Children of the Sun and Moon (31 page)

“If you have
come to inform me of Lakin’s plans, I am already aware,” came his
voice from the wall.

“How did you
know?” she asked, confused.

“Because Lakin
has had this plan in mind since the school was moved into the
Void.”

Malena was now
even more confused. “Since the school was moved! How is that
possible? Only Gillock knew it still existed.”

Mordekai
appeared from the wall. “Lakin knows because he was one of the main
reasons Gillock and I moved it here.”

Understanding
suddenly showed in her eyes. “He was alive during the war.”

“Not only was
he alive, he was the one who started it. It was he who thought
wizards should rule, not kings. When he started to draw in
followers, we decided we needed to intervene. We were too late, and
the war began.”

Malena was
mortified. “Kinsley! You are saying Lakin is really Kinsley? He and
all his followers were destroyed. I was taught it was the king of
the time’s decision to banish the school.”

Mordekai shook
his head. “No, Kinsley's followers were destroyed, he was not. I
have felt him and it was only recently I realized he had become
Lakin. Gillock thought he had destroyed him, and seeing as I could
not pinpoint where he was, I felt it best to not let anyone know he
was still alive.”

“But how did he
hide for so long?”

“He took over
the body of a young wizard and made himself the leader of the
Maget. Since he had the king’s ear, it was easy for him to start
destroying magical beings. He needed their power to hide from my
sight. When one possessing magic is killed, their powers are sent
into the Void. I have a special stone to catch and hold this power.
Gillock and I created the stone for we knew one-day magic may cease
to exist and would need to be returned. This stone interrupts my
magical sight, and Lakin was easily able to hide because of it. If
the twins do not succeed, the power will be released and will be
uncontrollable for some time. If Lakin can gather it, he will be
able to enter the school, and I won’t be able to stop him.”

Malena’s face
dropped. She knew Lakin’s power had grown, and with Brin at his
side, they would be unstoppable. “Is there nothing I can do?” she
asked softly.

Mordekai
smiled. “Why this change of heart?”

Malena stared
at him. “I will still have my revenge for being banished here, mark
my words, but I will not allow Lakin to control all of Melarandra.
And now I know he was really Kinsley, I can imagine what kind of
world he wants it to be.”

Mordekai smiled
again. “Your banishment is almost at an end. When the barrier comes
down, expect Lakin to attack. Just be ready.” He turned and moved
back inside. Malena stood for a few moments longer, taking in all
she had learned. A faint call brought her out of her reverie. It
was her mirror, so she quickly moved off back to her castle.

Morning came
quicker than the group had hoped. It had been a long time since any
of them had slept in a comfortable bed, and no one was in a hurry
to wake up. Slowly the group converged on the common room. Maeve
was already there, speaking with Miles. Koral and Eric scanned the
room. There was a small group of people seated around a table near
the fireplace. Koral studied their faces, and was certain she had
seen them before. She noticed Gillock and Glavlin seated off in a
corner, studying the group as well. Maeve, who was sitting at the
bar, moved to follow the twins.

“You needn’t
fear that group. They are my friends,” Maeve said as she a sat down
next to Eric.

“I recognize
most of them. We passed them in the streets on our way here,”
remarked Glavlin.

“Yes, we did.
They are the best thieves in Keenley, and were watching us closely.
The only reason you all weren’t parted from your coins was because
I gave them a signal to keep away.”

Koral looked
appalled, and Gillock could not help but laugh.

“I do not see
what is so amusing,” she spat.

“No,” he said,
lowering his head, “you wouldn't. You don't understand how a city
this large works.”

Koral quickly
regretted getting so angry. “You are right. I have read about
cities, and I am sure it is quite normal for ones this size to have
a thriving thieves guild. This is just very overwhelming.”

It was Maeve’s
turn to laugh. “Yes, cities this size do have a thieves guild, but
that’s not all these people are good at.” She then did a high
whistle, and her friends stood up and moved over to their table. As
they were pulling up chairs, the dwarves came in the front door and
moved to join them.

