A Marriage of Friends (The Inner Seas Kingdoms Book 8) Read online

  There was a rustle, and then a twang, and Kestrel knew an arrow was speeding towards him. He threw up his hands and created his blue shield. It provided the protection he needed, just in time, as half the arrow was already within his space – the shaft of the arrow was sliced in half by the creation of the blue sphere of energy, and the head tumbled forward, striking Kestrel but not piercing him.

  But the creation of the shield, while it saved him from the arrow, created a greater problem, and Kestrel recognized it as it began to develop before his eyes, and all around him.

  The energy shield touched several of the barrels he was not supposed to explode until after he had gotten far away from them. His energy though, created multiple combustions, and Kestrel experienced multiple impacts from the beginning of a huge conflagration. He saw blinding flashes, and heard the beginning of the greatest explosive sound ever known in the Eastern Forest. His body felt the first wave of death starting to expand from the terrible explosions.

  I need help, a part of his soul thought in a split fraction of a second before he was totally consumed by the fireball that was forming. His body began to absorb fatal damages from the forces and flying debris that were all around him. He lapsed into immediate unconsciousness as he was overwhelmed with pain and damage.

  A few fragments of thoughts drifted through his soul – he needed Alicia’s comforting hands, tending the wounds that were embedding themselves on all sides of his body; he needed a soft kiss on the cheek from Lark.

  He needed to escape. He needed to go to the healing spring.

  And with that his powers suddenly carried out an extraordinary action, as they grabbed him and transported him, giving him the gift of the imps, the sprites, and the gods, letting him jump between places and dimensions, to carry him to the healing spring, where he was unconsciously deposited in his customary spot among the submerged rocks that were covered with the warm waters of the spring.

  Fantasy Series by Jeffrey Quyle

  The Inner Seas Kingdoms Series

  The Healing Spring

  The Yellow Palace

  Road of Shadows

  A Foreign Heart

  Journey to Uniontown

  The Guided Journey

  An Unexpected Deity

  A Marriage of Friends

  The Ingenairii Series

  Visions of Power

  2. At the Seat of Power: Goldenfields and the Dominion

  3. The Loss of Power: Goldenfields and Bondell

  4. The Lifesaving Power: Goldenfields and Stronghold

  5. Against the Empire

  6. Preserving the Ingenairii

  7. Rescuing the Captive

  8. Ajacii and Demons

  9. The Caravan Road

  10. The Journey Home

  Alchemy’s Apprentice Series

  The Gorgon’s Blood Solution

  The Echidna’s Scale

  Scarlet from Gold

  The Southern Trail

  Also by Jeffrey Quyle

  The Green Plague

  For more information, visit the Ingenairii Series on Facebook, www.facebook.com/ingenairiiseries

  A Marriage of Friends

  The Inner Seas Kingdoms Series

  Book 8

  Jeffrey Quyle

  To my father, Jerry Quyle, who has been such a wonderful supporter and advisor

  Index

  Chapter 1 Page 1

  Chapter 2 Page 8

  Chapter 3 Page 15

  Chapter 4 Page 30

  Chapter 5 Page 43

  Chapter 6 Page 48

  Chapter 7 Page 63

  Chapter 8 Page 76

  Chapter 9 Page 85

  Chapter 10 Page 88

  Chapter 11 Page 98

  Chapter 12 Page 103

  Chapter 13 Page 126

  Chapter 14 Page 131

  Chapter 15 Page 141

  Chapter 16 Page 150

  Chapter 17 Page 155

  Chapter 18 Page 163

  Chapter 19 Page 181

  Chapter 20 Page 191

  Chapter 21 Page 197

  Chapter 22 Page 204

  Chapter23 Page 216

  Chapter24 Page 222

  Chapter25 Page 238

  Chapter26 Page 253

  Chapter27 Page 260

  Chapter28 Page 276

  Chapter29 Page 288

  Chapter30 Page 293

  Chapter31 Page 309

  Chapter32 Page 319

  Chapter33 Page 323

  List of Characters

  Kestrel, Warden of the Marches in the Eastern Forest

  Picco, member of Graylee nobility, Creata’s sister, Ruelin’s wife

  Merea, infant daughter of Kestrel and Picco

  Creata, Graylee Duke of the East Seashore, ambassador to Seafare

  Stillwater, Odare, Killcen, Acanthus, Mulberry, imps assigned to Kestrel

  Dewberry, sprite, queen of the imps

  Ruelin, Prince of Seafare

  Wren, cousin to Kestrel, betrothed to Creata

  Remy and Pont, young elves of Oaktown

  Whyte, Steward of Kestrel’s manor

  Captain Lim, officer at Center Trunk

  Putienne, a yeti of the Water Mountains

  Bernie, Cook at the Oaktown Manor

  Duke Listay, nobleman of Uniontown

  Stuart, chief guardsman for Duke Listay

  Gates, guardsman for Listay

  Lark, daughter of Duke Listay

  Duchess Tyle, royal noblewoman of Uniontown

  Gail, Langravine of Uniontown

  Duke Fields, contender for the Uniontown throne

  Yulia, Princess of Hydrotaz

  Philip, Prince of Graylee

  The Human Deities:

  Kai – goddess of the air Growelf – god of fire

  Krusima – god of earth Shaish – goddess of water

  The Elven Deities:

  Kere – goddess of fortune Norvell – god of light

  Tamson – god of force Were – goddess of sound

  Morph – god of speed Powson – god of weight

  Tere – goddess of size

  The Gnome Deity:

  Corrant

  The Parstole Deities:

  Decimindion & Medeina

  Prologue

  Kestrel had saved the world. A young elf, he had been plucked from obscurity, and sent on a mission. At first, he had ostensibly been an elven spy, watching the intrigues of the humans, but his greater role had been to act as the agent of the gods.

