The Marenon Chronicles Collection - By Jason D. Morrow Page 0,194

the ambitious Robin. Julian stared at the council, unwavering as a few guards placed shackles on each of their wrists.

“I don’t know what you’re playing at, Julian, but you won’t get away with this,” Darius said.

“I’m trying to win a war,” Julian said. “And I’m starting by getting rid of scum like you.” He looked at Robin and motioned his head to the door. “Get them to a cart.”

Robin bowed in submission and did as he was told. Darius let out a flurry of curses, but the others followed silently, obviously beaten. Julian felt no remorse. Only anger and slight satisfaction. As he began to leave the room, he was stopped by Dublin.

“Yer Majesty, I dunna what ta say.”

“There’s nothing to say, Dublin. The men and women you’ve known for so long have betrayed us all. Including you.”

“I just canna believe it ta be true.”

Saying nothing more, Julian let out a deep breath and made his way down the hallway, walking the opposite way as the soldiers had. He walked briskly, not wanting to be followed by Dublin. He moved from corridor to corridor until he finally reached the statue of King Harold. He had last come to this spot when Garland had taken him down into the depths of the fortress to show him what would one day be the biggest weapon the Dunarians could ever have. Only now, the Dunarians would never have it. There was no one associated with the Dunarians to trust with that kind of power. The only one Julian could trust was himself. If he needed the weapon to destroy the Stühocs, he would be the one to use it.

He stared at the statue for a brief moment, wondering why Garland had trusted him to hear the word that would allow him to enter its depths. To Julian’s knowledge, the only other person that knew the password was Kaden. He bent low and placed his hands on the feet of the statue and spoke the secret word. Shelinsa. The statue began to move and the secret door swung open inwardly. He took the steps downward into the lair in which The Reckoning had been conceived. There, he would find four medallions. Four medallions the council members would never see again.

Chapter Seventeen

Dink hunkered low behind a large rock about a hundred yards from where the Stühocs made camp. They were headed somewhere, but he could tell it wasn’t Mudavé. They had begun marching away from the villages, so there probably wouldn’t be any more attacks. The large group of soldiers and carriages headed consistently northeast. Voelif. The Stühocs were going to sell the people into slavery. At least they weren’t being taken to Mudavé to be turned and tortured as so many stories had said. He had heard awful tales of such things. He didn’t know the conditions in Voelif, but he knew that it couldn’t be as bad as Mudavé.

He tried counting the barred carriages full of people and he was almost certain that his wife Emma was in the very last one. He wanted to go to her and tell her that everything would be all right and that he would save her from the doom that was intended for her, but he didn’t have the certain faith that made him believe it. He had seen so much death and despair the past few days, all from this disgusting band of Stühocs.

Dink’s body was exhausted. He didn’t remember the last time he had slept and it was everything he could do to keep himself awake now. He shook his head vigorously, trying to keep his eyes focused on the small army. Most of them were bedding down for the night, while only a few stood guard. He was glad to see that there was some room in the carriages for prisoners to lie down, or at least sit up against the bars. At least they didn’t have to stand.

He was one man, facing hundreds of soldiers. He had tried to convince several people in Homestead to go with him to rescue those who had been captured, but none of them would listen. They had done their jobs in trying to defend their homes, and had more or less won the battle by driving out the Stühocs, but their spirits were defeated. Their loved ones had been taken, but it wasn’t enough for them to go out and die, potentially losing their own lives in the process. Dink didn’t see it that way. Losing