally awoken! Please, is there anything I can get you? Food? Drink?” He looked at her, her beautiful face the image of kindness and innocence. He wanted to see it twisted in despair. With a crazed grin stretching across his face, he grabbed her by the shoulders and pulled her onto the bed. “Your Majesty, what—” Her words then became a fearful scream as he began ripping away her clothes. “No! Please!” He silenced her with a smack across the face, just the first of many.

Up in her tower, Ziradith was going over paperwork as part of her official/unofficial duties. Berholm and a few of the royal court, now made aware of her presence and power over them, were trying to keep the wheels of governance turning, even if she was the one controlling them, and were doing their job of running everything through her. Most of her subjects had no idea they were her subjects and simply believed that the royal court was operating things while Galvin was indisposed.

As the duchess of the Herald territory, paperwork and bureaucracy were nothing new to her. The scale certainly increased, but she was more than up to the task. Being the puppet master behind the scenes of Uther left her very busy, especially with her spawn pawn lying uselessly in bed for the last few days. However, that changed when she felt a fluctuation in her manacle. As her greatest defense against usurpation, she wore it at all times, as did Galvin. It kept her cued to the Wassengel and her control over him. She could sense that he had woken up, yet when she tried to reach out and reaffirm control, he defied her like a bucking bronco.

She left the tower and everyone she passed was shocked to see her. She arrived at the royal bedchamber to find knights and soldiers standing outside the shut door, likewise bewildered at her arrival. None of them had seen her in over a year, not since the Knight’s Sheath incident. However, they had more pressing concerns. Inside, they could hear the maid screaming as Galvin raped her, and all had looks of uncertainty, wanting to intervene but too afraid to.

“What are you all doing just standing there?!” Ziradith barked.

“Uh… uh… Duchess Herald, your son, um… His Majesty announced that he wasn’t to be disturbed, and anyone who opened the door would be put to death,” one guard stammered.

“Useless shits, all of you! Hurry up and go prepare his tea.”

Ziradith shoved past them and opened the door, seeing her son slamming away at the beaten maid. She strode over and slapped him hard enough to knock him to the floor. “Disgusting little wretch, always embarrassing me.” She glanced at the sobbing maid, curled up and trying to conceal her naked body, covered in welts from Galvin’s beating. Tears soaked her bruised face, and a mixture of blood and semen oozed from between her legs. Ziradith scoffed in disdain and turned back to the knights and guards. “Get her out of here. I don’t want to see her in this castle or city again. Not one of you says a word about this, or you’ll find yourselves rotting in the dungeon.”

“Mother,” Galvin growled with a sneer.

“Shut your mouth. Pathetic failures have no right to speak.”

He bolted to his feet. “I’m the king! You can’t talk to me like that anymore!”

“Your father, for all of his failings, he was a king. You? You’re not even fit to be a jester. Every day, you make me regret giving birth to you. Now, hold your tongue before I cut it out.” As the maid was carried away, a guard arrived with a cup of fragrant tea. “Hurry up and take your medicine. It’s been too long since you last drank it.”

“No, I’m done! I’m done with you and your rules! I’m in charge now!”

“That tea is going in you one way or another. You think it feels hot on your tongue? It’ll feel like molten lead when you take it the other way.”

Galvin scowled and grabbed the tea, staring for several moments before forcing it down. The effects were quick, weakening his mental defenses and making him more susceptible to Ziradith’s control. She extended her influence with the manacle, and Galvin spasmed as he tried to resist, before finally calming and standing with upright posture.

“My apologies, Mother. I won’t disappoint you again.”

“You’re right, because I’m not going to let you.” She spoke the words, but with uncertainty. Though she had regained control over him, her hold felt weak, like she had him on a rope, but it was frayed and tattered. Was this because of how long he had gone without the tea? Or was he developing a resistance?

She turned to the guards. “Spread the word that the king is going to address the public this afternoon. The citizens need reassurance that the kingdom and its rule are secure. Go now, and remember that nothing awaits but pain and death for anyone who speaks a word of this to anyone else.”

———-

Following Seraph’s speech, rumors about Noah spread like wildfire. The knighthood and royal court tried to keep what happened at the castle secret, but all it took was a few soldiers and knights, their lips loosened by booze, to let slip all the juicy details about his stroll into the palace. They spoke of his manifestation of the basilisk in awe and terror, believing it to be the long-mysterious art of summoning magic that populated the world with life. They were half-right, and its sudden disappearance was just as bewildering as its arrival.

With nothing but its scream, it subdued every single soldier and knight in front of it. The basilisk unleashed in Welindar had been too deformed to utilize its voice in such a way, proving just how lucky Lupin and his men had been. To have such a mighty beast at his beck and call led to speculation that if Noah wished it, he could have destroyed the entire city. After all, the knighthood and military were clearly no threat to him, especially considering how he had shrugged off all their attacks.

More details then began to emerge about how he dealt with the royal guard, cutting them down without spilling their blood. A warrior capable of such a mysterious feat was what legends were made of. It was the kind of tall tale that people loved, cementing Noah’s status as a sword master of equal or even greater standing than Valia Zodiac. Galvin’s bedridden condition also confirmed that Noah had managed to strike deep into the kingdom’s defenses, and the only way he could have done that was if he somehow managed to get past the legendary Adwith Tarnas. Whether he defeated him in battle or simply snuck behind him didn’t matter. The country’s greatest paladin was bested.

Despite all the support Galvin had cultivated since the fiend army’s annihilation, these rebellious acts won the hearts and minds of countless people. The Wandering Spirit, both hero and outlaw, a gold-rank knight and an unstoppable terrorist; he naturally captured the imagination. His message also garnered a great deal of attention, his message of unity among the races and sympathy for the poor souls of Welindar, which ran contrary to Galvin’s position. As it had been since his enrollment in the knight academy, his name was being passed around throughout the city, with facts and fiction blending together into whatever would make the best story. And, of course, his sudden disappearance just added fuel to the flames of speculation.

