The High King: A Tale of Alus (26 page)

It was during this time that a new man appeared in the dockyards. He stood out somewhat as he moved through the sailors and workers. With a slim build and clothes unlikely to be sturdy enough for the work of loading crates, the man would never be able find work on the dockyards. He may have been guessed for a sailor, though he lacked the calluses and bleached skin of most of the sailing class. It was his apparent need to find someone among them that made him stand out most. He had the blond hair and blue eyes of a northerner peaking from beneath a soft cap of black and one could tell that he was possessed of at least fair intelligence.

The man had asked for the docks where Gerid moored his ships and, when he finally arrived there through the hustle and bustle of the capitol city's wharf district, the man headed directly for those docks. Asking the sailors still tending the vessels for the whereabouts of their commander, he was quickly brought to the offices that Gerid had bought only a month before to monitor their accumulating wealth and business. With their reputation for success building, there had been a good need for it and that was where Finneas, now officially invested with the title of a soldier captain, met him.

The younger man of the north approached the veteran without any appearance of fear or worry. Noting the lack of concern in him, Finneas dispensed with the amenities and simply asked, "I hear that you're looking for the commander of this fleet. Who do you think you are to demand his attention? If you wanted a job, all you needed to do was get a hold of one of the ship’s captains or his second, but my men tell me that you refused to speak with anyone less than the commander."

The younger man laughed a short barking laugh and replied, "Did Gerid become a lord? You act like the king has bestowed a title upon him already, even though we both know that he was a slave."

Finneas turned slightly red with a mixture of anger and embarrassment fueling his reaction. The captain held his anger and answered calmly, "You are right, sir. He has not been declared lord by the king, but, to his men and myself, he is lord of the sea and nothing less since he won't accept our thoughts of godhood."

Again the man laughed with incredulity and the captain rose uncontrollably to his feet in reaction to the stranger’s disrespectful manner. "Godhood? Again you make fun of me, captain. He is a man not a god. I know that for sure."

Finneas stood firm in the face of disbelief since he realized the strangeness to those that had never seen Gerid in battle. He said solemnly, "If he is not a god, his deeds still make him greater than any man I have ever heard of before. If you have such a poor estimation of him, perhaps you have come to the wrong company."

Putting out his hands to pat the air and ward off the retort, the man apologized, "I am sorry that I offended you, captain. I did not mean to do so. I am sure that I should be respectful since I am searching for your commander. You see, I knew him well before all his glorious battles were fought. I knew him before he was made a slave and I am quite sure that he will want to see me."

Curiosity had returned to the captain and Finneas asked with skepticism still in his voice, "And you are?"

The captain started and stood straighter in his surprise. "You are Gerid's brother?" Finneas stated dumbfounded as he realized that there was indeed a resemblance between the two that he had not noticed earlier.

The younger man appeared startled by the captain's knowledge as well. "A good guess, sir. I am surprised that my first name would give me away so easily."

"Not that hard actually, since your nephew bears your name and you were known to be somewhere in Rhearden. Come with me, if you will. I will take you to meet your brother immediately."

"A nephew?" Simon muttered in confusion and turned to follow the captain dazedly. "When did he have the time?"

