A Sorceress From the Future

Chapter Fifty Six

The Captain groaned and grunted; he had a piercing migraine, and for some peculiar reason, he could not feel his legs. His eyes had chosen to remain bolted shut, and as much as he tried to peel them open, they would not budge. He had a strange taste in his mouth, metallic; it was as if his tongue was laced with his own blood. His head was another nightmare altogether. There was a buzzing noise inside his ears, and it went on and on and on…Something was not right; he was just not sure what it was or rather what had happened the previous night.

The last thing he could vividly recall was him sharing a drink with his friend. Yes, that was it. He and Gamma had met at the tavern. Gamma had offered him gin, he had gobbled it down, they had conversed about leading a rebellion against Dawson and then…nothing. It was as if every event that occurred after their agreement was nonexistent. Had the people stopped protesting? Had Gamma rounded up the men? Was Dawson aware of the potential coup? And what did this mean for them as a kingdom or rather a race? Would the soldiers still want to face the magical creatures on the battlefield? Once again, the Captain groaned, the buzzing had just gotten louder. Perhaps it was because he was panicking. He was worried he might not get a chance to exert his vengeance.

But that was the only thing keeping him going, his raw taste for the behemoth’s blood.

After an immense struggle, after trying to stay still long enough for him to concentrate on lulling the buzzing sound, the Captain inhaled deeply and finally fluttered his eyes open.

“s**t…”

He was in the dungeon, in chains. He could not feel his legs because they had been bound with heavy metal. His arms, however, were free. Why bind his legs and not his arms? Wait, he was asking the wrong question.

How in the name of the gods had he wound up bound in the palace dungeon?

The Captain yanked the chains and chuckled when they would not budge. The chuckle was low and humorless. He had just recalled his participation in his current predicament. A while ago, he had changed those chains himself. He had been convinced that they were not “strong” enough. The Captain let out a slow groan. Nothing was making sense. He had no recollection whatsoever of how he had gotten here and why. If this had been an outside attack, he doubted he would be the only one in his cell. Gamma, his second in command, would be right next to him, perhaps even Dawson. Well, not Dawson because the man would probably provoke them on sight with his appalling face…And if this was an internal arrest, then why was he alone in his cell? His men would be right beside him. Gamma would definitely be right beside him, and who would even arrest him in the first place? The nightguards worshipped him and his warriors? They ate off his hands. Perhaps the palace guards had done this. They were, after all, loyal to the palace and the throne, but for some reason, he just could not picture lanky Harry or freckled Dean knocking him unconscious and dragging him to the dungeon. No, something bigger was at play here, something dubious.

The large dungeon door swung slowly open, capturing the Captain’s attention. He had been too preoccupied with his thoughts to recall the buzzing sound or his piercing migraine. He angled his head to get a better view of his visitor. Once again, the Captain found himself chuckling lowly, humorlessly.

“It was a trap…You orchestrated this…I am curious though, why?”

Gamma sighed dramatically before sauntering over to his long-term friend. The two had known each other since they were boys. They could anticipate each other’s moves. At least one of them could.

“Why? Not even the how? Or when? I did an extraordinary thing and you won’t even let me brag about it?”

“Well Gamma, in case you haven’t noticed I am a prisoner. I am not exactly in a position to let you do anything…”

Gamma laughed, a full guffaw. He even doubled over and slapped his knee.

“You are right, you always are. Which begs the question, how did the great Captain not see this coming?”

The Captain spat on the ground. He had been gathering the sputum a while. Well, ever since he saw Gamma walk into the dungeon with a smarmy look on his face. He had been right earlier; he had been tasting his own blood,

“Ah don’t be mad now, it’s nothing personal…I just saw an opportunity and seized it…”

“My men would never-“

“Never what? Fall in line under their new leader? Respect their king’s orders? They are soldiers, Captain, soldiers you taught to follow the rules strictly. They would have never rebelled, they are loyal to the throne not to you…And with Luke gone well, King Dawson is the master to us all…”

“What did he offer you?”

“Who?”

“I might have fallen into your trap but I am no fool…There is no way you planned this on your own…”

“Are you calling me a fool?”

“People are free to perceive situations how they please. If you see yourself as one, who am I to protest?”

It happened so quickly. One moment Gamma was pacing back and forth, playing with his goatee, marveling at his brilliance, and now he was breathing heavily in front of the Captain’s face, his eyes wide with rage, his Adam’s apple bobbing wildly.

“That! That has always been your problem! You see yourself…you think yourself to be…you…you…”

“See, just like I thought, a fool…”

Gamma bashed his forehead into the Captain’s face. He then reeled backward from the impact while the Captain bent forward, coughing rapidly, trying not to choke on his blood. Gamma ran the back of his hand across his forehead while chuckling. He had been waiting to do that for a long time.

“I cannot wait for sunrise…Your body will dangle in the gallows, lifeless. And then finally, finally you can join your beloved son…In some ways, you should thank me…”

The Captain calmed his ragged breathing. The piercing migraine had heightened remarkably. The buzzing sound had morphed into the sound of a heavy metal being bashed.

“You sent a soldier to seek for me, you instructed him to lie about the people gathering in the square, you anticipated I would come to the tavern, you put something in my gin, you imprisoned me and tomorrow, tomorrow you will see to it that I rejoin my dead son…Have I gathered correctly so far?”

“Splendidly.”

“We have known each other a long time Gamma. You have been like a brother to me, you were like a father to my son. Do me the honor of telling me why, why did you do this to me?”

Gamma sighed, and for a moment, a small one, minuscule in fact, the Captain thought he saw something. A flicker of regret, perhaps even guilt. Had Dawson forced him to do this? But Dawson was not watching them now, so why was he putting on an act? The Captain’s heart sank, his long-term friend had truly and utterly betrayed him.

“King Dawson wanted a man who would do what he desired. He knew the soldiers were loyal to you so he could not do anything to you directly. Taking you out of the equation required a finesse to it. If the soldiers believed you to be guilty then they would willingly work under me and I under King Dawson…”

“That is it? You sold me out for power? You wanted my position that bad?”

“People are free to perceive situations how they please. If you deem this to be true, who am I to protest?”

“The people would never let their children-“

“The people are willing to do anything for the kingdom…”

The Captain angled his head to assess Gamma’s facial features. His jaw was not ticking, his fingers were not twitching. He was telling the truth but…how? The people would never let their beloved children go to war, not without the proper training, and some of these children were ill-suited for the battlefield…What was going on?

“You see a message arrived from beyond the walls. Prince Baric is dead. We are going to war Captain…Too bad you won’t be around to see it.”