  Goddesses from the humans and the elves, with cooperation from others, selected and assisted Kestrel in a greater challenge – the battle to defeat the invading race of reptilian Viathins, and their god, Ashcrayss.

  When his battles against the Viathins finally ended, Kestrel made a long journey home to the Eastern Forest, and retired, he hoped, to live a peaceful life as a nobleman, the Warden of the Marches, a title and an estate granted to him by the king of the Eastern Forest elves.

  But the royal family of the Eastern Forest called upon him to escort an emerging favorite of theirs to the Northern Forest elves, to establish formal relations between the two kingdoms. As he carried out that journey, he met and befriended a young yeti, Putienne, and he was repeatedly attacked by a mysterious, powerful force.

  The human goddess, Kai, broke a long silence to speak to Kestrel at last, telling him of dire problems, and assigning him to fix them. And so he followed her guidance, then lost her guidance through a natural disaster, and lost the assistance of the imps, just before stumbling into battle.

  With new allies, a handful of humans from Uniontown, Kes
trel, Wren, an imp and a gnome, travel through a dangerous new world where the Viathins are rebuilding their strength by ravaging other races. Kestrel helps to rescue captive gods, then defeat the Viathins, and gain extraordinary insights into his own powers and their uses.

  The trip back to the world of the Inner Seas proves treacherous, and Kestrel is separated from the others, so that when he finally finds a way to return home, he is all alone.

  Chapter 1

  Kestrel walked along the quiet street of Cedar Gully. It was a small village, hardly an organized settlement, and his previous stay had made him thoroughly familiar with the layout of the village. He even knew a few of the residents, and he knew where he would go.

  He started to trot down the familiar packed-dirt road that defined the shape of Cedar Gully. The large stone house he strode away from was at the far southeastern end of the street; it marked the end of the settlement, an empty structure that Kestrel now knew was home to a hidden portal to other worlds.

  Two elves appeared to be strolling along the street ahead of him, but when he reached the public square, they turned aside, and Kestrel walked alone to the western end of the village. His goal was to reach a small cabin he had visited before, a home where he had healed a desperately ill boy when he had assisted the victims of the plague. He knew he’d find a hospitable reception from the family there, the spirited boy and his mother.

  There was no light in the windows, no smoke in the chimney, and Kestrel wondered how late it was. He hated to be a pest, intruding on the family in the middle of the night for all he knew, but he also wanted a place to rest. He wasn’t going to try to run back to Oaktown overnight, he decided. He’d wait until the morning and enjoy seeing the forest in the daylight.

  He reached the porch, and after a moment’s hesitation, he knocked on the door.

  “Go away!” a woman’s voice exclaimed. “I already paid you my fee!” she shouted.

  Kestrel stood at the door, confused about how to reply.

  The door flew open, and the woman he remembered stood in the doorway, a knife in her hand, and a scowl on her face. “I’m married; now leave me alone!”

  “I’m sorry,” Kestrel stammered.

  The woman’s expression changed. “Who are you?” she asked.

  “I’m Kestrel. I was here in the spring when your son – when the whole village – was ill,” he began to explain.

  “Oh! Oh, oh, oh!” the woman said. “Rocks and roots, I remember you!” she told him. She stepped out beside him on the porch and looked towards the village, then grabbed his arm and pulled him into the cottage, before she shut the door tight.

  “My lord, what are you doing here? Did the patrol see you?” she asked in an intense whisper.

  “What patrol?” Kestrel asked. “I just arrived ten minutes ago. I’ve been out of the country for,” he paused as he tried to mentally estimate his time away, “several months,” he concluded.

  “Don’t you know? No, I can see that you don’t!” she scanned his face as she spoke.

  “Come back to the kitchen with me,” she told him, and she gestured towards an interior door.

  They sat at a table. “My lord, where to begin?” she muttered to herself, as Kestrel removed his gear.

  “The whole kingdom is under,” she paused to search for the word she wanted, and failed, “well, the princess has decided to take charge of everything. She’s using the army to patrol and control every part – well, almost every part – of the kingdom.”

  “Martial law?” Kestrel asked in astonishment.

  “Yes, that’s it; that’s what it’s called,” the mother agreed.

  “Why? What’s happening?” Kestrel asked in astonishment. He couldn’t imagine why there could be a need for martial law, or why the princess would call it.

