Wings, Beasts and Claws: Violet Embers

Ch. 13 : Call of the Bells

Two weeks passed quickly after the mass of Knights left the Fafner Capital, leaving behind a small battalion that patrolled our grounds. And I have spent that time trapped in the office completing the work that Dorian had left behind once he started training again.

My kids had also moved most of their toys into the office as well, playing around me as I worked. Ivy and Morina helped to keep them from trouble, avoiding disasters that would ruin important pages or lose marked places in the books I would use. Drako would join us as well, helping out with minor things and distracting the children when their energy level would rise to impossible heights.

And it was during a small break while having tea with Morina that a Mail-Runner burst through the doors and skidded to a stop in front of me.

We had just sent the kids out of the room with Drako and Ivy after the twins and Pallas managed to find the brand new bottles of ink that were stored behind some books on the bookshelf. They somehow popped two open and spilled the liquid abyss all over themselves before smearing it on the rest of the kids. Even Ivy and Thea were stained in the chaos and Drako took over in calming them while Morina and I moved the remaining bottles to a higher shelf. Thankfully, we were the only ones besides Drako that escaped the flying blobs of ink and decided to rest for a moment while the children were bathed and changed.

The runner was a young boy that was a year or two older than Calix and good friends with him as well. And because of that close friendship, the young eagle Shifter named Thomas was one of the very few Mail-Runners that were allowed within Palace grounds. Recently though, I heard through Lanalee that Thomas had become the official Capital runner of information for the war, so he was strictly meant to deliver their letters and packages to me, and the families of the Knights living in the Capital. He was also given a specially charmed satchel that would appear empty if anyone other than him tried to take the packages out, so no one could read the important information meant for the waiting families of those fighting.

“I...I bring with me… the… the first letters from the fro--frontlines, Your Majesty.” He panted, bracing himself on his knees to catch his breath. “As well as… information from an anonymous location and sender that… that was marked as urgent.”

I nodded to him, fighting back a smile as he finally straightened out and started undoing the clasps to his bag. This young boy, because of his relation to Calix and his newest position, had been given special permission from Dorian and I to speak to us freely. We didn’t want to waste his precious time making deliveries by forcing him to hold himself like a lofty Noble, or greeting us like them either. He was a good kid and a very hard worker as well, so making him nervous about those things didn’t sit right with us.

He first handed me a letter that was sealed with silver wax and bore the Delphia family crest which was a wolf’s paw with a sword over the middle of it: My maiden name and the current family crest of my brother and his family. I handed Morina the letter and smiled as she gasped, recognizing my brother's handwriting that spelled out her name. The second letter was sealed with a swirl of dark green and black wax and bore a seal with a fox’s head and a scythe curving between its ears.

I stared at this for a moment, knowing that no one but members of the Royal family would recognize this seal or the group of Shifters that worked in the shadows. They were called the Viridi Vulpes, or green foxes, and they were skilled spies that followed the orders of the Royal family without hesitation. And as I looked at the letter, I wondered what new information they had gathered about the Order, momentarily distracted before Thomas handed me another letter.

Upon closer inspection though, I realized that it was a small stack of three letters that were kept together with a thin black ribbon and sealed with blood red wax. Recognizing Dorian's writing and his personal seal of dragon wings in flight and a half sun in between, I smiled and hugged the letters to my chest for a second.

“Have any letters from Knights been delivered to their families and loved ones?” I asked Thomas, knowing that Dorian wouldn’t send anything if his men weren’t prepared to send something to their own families.

“Soon, Your Majesty.” The young boy said, smiling softly. “A big delivery arrived in our office and we spent the whole morning separating them all.” He chuckled and clutched the strap of his satchel, rocking on his heels. “Your letters were first on my list before I ran out to deliver the others I have with me.”

I nodded and smiled at him, offering him a mini cake that he gladly accepted and devoured in a few bites.

“Thank you for your hard work Thomas.” He froze for a moment, seeming stunned that I knew his name. “Please be careful while making your deliveries, ok? And take a moment to rest and drink some water before you go.”

He nodded and followed the servant that had stood by the door, ushering him to the smaller side room where our guests would sit and relax before meetings.

“I can’t believe they’re already there.” Morina said, taking the letter opener I handed her and breaking the wax seal. “It all still felt like a big, overwhelming dream to me.”

I nodded and took the thin device back from her, taking a moment to decide which letter to open first. I exhaled deeply and grabbed the letter from the green foxes, breaking the seal and placing the letter opener beside me. I wanted to save Dorian's letters for later, when I could be alone and read them without worrying about anything else.

‘A Sage Fox Greets their Master,’

The first line read, indicating that a mid-level member was reporting to me. There were three ranks among the Viridi Vulpes, all of which were identified by a shade of green.