“What
information do you have for us?” asked Gillock. The question aimed
at Maeve's friends.

“There are
prisoners on the Eastern ship in the harbour,” said a young girl.
“We haven’t been able to get a close look, but we are positive it
must be the dwarves you’re seeking.”

“They are also
planning to leave within the next day,” added an old man.

“That soon,”
stammered Eric. “How will we ever get them?”

Maeve smiled.
“We already have things set into motion, Eric. By the end of the
day we should have your dwarf friends.”

“And what will
you need us to do?” asked Glavlin.

“All of us will
be making the trip to the harbour, but most of you will be used for
distraction purposes. We don’t have a lot of time, so if you are
capable of following my lead, I will explain on the way,” responded
Maeve.

Koral was about
to protest, but a look from her brother stopped the words from
coming forth.

“We will follow
you,” stated Eric, and the others quickly agreed.

They left the
inn in small groups, each going in a different direction to make
sure they did not draw attention to themselves. The last group to
leave consisted of Maeve, Eric, Koral and Gillock. Darly and Mekken
were out scouting the area and showed up in time to join the last
group. Adora, who had been keeping to herself on the other side of
the common room, crept out behind them.

CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

Moving slowly,
so they did not draw attention to themselves, the groups made their
way to the docks. Darly and Mekken were slightly ahead of their
group, mainly to give signals once they had located guard
positions. As they neared the docks, Maeve became concerned. No
guards save the usual dockmen were anywhere to be seen. She moved
closer to Gillock, who was viewing some rather colourful
fabrics.

“I think
something is wrong here,” she whispered to Gillock. “If Duke Dubar
was aware of the dwarf prisoners, he would have guards here. I’m
thinking Easterners sacking villages wasn’t part of their
agreement.”

Gillock
motioned for the others to move closer. “It would appear the
Easterners have a goal which is not the same as the duke's. They
are taking slaves, and are doing it without the duke's consent. We
must proceed with great care. I don’t know what they are up to, but
something is not right here.”

Suddenly a huge
commotion erupted in an adjacent street, and most people moved off.
“That’ll be our cue to move,” said Maeve.

Quickly they
headed for the docks. Even the Easterners who had been on the dock
had moved off to see what was going on. Eric tried to strain to see
what was going on, but to no avail.

“You can ask
what happened later,” came Koral’s voice from behind. “Right now,
we have dwarves to save.”

They had no
trouble getting onto the ship and finding where they were holding
the dwarves was easy. The door to the hold, however, was bolted
shut with an iron rod so thick it took all of their strength to
move it. Quickly they moved the prisoners out and onto the dock,
all without incident. Something did not sit right with any of the
companions. Not wanting to press their luck, the group moved back
to the street in which they had come. They moved quickly down the
street, wanting to move fast but trying to make certain they did
not draw attention to themselves. At a convergence of two streets
sat a large courtyard, and waiting in courtyard was thirty armed
soldiers. As soon as they had seen the soldiers, they knew they had
been spotted as well.

Scattering,
they quickly moved into open stores, barricading themselves inside.
Maeve, Eric, Koral and most of the saved dwarves were in a
bakery.

“I know this
place. There is a safety hold in the floor,” said

Maeve. Quickly
Eric helped her move a table and rug to reveal the trap door. They
moved the dwarves into it. All three moved back towards the window,
expecting to see the soldiers setting up to break down the door.
The soldiers, however, were making no such move. They had
re-positioned themselves to face the stores, but otherwise had done
nothing. The reason for that became apparent a moment later.

Captain Jacob
Moore slowly made his way to the front of the soldier’s line.
Although most people in Keenley loved the captain, Maeve and her
friends, having suffered in the dungeons under his protection,
hated him. His vile nature became quite apparent when he was
questioning any poor thief who had been captured.

