Page 1 of Palaces and other Prisons
CHAPTER 1
The tide drew back as if running away from the shore. Ul had heard tales of waves as tall as the palace crashing into the shore and destroying everything in their path, but he had never seen one in all his forty-seven years.
“Ring the bell,” he ordered Ifer, his secretary.
“Which pattern should they use?” Ifer stared out the window alongside the councilor who had alerted him to the strange tide.
They weren’t under attack, nor was there a ship in trouble. “The one for a storm. And be quick about it; they don’t have long to reach higher ground.” How many animals would farmers lose? Ul turned away from the window and walked swiftly toward the stairs. “Send runners to the port and the village closest to the coast because too many people will look at the sky and not heed the warning.” They should because the bell was only rung in emergencies. “Then get the palace staff to the…” His mind scrambled through the various rooms. “Library, and wait there for me.”
Ifer inclined his head and left with his orders.
He jogged down the stairs, and the councilor followed him. “Where are you going, Sire?”
“To protect the eggs. Why are you still following me?”
The councilor stopped, the markings on his blue skin shifting color as panic got the better of him.
“Help Ifer and tell the palace staff and residents to gather in the library and the adjacent rooms on the inland side. Now!”
The councilor turned and ran, his soft leather shoes slapping on the stone.
Ul ordered the krakke guards he passed to collect buckets and then head downstairs to the rock pools. The palace was perched on a small cliff, and its lowest levels were underwater. Or they had been…
The palace seemed to be as old as the island itself. And while it wasn’t his family who built it, his family had ruled for the last three centuries. The island was an important trading post for the lands to the north and south. It was a place for ships to resupply and also take on board the silver, pearls, and thulite that Felloi was known for.
The ships that had been in port would’ve been beached when the tide ran out. There was nothing he could do for them or their cargo except hope that the sailors understood the turn in the tide brought trouble.
This was just the latest in a series of strange events. Rumbles in the earth. Rockslides in the mountains had wiped away an entire village, leaving only a handful of survivors. Strange artefacts had also appeared, and some seemed to be very similar to their own ancient civilizations, bone and flint tools, except they were not buried.
And in the ocean, when he swam, he’d seen large pieces of metal that didn’t belong, and that he had no explanation for. He continued down the stairs to the palace rock pools. Here in the watery area of the castle was where the young krakke were raised. For their first year, their cartilage was too soft to allow them to move on land, and in the ocean, it was too easy for them to become prey. Many of the krakke who lived nearby chose tolay their eggs in the safety of the palace, trusting that their eggs would be guarded until they hatched, after which the young were taken to the rock pools.
Parents were always at the rock pools, visiting their hatchlings. There were guards at the land and water entrances to prevent others from sneaking in and doing them harm.
He placed a branched tentacle over his chest. There was still water in the rock pools. But the young were too delicate to survive the tidal wave and the subsequent withdrawal. Adults wouldn’t survive even though they could breathe underwater; it would be too tumultuous, and they’d be pounded against rocks and debris.
He didn’t even know if the palace was going to survive. He hoped that the inland side suffered less damage. That’s where the library was. It was the room most protected from the elements, and it was on a central level, so above any potential flood. Of course, if the top part of the castle collapsed, they’d be crushed. But what else could he do?
“Take the buckets and collect the young, take them to the library and stay there.”
“What’s happening?” One of the rock pool guards asked.
More guards rushed into the rock pool area with the gathered buckets.
“Tidal wave. Close both gates. Then assist.” Ul moved on. Instead of being able to dive into the water and swim to where the eggs were laid, he walked, stepping over the rocks and coral that had been exposed.
“Sire…” the rock pool guard called after him.
“You have your job. Now do it.” As king, it was his job to protect his people, be they ogre, satyr, krakke, or human. And that included the eggs that had been entrusted to his care.
“You should go to the library, sire.” The midnight-dark guard said as he followed, holding a bucket in each hand. “I can gather the eggs.”
“It may be too late for the eggs. For how long have they been dry?” There was no point in going to the royal egg cave. That had been empty for too many years. While his husband had died three years ago, the cave had been empty far longer than that.
His cousin had expected to take over following the funeral, but Ul had refused to give up the one thing that gave him a reason to continue living. Besides, he might marry again. Trading partners were already making suggestions and offering to send an envoy of princes to see if one was a match. He had agreed to allow the envoy after the winter solstice. Spring was a good time for new beginnings, and as before, he didn’t expect a love match. As king, everything was political.
“Sire, please.”
Ul turned to the guard. “I am entrusted with their care. The least I can do is to fulfill that duty.” But the guard was right; he should order someone else to do it. But he liked to visit the public egg cave and the rock pools.