Olive was the lower level and meant that they were either young, or hadn’t been within the organization for more than ten years. These members did minor tasks, like tracking rumors, creating rumors, creating aliases, gathering supplies for the others, and handling the more tedious things that the other members didn’t have time for. Sage was mid-level and meant that they had been in service to the Royal family for over ten years. These members handled more delicate things like gathering all manner of information, spying and following people of interest and k********g, if necessary. The top-tier members were the juniper foxes, and they were the ones that would get their hands dirty for their Royal masters. Planting evidence of a crime, making someone's death look like a suicide or stealing mounds of coins or jewels were just a few things that the juniper foxes did.

I shook my head of the sudden distraction and refocused on the paper in my hands.

‘I have found evidence that seems to contradict itself, My Liege. It somehow shows that our ally, the Azuren Kingdom, is supporting the Order financially. Yet when I searched deeper, I found the markings of the Wyvern Royals intermingled with this evidence.’

This made my brows knit together as I stood from my seat, slowly making my way to the blazing fireplace. It wasn’t a secret that the Azuren and Fafner Kingdoms had been at peace and very close to one another since before Dorian and Galen ever met. It was also widely known that the Wyvern Kingdom despised this union for decades, having been denied in one way or another by both the Azuren and Fafner Royals. But it was to my understanding that all four Kingdoms were in a perpetual state of peace after a Unity Treaty was signed before I was ever born. This allowed them all to increase their trade across our borders and grow prosperous. So why would there be evidence of Azuren and Wyvern seemingly working together, or even supporting the Order when they were being harmed by them as well… unless, it was all a farce.

‘I have also uncovered that the members of the Order are attempting to use children as a means to shield themselves from any and all repercussions while also declaring their demands and keeping the children hostage. Some members have also been noted as targeting the children of those that left them for their Mates, or children that resemble their ex lovers to be groomed as replacements.’

I nearly tore the page in half as I read this, forcing myself to take a deep breath as the flames in the fireplace quickly turned purple and climbed higher with my rage.

‘Thankfully, no children have been successfully taken, and I have posted foxes near those being targeted so we can apprehend them and have them delivered to you.’

This helped calm me and the fire in front of me slowly returned to normal.

‘I shall dig deeper into the involvement of the two other Kingdoms and report to you soon. A package containing the evidence mentioned shall be delivered to you within a few days as well.’

‘Within the Shadows Black eyes roam.’

I nodded and quickly tossed the page into the fire, watching it burn as the last line rang out in my head.

This was one of the many different coded lines that the Viridi used to either give a final greeting or pass along something they deem too serious to have written out. And that particular line meant one thing: Someone, somewhere was watching me, but they didn’t know who. If they did know this person's identity, they would have written something that could identify them, instead of saying ‘black eyes’. And I knew that I could have this person quickly brought to me if I ordered the Viridi to do so. But something in my gut was telling me that it wasn’t a malicious person, and that they were only there looking out for me, which only confused me.

I turned away from the fire, deep in thought, when I looked up to find Morina blushing and giggling softly to herself while she read my brother’s letter. Wanting to distract myself for a moment, I walked around her and was about to lean over to read what my brother had written when an unexpected sound rang out, making me jump.

It was a strong, deep ringing bell that had been struck somewhere in the city. It rang out once more before I realized what it was.

“The Watchtower…”

I rushed out of the room and found the kids being herded towards me by Ivy and Drako.

“Get them inside!” I shouted, rushing past them to the stairs.

But Drako grabbed my arm and held me back, searching my face silently before letting go. I don’t know what it was that he found when he looked at me, but he seemed to understand and turned back to rush the children into the office.

I raced down the stairs and shouted at all the servants that were stunned still as the bell rang out once more.

“Take shelter now!” I shoved a few of them to get them to move while making my way to the doors, kicking off my heels and pulling the doors open. “Lockdown the Palace until I return!”

I run out into the snow and spot a horse with its saddle on the ground being led by one of the Stablehands. I rush him and climb onto the horse, not bothering with the saddle. He calls out to me but I ignore him, telling him to take shelter quickly before urging the horse towards the gates. A few Knights were there and running out as the bell rang again, spotting me and running out beside me without a word.

As I raced out towards the city I felt my heart climb up into my throat, seeing thick pillars of smoke climbing up from some of the buildings.

The Watchtowers were a full thirty minutes outside of the city and framed the only road in or out. They both had large silver bells that had never been rung before, because not once in the history of the Fafner Kingdom has the Capital city ever been attacked. Yet as I came closer, I could see a few flags bearing the symbol of the Order and a mass of fighting, blood and fire spread all over the now empty streets and walkways.

‘How!?’ I thought to myself, rushing out and producing my amethyst flame bow. ‘How did the Order get into the City once again?!’