“Prince Eric.
Princess Koral,” said a booming voice. “You are hereby under arrest
for being peoples who possess magical abilities. Under the law, you
will be placed in the dungeon here at Keenley until you are tested
by a Magima. Should you fail the test, you will be escorted to
Maget Tower to be dealt with accordingly. If you come out now and
turn yourselves in, I will spare your companions. If not, I will be
forced to enter the bakery, and I do not want to destroy property
in order to obtain you. I will give you five minutes to
decide.”

A gasp was
heard from the crowd of spectators that had formed behind the
soldiers. The prince and princess were here, and going to be
arrested. Some shouted to break down the door of the bakery, but
more still muttered at how they couldn’t believe it was true. One
person in the crowd’s face had paled with the announcement. Adora
had kept away from the action but now had moved to stand just to
the side of the square. She was halfway between the store and
Captain Moore, and was forming a plan of her own.

Koral and Eric
looked at each other. “We cannot fail in our task, but we also
cannot let harm come to anyone,” said Koral quietly. “What are we
to do?”

Eric started to
answer, but Maeve cut him off. “You must finish your quest. The
entire world is depending on the two of you. You can’t be
taken.”

Again Koral and
Eric looked at each other, but before either could speak, a
commotion from outside brought them back to the window. It was
Adora.

“You will not
have them, captain. I will not allow it,” she yelled, moving
herself to be between the captain and the store.

Captain Moore
laughed. “And who are you to be making such a demand?” he
asked.

Adora raised
her arms and began chanting. Slowly the air began to feel charged,
and the hairs on everyone’s arm tingled with the magic flowing.
Adora began to float just off the ground, her body glowing lightly.
No one was even able to take a breath, when suddenly before them
stood Queen Elizanne.

The soldiers
started to kneel, but Captain Moore stopped them with a wave of his
hand. “You dare come here and show magic then expect us to obey
your orders? Seize the queen! She is under arrest.”

Koral and Eric
were stunned, which quickly changed to horror. “NO,” they both
hollered when the captain had ordered her arrested. At the same
time, the trap door in the floor opened, and Gillock appeared.
“Come with me. There is a tunnel and we must escape.”

Neither twin
moved. “We have to stop them,” said Eric, anger in his voice. “We
cannot let them take her.”

Gillock placed
his hand on Eric’s shoulder. “She did this to save the two of you.
Your mother knows how important this quest is, and they will not
harm her. We must leave.”

Slowly, the
twins and Maeve followed Gillock, moving safely away from Captain
Moore and their mother.

Moments later,
the door of the bakery flew off its hinges. Soldiers poured in, but
found nothing. Gillock had blocked the trapdoor from view, so none
of the soldiers ever found the tunnel. Gossip later spread through
the city stating the queen most likely used magic to whisk them all
away.

The groups all
met back up at the Star Dancer. Although there was a joyous reunion
between the rescued dwarves, Grund and Drundle, it didn’t last.
Gillock quickly informed everyone what had transpired. They knew
the twins and their friends were going to have to be moved out of
the city, so everyone packed their belongings. The thieves in
Keenley were more than willing to show them tunnels which led out
of the city. Most likely, due to the revelation they were the
prince and princess, and wanted themselves.

The moving was
slow, for the tunnel they were using had collapsed portions from
years of neglect. Eric commented on the condition of the tunnel,
worried it would be blocked at the end. Maeve was quick to respond,
informing the group it was the route she had recently used when she
had escaped the city. After hours of navigating the dark tunnel,
the group found themselves just north of the city. Grund and
Drundle lead the rescued dwarves towards Tress, promising to be
back by morning. The goblins, having sensed Eric was near, found
their companions within an hour after they emerged from the
tunnel.

They camped
that night, knowing the soldiers would be looking for them in the
city. It was a sombre affair, with no one wanting to speak. Koral
and Eric, still stunned from the ordeal, ate their meals in
silence, then turned in for the night. Gillock and Glavlin were
both worried. The confidence which the twins had shown appeared to
be deteriorating, and it was something they could not afford to
have happen.