Chapter 64: Loss

Kothar sat across from the Duke in the now all too familiar study, Anteris had summoned him for the first time since his drunken outburst. The Duke, and his study, were well groomed today, Anteris' long silver mane had been brushed and braided with silver beads, and he had shaved his face. Likewise, his study had been dusted and cleaned, and the empty decanters and broken glass had been cleared from the cozy room, and it once more looked like a cosy study, rather than a drunkard's retreat.

"I have news from Ursten. A word of warning, some of it is bad." Anteris paused, letting Kothar process what he said and prepare mentally. He sighed softly, and in that moment looked like the great Duke Anteris he had once been, the terror of the seas, standing tall upon the prow of his ship in even the heaviest of storms.

"Ursten has defeated Kalun and Phintus, but not without loss. Your mother was slain in the battle with Kalun." Anteris paused again, aware of the magnitude of what he had just tools Kothar.

Kothar gave no response, and his face was stoic. He felt a great heaviness weigh down on him, and a knot wound itself in his throat, and gradually, starting from his center, a numbness spread.

Anteris watched on as Kothar froze up, and unbidden, a tear came to his eye. He remembered a similar evening, many years ago, when his own son had sat in the chair that Kothar now sat in, and Anteris had broken the news of his wife's death at the hands of the Imperial Armada.

Perhaps that had been the day when he had lost young Vanter, he hadn't left just then, but he had become withdrawn from that day on, drifting away and keeping to himself. Then one day, without a word, taking his ship south to the Empire.

"What else?" Kothar's voice was barely audible, halfway between a sigh and a croak. He struggled to speak, and the pain he felt was a testament to the real connection he had built up with Ophil and his family on Eclat. The only family he had ever known.

"Ursten is changed. The borders are patrolled by roving warbands from the noble houses, word from the Phintus federation and the Kalun border towns is that they're far worse than the bandits ever were. Rotan has increased taxes on the nobles, and they seek to bolster their wealth. Meanwhile, massive groups of young men and women are joining up. either the nobles' forces or King Rotan's army." Anteris looked sadly at Kothar, he reminded him so of Vanter, and like Vanter, Kothar had yet to shed a single tear.

"What of my father?" Again, Kothar's voice was imperceptible, and Anteris strained to hear him.

"If my sources are correct, your father was the driving force behind what Ursten has become. After your mother's death, he almost single-handedly routed the Kalun forces, and then took his army east, joining with his lieutenants and thoroughly crushing the Phintus. The Phintus have fled in their chips, while the bulk of his army is crushing any pockets of resistance. It seems that Phintus is well and truly done for." Anteris sighed, and looked fondly at Kothar, he knew that it was time for him to return home.

"Now that the war is mostly over, there's no reason for me to keep you here. I consider my duty done. I'll have a ship take you to Fisher's Point whenever you're ready." Anteris explained softly.

"I'll leave at dawn tomorrow." Kothar replied automatically, barely able to think. His mind was filled with images of what could have happened to Ophil, and he remembered the nightmares he had been having where she had been dead.

Silently, Kothar left the cozy orange glow of the study, and for the rest of the cold evening, wandered the cryptic halls of the mansion.

That night was filled with strange dreams, fitful sleep and heart-wrenching feeling of pain for Kothar. Anteris had left him a sealed letter, the guard who delivered it to kothar stated the Duke was away on important business, which was just as likely as the Duke having gotten far too drunk the night before.

'Waveskimmer' awaited Kothar at the docks, it was crewed by Anteris' black uniformed men, and was one of his many boats that patrolled his waters. The ship was angular and thin, and sliced through the water as if in fury, barely leaving a wake in the azure waters of the coastal seas. Waveskimmer hugged the coast as they made their way north, enroute to Ursten.

Kothar was given a cabin of his own, usually a luxury reserved for the Captain and First Mate, but given his deathly pale face and Anteris' high regard for him, the sailors made an exception for him.

He soon found his way to his hammock, and spent the journey to Ursten in deep sleep, lulled by the gentle rocking from the waves and sounds of the sea.

"Young Master! We're here!" A loud knocking woke Kothar, and he scrambled out of the small cabin he had slept in, almost running into the ship's mate who had woken him.

The journey from Newport to Fisher's point was short, and was made considerably shorter by the Beginner Wind Mage who kept the Windskimmer's sails full of wind, and the ship being built for chasing down smugglers and pirates, evidenced by the pointed iron plated ram that skulked beneath the water.

Kothar walked off the ship in a daze, lost in his thoughts of home and Ophil, wondering what their home would be like now, whether her flowers were watered, how his father was, when he heard a sudden shout.

"Kothar! Up here!" An all too familiar face leaned out of a window from an inn that gave a clear view of the pier. A weak smile cracked Kothar's grim face, and he walked slowly towards the inn.