  “I don’t really know. The patrol just reached our village for the first time five days ago. They made everyone gather in the square, and they read a proclamation to us. We have to pay extra taxes or fees to the palace. The princess said there were enemies of the state who were trying to overthrow the throne, and she would protect us from their plots.

  “Of course, none of it makes much sense to us down here in Cedar Gully – we’re probably the last place in the kingdom to learn any of this,” the woman told the astonished Kestrel.

  “And my lord,” she spoke slowly as she looked him straight in the eye. “They read off a list of names of elves they said were enemies of the state, to be reported and arrested immediately.”

  Her tone made Kestrel’s heart drop, as it foreshadowed the words he knew he was about to hear.

  “They mentioned you first, my lord. There’s a reward for turning you in,” she told him.

  Kestrel sat in stunned silence. “I’ve done nothing wrong!” he protested. “You have to believe me!”

  “I do, my lord. Everyone in the village remembers how you came to help us, for no reason other than to do the right thing. We would never turn you in,” the woman said passionately. “And I hear that people all up and down the Marches feel the same way, because of all that you’ve done. They say there are mobs of soldiers in Oaktown trying to keep the peace because the people there want nothing to do with the princess’s claims.”

  Kestrel couldn’t comprehend what he heard. He sat in stunned silence.

  “Would you like something to eat?” his hostess asked.

  “Yes,” Kestrel answered faintly. Automatically, as his mind replayed the conversation, trying to reconcile the story with the reality he thought he knew.

  “What happened in Oaktown?” he asked, focusing on his friends there, principally Putienne. “Is everyone okay?’

  “I only know rumors, my lord,” the woman answered hesitantly. “They say there was a battle, and many people were hurt. I don’t know the truth of it,” she told him, as she placed a plate of acorn bread on the table in front of him.

  He picked up a piece of the bread and stuffed half of it in his mouth. He closed his eyes and sighed as he chewed the strongly-flavored food. At least in that respect, it was good to be home, he told himself. The bread tasted as good as he could have dreamed.

  There was a loud pounding at the door.

  “Oh sticks! You need to go,” the woman said urgently rising from the table. “They mustn’t catch you,” she said. “Go out the back window. They won’t know you’re here.”

  The pounding sounded again. “Open up,” a male voice called.

  “Go!” the woman urged.

  “What do they want?” Kestrel asked, rising. He recollected her claim of a husband when he had arrived, and the knife in her hand when she had opened the door

  “Go, my lord,” the woman pleaded.

  “I’ll not leave you in trouble,” Kestrel replied. He pressed her behind him as he walked to the door, after picking up his staff.

  “What do you want?” he asked as he pulled the door open.

  There were three elves, standing on the porch, men who were taken aback by Kestrel’s appearance.

  “I thought you said her boy was young,” one of them said to another.

  “Leave us now,” Kestrel said.

  “Who are you?” the third guard asked.

  “Look at his ears!” one of the other guards said. “It’s him!”

  Kestrel swung his staff around without hesitation, striking the foremost guard in the head, and dropping him to the ground. Kestrel barreled out onto the porch, and shifted his staff to forcefully drive the end into the stomach of a second guard, then shifted again to block a hastily swung knife from the third guard, who he kicked in the groin.

  All three guards lay on the porch, unconscious or writhing in pain.

  “My lord!” Kestrel’s hostess exclaimed. “How did you do that?”

  “I was ready to fight, and they weren’t,” Kestrel said succinctly.

  “I’ll have to leave now,” he said. “What about you and your son? Is there someplace you’ll be safe?” he asked.

  She motio
ned him inside, away from the men on the porch.

  “My son is staying at a friend’s house; I didn’t want him to know what I feared was going to happen,” she explained. “My sister lives out in the forest with her husband. I’ll take my boy and go stay with her,” she said in a low voice.

  “What will you do? Where will you go?” she asked.

  “I want to find out what happened to my friends in Oaktown, first,” Kestrel answered. “Then I need to find out what is happening, and why. Then I’ll know what to do,” he summed up. “If you really believe you’ll be safe,” he added.

  And so, a half hour later, Kestrel was using his staff and his knife to drive the dispirited guards along the road to Oaktown in front of him, taking them away from Cedar Gully to give his hostess time to make her own escape. After two hours on the road, a wearying two hours of prodding and watching the disarmed guards, Kestrel made them all lie flat on the ground, and then he started running freely, encumbered only by the things he carried.

  He arrived at the edge of Oaktown as false dawn was starting to brighten the eastern sky. He stalked carefully through the town, and reached the manor – his home – without incident. He stopped and stared, shock turning to outrage as he observed the graffiti and senseless destruction in evidence.

  Kestrel circled around to the back of the manor, and found a squad of guards sleeping in tents that were pitched in the yard. The trees surrounding the manor were developing into their true shapes and colors as the sunlight brightened the morning sky, and Kestrel saw that there were traces of brown, and a few tints of red and yellow starting to emerge; autumn was coming to the forest once again. He quietly picked his way around the camp and entered the kitchen.

  None of the cooks were in the kitchen, so Kestrel pulled his sword and began to silently stalk through the halls of the manor, headed towards the servants’ quarters.