Silver Rose

Bertam's News

After locating Bertram and setting up a meeting time, Zander, Rosemarie, Ren, Eric and Nelson kept to themselves. The men felt completely out of place in central Brovan. Zander hated not knowing the language well. He tried to blend in with others, but when he opened his mouth everyone knew. To his surprise no one knew Maufrin, his native tongue. But then again, why would the Brovanians take the time to know about anything outside of their sphere? As far as they were concerned nothing lay on the other side of Talis. Although he knew this could be used to his advantage, anger overcame him to think that his country was so unimportant to them.

Most of the first week of his stay was spent in his room or that of one of his friends. He took more lessons with Rosemarie, but even her knowledge of the language was limited. She had learned Brovanian in the mines she worked in. Thus, she spoke a coarse, broken version of the language. She could get by with it, but she couldn’t hold a long conversation with anyone.

They were most comfortable among themselves. They often met in Rosemarie’s room where they could talk about the strange Brovanians in Maufrin. Otherwise, Zander rode his horse, Kelt, around the countryside. Usually he went alone early in the morning often missing breakfast and sometimes lunch. It was a time when he could clear his head and think of everything (or nothing at all). He tried to focus on the current status of his mission, but his mother, Chasilin, and the loss of the crown always crept into his thoughts. He joyously welcomed the meeting with Bertram at the end of the second week. The information he’d gather would help push thoughts of the past away.
That night they sat around Rosemarie’s room smoking their pipes. When they were through, the meeting began.

“I wasn’t sure when to expect you,” Bertram said, “so I don’t have the latest news for you. But as soon as I knew you were here, I sent out four men. Two to gather reports in the north and east; and the others to go to the south and west.”

“Thank you, Bertram,” Zander said. “How long before they return?”

“It depends on how smoothly their journeys go,” Bertram said. “The earliest will probably be two months.”

“Two months!” Eric exclaimed.

“Brovan is more than twice the size of Chasilin, my boy,” Bertram said. “And we have well over 2,000 men across it. Finding out their exact numbers, and what they are doing will take some time.”

“In the meantime, we need to learn as much about the country as possible,” Zander said.

“What else do we need to know besides where the cities are?” Nelson asked.

“Plenty. I want to know how their government works. Who takes over when the king dies? It won’t devastate the country if we kill the king only to find out that the prime minister actually has all the power.” Zander said.

“From all I know,” Bertram said, “the king has all the power.”

“Then… is Elbert still king?” Zander asked.

“Yes,” Bertram answered. “He is very much alive and in power.”

“He must be in his 90s by now,” Eric said.

“Actually, he just had his 79th birthday a few months ago,” said Bertram. “And as far as anyone can tell he’s not going anywhere soon.”

“The crown will go to his son next?” Zander asked.

“Yes. Prince Sebastian is my age and as long as the 47-year-old doesn’t die before his father, he becomes king.”

“Hmmm…” Zander thought for a while. Then he spoke again. “I doubt Queen Safie has any chance at the throne. If he’s out of children then my next guess would be a relative or a government official.”

“Rest assured that it would be a relative. The DeLaney’s have governed this land for more than 400 years. They won’t be giving it up that easily.” Bertram said with a grim smile. “As for Queen Safie, she died years ago.”

“She’s dead?!” Zander exclaimed. “How?!”

“Died after giving birth. Her son died a few days later.”

Zander shook his head. Out of all the Brovanians who visited them all those years ago, Queen Safie was the most civilized. Even though she was married, his 15-year-old self had been in love with her. That was until the murder of his father, of course.

“Don’t fret,” Bertram said, “Brovan has had a queen for years now. Her name is Renata. She’s probably somewhere in her late 20s, early 30s. Very beautiful. Seen her a couple times. She likes to ride around parts of Akinsis in an open carriage so everyone can admire her beauty. Nothing like the princess.”

“There’s a princess now?” Ren said.

“Oh yes, yes. She’s been around for twenty years. Had her birthday in February.”

“I suppose the beautiful Queen Renata is a little older than you think,” Ren said.

Everyone but Bertram laughed.

“Queen Renata does not have any children,” Bertram said. “The princess is Queen Safie’s daughter.”

“I didn’t know she had any children,” Zander said. “She never mentioned one when she was in Chasilin.”

Bertram shrugged his shoulders.
“Maybe you weren’t around when they discussed it,” he said. “The fact is King Elbert has another child. This means if both the king and the prince are disposed of, the country will go to Princess Marina. Or to her husband.”

“She is married?” Zander asked.

“She will be… very soon. She has been betrothed to a prince of Eknosh recently. The wedding will take place next April.”

“Do you know the date?”

“No, but I’m sure it’s been set.”

The last thing Zander wanted was to involve another country; especially one like Eknosh. No matter how much of a chance they had against the Brovanians, there was no way they could fend them off with Eknosh on their side. Zander rubbed his forehead.

“Prince Sebastian doesn’t have a wife from a powerful, easily offended country does he?” He asked.

“The prince never married.”

“Good. And where is the Queen from?”

“She is Brovanian, sir.”

Zander sighed with relief. The less people he had to worry about wars being fought over, the better.

“King Elbert had one older sister who is now dead,” Bertram continued. “Her grandson, Lord Vance and his family are next in line. They live near Giann. After them I’m not sure who gets the throne. But remember that the further it gets down the line, and the more distant the ‘heirs’ become, the harder it is for them to claim the throne. Nonetheless, I suggest we get rid of everyone within that immediate circle. Not only the royal family, but Lord Vance’s family, advisors, officials, any close friends of the families… anyone who may potentially cause trouble when we’re through.”

“That is the plan, Bertram,” Zander said.

Bertram nodded,
“I’ll have to get back to the stables for my nightly checks in a few minutes, but I think you need to talk to Doustan Ranley. He’s the retired innkeeper of this establishment and one of the leaders of a rebellious group here in Wedimell. There are many people in this country who would give their lives to see Elbert and his family off the throne. I dare say we can get many Brovanians on our side.”

“Doustan Ranley,” Zander said. “Where can I find him?”

“He lives here,” Bertram said. “I have been going to their meetings for two years now. I told them what the DeLaney’s did in Chasilin and they are enraged by it. I know we can get them to join us. They are ready to rebel. All that holds them back is the thought that they can’t win. If they knew they had an army at their side they wouldn’t hesitate to give the family what they deserve.”

Zander thought about this. The more people they had the better were their chances of succeeding. But first he had to be sure they weren’t just talking. They had to be committed to taking action.

“How do you get to these meetings?” He asked.

“You must be invited by a member,” Bertram said. “As a devout member, I invite you to come with me to our next meeting. It will be on May 8th, two weeks from now. In the meantime, I will talk to Doustan. He will want to meet with you.”

Zander thanked Bertram and adjourned the meeting. Afterwards, he walked outside. There was an old tree that was far enough from the inn that he wouldn’t be disturbed, but close enough that he wouldn’t get lost. Zander sat under it as the stars shone down that cool clear night. He took out his pipe, lit it, and slowly filled his mouth with smoke. He needed to get to Akinsis. It was the center of Brovan and had to be the first place to fall. He had to know its streets, who was friend or foe, and most importantly, the palace. He needed to know what the palace’s weaknesses were, who lived there (and in which part), and where they would go if it were under attack.

He drew in another stream of smoke from his pipe. Somehow, he had to find a way to execute the princess without angering Eknosh. The smoke quickly drifted away as he exhaled. This was going to be a long year.