At the Knight’s Sheath, business was booming. It seemed that whenever Noah did something outrageous, people would come flooding in, seeking confirmation if the stories they heard were true. Today was no different, and Cyrilo had decided to capitalize on the excitement by naming a drink after him. People were lining up for a glass of Wandering Spirits. Noah’s fame at the Knight’s Sheath and his message would hopefully continue protecting them, but there was no telling what the future held.

“Have you heard? Galvin’s awake,” said Sophia, standing in the doorway to Cyrilo’s study.

“Wonderful, just wonderful,” Cyrilo sighed while rubbing her forehead.

“They say he’s going to give a speech this afternoon. Should we go?”

“As much as I hate every word that comes out of his mouth, we should. Since we’re aware of what’s really going on, we have a responsibility to remain informed and aware of how things progress. I want to make sure he and Ziradith follow Noah’s rules.”

That afternoon, Cyrilo set out with Sophia and Alexis. Alexis was garbed in her blue battle dress and openly carried her sword and bow as a warning to anyone who might give them trouble. She was wise to do so, as Cyrilo’s feline ears drew indignant glares from many people in the street, which Alexis would always return, ensuring that potential troublemakers knew that only pain awaited if they acted foolishly.

They arrived at the palace, where crowds had swarmed below Galvin’s perch. His fans were chanting his name, and though he was under Ziradith’s control, Alexis and Sophia felt like they could see his true self hidden within. It was his smile, shaped by Ziradith for maximum charisma, but there was the undeniable hint of a self-indulgent smirk. That smarmy gleam in his eyes made them both shudder.

“Presenting His Majesty, King Galvin of Uther!” Berholm announced. The audience cheered while the three women tried to ignore the bitter taste suddenly filling their mouths.

“Ladies and gentlemen of Uther! My citizens! My friends! So much has happened these past few months. We’ve all been exhausted by the highs and lows, left drained by these heart-racing spectacles and heartbreaking tragedies. It is time…” Galvin paused, blinking and contorting his face as though suffering from a migraine before continuing. “It is time for us to all get on the same page, to unite under a shared goal and common belief. While I was indisposed on Knight’s Day, my brother stood where I stand now, taking on my responsibilities to address you all. For that, he has my gratitude. His message of unity and forgiveness, of embracing the beastmen and working together….”

He again stopped, slowly turning his head back and forth and twisting his face. This silence confused the crowd and the knights, with hushed whispers bouncing back and forth. In the back, Cyrilo, Sophia, and Alexis felt a knot forming in their stomach. Something was wrong. Observing the speech from a castle window where she wouldn’t be spotted, Ziradith scowled and cursed as she channeled more and more energy into her manacle, yet no matter what she did, she felt like she was hanging on by a thread.

“Say it, you little shit.”

As much as she hated Noah, she wasn’t foolish enough to break his rules. Though scapegoating the beastmen was originally a crucial part of her plan, keeping Noah from coming after her was far more important. She needed Galvin to recant all of his earlier anti-beastman rhetoric, but keeping his mind under her control felt like wrangling a greased pig, and as hard as she gripped him, he slipped free.

“He was dead wrong!” Galvin then boomed, drawing cheers from the crowd. “My father, King Leonard, was killed by a crazed beastman whore wielding Profane might! My oldest brother, Prince Lupin, was killed by an army of unholy beastmen! And Seraph, my older brother and greatest friend, was humiliated by a beastman in the arena and then spread that humiliation to the rest of our family and nation by taking their side! I am not like them; I will not be defeated and shamed by these savages who seek to undermine and destroy us for their Profane masters!

The beastmen hate you! They hate us all! They want us to wallow in the mud like they do, to live like filthy animals because they’re too inferior to build anything of their own! Our strength! Our freedom! Our nobility! They are jealous of all that we’ve worked so hard to accomplish, and in their jealousy, they sold their souls to the Profane! Lupin, may he rest in peace. He foolishly tried to civilize them, thinking that they could be redeemed and live like us. He suffered for that mistake! He died because he put his faith in them! They are fit to be our slaves and nothing else! Take their collars off, and they’ll do nothing but ravage and destroy!

I used to think that my brother Seraph was blessed by the gods and would lead us to salvation, but he has shown his true colors! His weakness, his cowardice, his willingness to submit, his eagerness to abandon us! Once again, he has fled this city, forsaking his duties to save his own skin! He has betrayed us, choosing to submit to the beastmen and their ally, our country’s greatest enemy: Noah, the Wandering Spirit! The man who attacked his fellow knights, who tried to assassinate me, who has sabotaged and humiliated this country over and over again! He is a terrorist and a false idol, worshipped by heathens and traitors to our country, including my brother!

Now I know the truth, I am the one who is truly blessed. The Wassengel, the power of the gods, bows to me, answers to me! Where everyone else in my family has failed, I have succeeded! I am the one with divine protection! I am your savior, your protector! I am the one who has been chosen by the gods to deliver you all to the promised future! Uther is our holy land, a land blessed for mankind, and we will not let it be tainted by these filthy beasts and heretics! This is not just a war for our lives; it is a war for our souls! My loyal subject, my proud patriots, which side are you on?”

“GALVIN! GALVIN! GALVIN!” the audience chanted.

“We need to get out of here, now,” said Alexis.

“There’s one!” a man shouted, pointing at Cyrilo. “Kill her! String her up!”

As one, the crowd turned on the three women, and Alexis drew her bow. “Get back! All of you! We are knights of Uther, and anyone who—” A man came charging towards her with a knife, and she put an arrow in his leg.