"Commander!" Finneas shouted over the noise of ringing metal. "I have someone that you'll want to meet!"
Gerid turned at the sound of his captain's voice, knowing it well as friends do, but his attention was swiftly drawn to the face from his past that he had long feared to never see again. "Simon!" he cried out and strode through the startled smiths to embrace his brother.
Quickly apologizing to the head smith with whom he had been discussing the production of new pirate style cannons, the giant led his brother away from the noise. Finding a nearby saloon, Gerid sat him down to talk. Finneas had left them to their discussion at the smithy and returned to business as usual at their office. To Gerid, nothing could be considered usual after the return of his brother. He jumped straight to the most important question on his mind, "Simon how did get here and find me? I was beginning to believe that I would never see you again."
The elder sibling was suddenly shy in the presence of this man before him. This was indeed a man, and no longer a boy despite his age, who had gone through many trials since they had last been together. Simon noted the faint crease of a scar upon Gerid's left cheek. Other scars were noticeable as well where they appeared in faint relief against the darkened skin surrounding them on his well muscled arms. Even the younger man's eyes seemed different to the brother that had known him so well only a few years before. Though his younger brother was happy enough to see him again, there was pain lying in the depths of those orbs and in the creases of his mouth. There were many emotional scars to go with the physical ones now, Simon could see. "I hadn't expected to find you so soon either, Gerid, let alone to find you as the most talked about man in the country. In only a little over two years, you seem to have gone from slave to soldier to wealthy privateer. I had heard about you almost a year ago while living with my former master just from your soldier exploits. Your sword arm and leadership in the mercenary corps were spoken throughout the nation. It was hard to miss that it was you, but it wasn't until you became a pirate hunter that I was able to finally come track you down."
Gerid nodded. "I think I made it easy enough for you. You can probably even guess how I managed to free myself from my master. He is still my business partner even now. That's my story, but what of you? What have you been doing all this time? I couldn't find any trace of you though I had begun sending word and men in search of you and Janus months ago."
Simon shrugged, "I was never the warrior that you were, of course. I was purchased by a farmer named Yleth Molein to the east of Camerton. I told him that I could make him rich, if he would free me early for a set price. Needless to say, Yleth is doing well enough now and was satisfied with our deal. I was released from slavery only a few weeks ago officially and set off to find you."
The two men sat a moment watching each other as they drank as one from their tankards of ale. Simon spoke first, as Gerid appeared intent on the golden liquid swirling in his metal mug. "Your captain told me that you have a son named after me." The strangest of looks appeared in his brother's eyes at the mention of his son. Simon thought that a mixed look of joy and sadness rose from those depths he had noted in his brother's eyes earlier.
Gerid didn't raise his face from his staring as he answered, "Yes, we named him after you this past fall when my wife gave birth."
Simon could guess within two chances where his brother's sadness lay with those words. Gerid's voice held a certain longing and his elder brother asked, "When did she die?"
"Tabitha died while I was at sea only a little over a week ago. The illness came from nowhere and took her before I could return."
Nodding, the brother placed a hand over the other's to convey his strength. "That left a lot unsaid then, didn't it?" he asked quietly.
The younger man shook his head, "No, not really. I just wish that I had been there for her. Even if there was nothing else that I could do to save her, I would have liked to have given her my support.
"I didn't have anything truly unsaid to her. I loved Tabitha with all my heart and I freed her when I was released from slavery. In time, I would have brought both her and my son with me. After Merrick was destroyed, it would have been a fine life for us all. She knew all this. I left none of my plans hidden from her. I spent nearly every hour of my shore leaves with her and little Simon." He sighed, "But it is harder when you wish that you had been there and not lost so much time being away."
After a small silence, Simon asked, "You still work towards getting back at Merrick then?"
"It's one of the reasons that have kept me going all these years."
"Even now that your wife has died?"
"Especially now," he answered grimly. "I wouldn't be where I am now, if not for him. Maybe Tabitha could have lived longer..."
"...but you two would never have met either, Gerid," Simon finished the other's sentence with his own beliefs. "Fate and the gods have strange ways of bringing us both the best and worst of times. Don't confuse what I'm saying. I can see you ready to argue with me like old times. No, I still think that Merrick needs to be overthrown, but in some ways aren't you also better off today. You have wealth. You've had love. You still have a son that you must show his uncle as well by the way," he added with a sharp finger to the other's chest and a smile.
The two men laughed briefly before Gerid winked at him. "I hate to admit it, brother, but I still have love as well. I feel guilt over being so quick to find it, but it is there already."
Simon was slightly taken aback, "So soon?"
"Yes, now finish your ale so that I can bring you to your nephew and my other love."

