Not All Heroes Are Guiltless

Chapter 55

Chapter 55

Andrew’s POV

Something is different.

It feels like a storm is brewing.

The air feels electric, and the tides hit harder.

I don’t know how long it has been since the Hou Ndour sacked the Redland capital and took all the living army and nobles into captivity. They moved us so many times in the beginning that we could be on the other side of the world by now.

It was a dark and dreary day when we arrived on a desolate island with only a flat-faced stripped mine and barely any vegetation. Most of our military was sent here, mostly starved and bound to dig for iron and other minerals. We work from sunrise to sunset for our Hou Ndour captors. They are grueling slave masters. They only let us rest when the sun is down because after several attempts to exact revenge with the lanterns, they deemed it unviable to have us work without light.

Years had gone by when a voice spoke to me in my dreams. The queen is alive and somewhere on the island with us. She’s being tortured but kept alive, and she’s not sure why. I try to reach out to find where she is being held and only met with anguish. I don’t even want to fathom what the guards would do if they found me prodding for information. Everyone learned the guards don’t like nosy slaves.

She returns to me at night and talks about how she regrets that she wasn’t able to protect us. She should have known an attack was coming but she was under the influence of her son. He only wants the worst for Redland. She also talks about losing Aela. She hates how she had to keep her at arm’s length and never any closer due to titles.

She talks about how she relies on me to find Aela and ensure she is the ruler best fitting. She says that I’ve always been her choice of partner for her and the only reason why she agreed was because she will need my protection in the future. When we got out of this, she promised to give me Aela and allow her to be subdued to my discretion. She drowns on and on every night in my dreams.

Night after night I hear her regrets and never seem to be able to hear her. My queen is suffering so much and all she can think about is Aela. Every night I think about her and her body. She had to escape before Hou Ndours cleared the capital because no one had seen or heard from her. Maybe she will get the lions help and revenge us. If I ever get out of here then I will never leave her side.

“Come on you lot! Get up and get moving! We don’t have the time to drag you on the ship.” A slave driver yells out in the middle of the night. No one speaks up and follows his instruction. We all get huddled onto the ship into the supply hull where we can only stand. The hull filled to capacity squishing everyone into it like sardines. Without a word the anchor is lifted and we fill the ship and hit the deep ocean waters. The men huddle together in the tight space wondering where we will land this time.

Time is hard to tell when you are standing in the hull of a ship. The men will lift the hatch from the dock and throw down rotten food maybe once or twice a day. Everyone seems to be trying to ensure their neighbors survival. We will all need our strength for whatever plans our captors have for us next.

I daydream about my princess and her smile when I hear a scuffle on the dock, and everyone stays quiet. A couple of deep thumps and muffled yells come out and we aren’t sure what is going on. A set of keys are dropped down the hatch and the men scurry to find them. They unlock most of our shackles and everyone is excited. The men start hammering on the door to the cabin and barrack area. They open the door, and everyone rushes out.

Dead Hou Ndour bodies are littered in the narrow passageways and even on the stairs. Several other men have made it on the dock while others are searching through the cargo bays and barracks. I bend down to investigate one of the bodies. He’d been slashed viciously by a sword attack, but where are our saviors?

“Marquis! Come here quick!” One of the men yell out from down the corridor. I rush to him in curiosity. He turns around and goes farther down into the ship. Three other men are standing near an open door. I walk in and see the queen shackled to a suspended pole.

“Help me get her down.” I say looking at the men and they all nod. We use what force we can to break the chains. I melted a bit of the metal.

She mumbles softly, “They are enchanted against most magics.”

I hum acknowledgement, “Someone killed off our captors, then dropped the keys down the hatch. The men right now are searching the ship.”

“Aela?” The queen says deliriously.

“I don’t think so. She wouldn’t hide from us.” I say holding her up. “Lets get you some fresh air and assess are situation.”

The men help me carry her up the stairs to the dock and most of everyone has came up to the dock. I find a safe place for the queen to sit and get my chance to investigate. The sky is filled with stars so its in the middle of the night.

“Bellar! Their ships are moving away from us.” Someone yells out while point in the horizon. Sure enough, the colors although hard to tell but after years of studying our normal enemy they are Bellar’s Navy. Why would they kill the Hou Ndours and abandon us?

“Looks like my son has claimed his throne. My hope he hasn’t corrupted my Aela against me.” The queen mumbles.

I look at her confused, “The mad wolf in our dungeon?”

“Yes. My bastard son of a stupid mistake I made. He escaped when the giants were attacking. He was probably selfish and protect Aela.” The queen speaks so softly I can barely hear her.

“Why would he protect her? Why would he save us?” I ask.

The queen hugs herself tighter. “He promised her father he would watch over her. No matter how mad, crazed and deranged he may be. He never would go back on a promise.”

When the sun arose we had managed to estimate our location with the maps left in the captain cabin. We had plenty of food and supplies to make it back to a port. Turmac was the closest and the Queen suggested it might be best because we weren’t able to remove the cuffs of the enchanted chains. Hopefully the Lions would allow us to seek asylum as we prepared to return to our homeland.