With the onset of another cold, northern winter, Merrick had returned home to Castle Grimnal and he had received surprisingly good news almost immediately upon his arrival.

A messenger from King Kabros of Staron had come seeking an alliance with the conqueror. The terms of the agreement would be sealed by a show of good faith by Kabros. An entire legion, a full third of the kingdom's forces, would be lent in the following year's campaigns. Merrick promptly agreed. If nothing else, it would mean one less thorn in his side as he turned to finish the king of Sileoth and his allies in Maris. The additional forces would, of course, be an added bonus that would conserve on casualties for the rest of his troops, especially if he felt like placing them on harder fronts.

To further seal the agreement, Merrick had offered to give a banquet in Kabros' honor. The king had agreed, but fearing possible treachery, nearly four hundred horse had ridden in with him.

Merrick ignored the effrontery to their new sense of cooperation and did nothing to jeopardize his new ally. It wasn't that he necessarily feared any reprisals, but he knew that, should treachery be performed, Kabros' death would most likely become a rallying cry to possibly Staron and other nations against him. Lastly, a second country threatening his borders, even one as small as this, would still prove a distraction and, as such, a nuisance to his plans for conquest of the western portion of the continent.

The night of the great banquet came after the afternoon's signing of the treaty. Inviting four of his generals and several of the lesser nobility to join in the celebration, Merrick looked over the gathering and considered his future happily. His wife, Alyanna, looked incredible at his side dressed in a deep blue gown and decked out in necklaces, bracelets and rings all bejeweled as the two entered the great hall. All of those gathered watched the woman in awe and that was all that Merrick cared about her. She was nothing more than his prize to display to foreign dignitaries and his easily impressed servitors.

Alyanna knew this as well, though she hid it well for a time. But after too many glasses of wine, her attitude of feigned bliss was quickly falling away before those gathered to pay homage. The High King watched the queen carefully to ensure that the woman wouldn't prove too troublesome.

Finally, he caught Alyanna starting to flirt with one of his nobles and called forth a pair of his more trusted personal guards. Led by the king, the three of them walked up to the queen from behind. Taking the woman by an elbow, Merrick led her firmly away from the noble. "It grows late, my dear," he proclaimed just loud enough for those nearest him to believe that the High King meant his words. "Come let us guide you to your room for the night."

Alyanna pulled away from him indignantly. "The night is still young. I have many duties to perform here yet tonight, my love," she rebuked pronouncing the final two words with undisguised disgust. Her intent was plain, as several of the guests began to make secret glances at the growing spectacle. The woman was most definitely trying to cause him lasting embarrassment before these people.

Knowing her purpose angered him all the more. Merrick was seething inside, though he tried his best to hide it with a calm exterior. Gripping her painfully around her arm, the High King of the North ordered, "Say goodnight, Alyanna. It's time for bed." He pulled her towards the hallway leading away from the ballroom. The stairs leading to her room were almost in sight when the woman set her feet strongly to pull free of the lord's grasp.

Rubbing her injured arm, she asked him sarcastically, "What is the matter, husband? Surely you are not stupid enough to believe that your people can not see our marriage for what it is? I was the price for my family's lives and those in my kingdom. Love was never part of the agreement and you have made sure that it never will be, haven't you?

"All you really want me for is the chance to have a son and to look pretty for your guests." She bowed dramatically and drawled, "Well, I am so sorry that I have not lived up to your expectations, my lord." The woman turned to walk away dismissing him.

"Don't take that tone with me, wench!" Merrick snarled and lunged after Alyanna. He wrenched her around by the arm to face him. "Your kingdom was indeed bought with your wedding, woman, and I have provided for you well enough since then. There are servants for your needs. You've been given the finest jewelry and clothes to wear. You eat the finest foods and live in one of the best rooms on all North Continent, and still you dare this! The least you owe me is respect, woman. I have earned that much, I am sure."