The Bell Tolls for Me 74: Around the World

“Your Majesty, forgive me for disturbing you, but—"

Edgar reached his hand out and placed it over the Archwizard’s mouth in rage. Days upon days of hearing that same greeting had gotten under his skin. This sort of frustrating scenario was the last one that he wanted to endure upon being freed of his illness. It reminded him of some of the most desperate moments of his last life. The one in particular that came to mind was the Spring Rebellions. He’d been outnumbered almost twenty to one, and overcoming that situation had taken an eternity of attempts.

But this situation wasn’t like the ones that it came before. There wasn’t any risk of losing at all. There wasn’t anyone actively out to get him. There was just someone trying to get away, well-prepared and determined to succeed. Edgar had already been here a very long time. He made his fun where he could, but with things as they are, he was already growing incredibly impatient with circumstances being as they were.

“No scouting efforts have borne fruit. Either they’re moving faster than I thought possible, or they’re shielding their presence with magic.” Edgar lowered his hand.

“Your Majesty, I know some magics that might see past any—”

“Your methods didn’t work the last time, nor the other chances I gave you.” Edgar rose to his feet, more confident in this weakened body now. “The only idea that I have is recklessly catapulting boulders into the ocean where they might have gone. But that could take months, even years of trying—hitting nothing but the sea, time and time again.”

Edgar closed his eyes, thinking hard.

“I’m tired of this.” Edgar opened his eyes. “There are a few natural choke points in the ocean they have to pass through in the future. We’ll position ourselves to catch them going through those.”

The Archwizard watched with an uncertain expression. “Are you sure of this, Your Majesty?”

“It took me months to come to that decision,” he said. “I’m certain. Isabella has the wasting illness. Whether she’s nearby or very far away, the people working with her will try to keep her alive. There’s not a chance that they can reverse the magic without killing her, I’m certain.” Edgar opened his hand in and out. “I’ve been resting for far too long. It’s time for me to again take the throne. No one’s taken it from me before—and this time won’t be any different.”

“…still, Your Majesty, I’ll work to devise countermeasures,” the Archwizard suggested.

“No. You need to focus on intercepting them at any cost. We’ll only have a few chances to succeed—a few points in the map where it becomes impossible for any ship to avoid coming close enough to the coast to avoid capture.” Edgar rolled his shoulder. “Until then… it’s long overdue for the interregnum to end.”

He wouldn’t allow himself to be bogged down with defeat or resentment on this wondrous day his health began to revive. The return of the true king ought to be celebrated. He would begin a reign that would last for one thousand years, like the kings of old.

“I have an heir,” remarked Edgar, walking out of the room. “But an heir and a spare would be most ideal, yes?” He took a deep breath, exhaling. “Come. It’s time for my glorious return. It’s time to hear the bells ringing.”

***

Isabella groggily opened her eyes when she heard the ringing of bells. It was different from the sound of bells that she remembered. It took her a moment, but she placed them—the bells of the ship they were on. She moved, testing her body. Her body was growing heavier by the day. She could still walk for now, but that became more difficult every day. She sat up, walking toward the door while leaning against the bed frame, and then the wall.

Isabella opened the door to see most of the sailors and guardsmen out on the deck. They were looking at something in the distance. Isabella walked over to the railings, and as the ship lurched, very nearly fell over. She lifted her eyes to see what was coming. At once, her dark mood brightened as she saw someone staring back at her in the distance.

Valerio stood on the front railing of another ship opposite theirs, perched boldly as though he wasn’t afraid to fall overboard. Isabella clung to the railing as she moved to the front of the ship. When the boats seemed liable to meet, Valerio braced and jumped, and Isabella felt her heart beat faster in anticipation. He landed perfectly on the railing before her, hopped down, and then grabbed her in both his arms and lifted her up in an embrace. She clung to him, laughing.

Isabella had no idea how much she’d wanted Valerio to do that. With his arms around her, it was as though a heavy weight she’d been carrying alone had suddenly been taken off her shoulders.

“I missed you,” he said, repeating it a few times. “Gods, but I missed you. I felt as though I was missing a lung. It was like I couldn’t breathe without you around.”

“…you’re squeezing me tight enough I can’t breathe now,” Isabella said, lightly pushing against him. “Set me down, please.”

Valerio obeyed, but when he set her down immediately she staggered forth back again him. “Whoa. Are you…?”

“Yes. It went exactly as we predicted,” Isabella said, and Valerio looked grim. “Not that I didn’t miss you as well... but why are you here? I thought the agreement was to meet up at a port in Ambrose.”

“That was my doing, Your Majesty.” Isabella turned her head to see Arthur alight weightlessly on the railing of the ship, then step off to the deck. He kneeled and placed his hand on his chest. “Your Majesty. I’ve… I’ve much to say, but…”

“Then it was true.” Isabella stepped away from Valerio, but kept her hand on his arm. “You saved me. And… you even followed to be sure I would remain this way.” She let silence follow as she processed that information. This outcome had been on her mind for a long while. It had been spoken of in that vision. She didn’t think it’d come true, yet… here it was.

Arthur said nothing, blinking quickly to hold back tears as he spared glances at her. He swallowed, then managed, “I failed you. Here we are again, and I’m…”

Isabella reached a hand out and placed it on his shoulder. “Stand. And don’t call me Your Majesty—Isabella will suffice. I’m no longer the Queen any more than you are the Archwizard.”

Arthur rose to his feet. “But we remain who we are, Isabella. With myself, my talents, my skills earned over years of war and worse—and you, with your brilliance, your radiant composure.”

Valerio moved closer as Arthur gave praise. He put one arm behind her waist. “You should rest, Isabella.”

“Rather the contrary,” Arthur said firmly. “It makes little difference whether she’s walking around or lying in bed. The wasting illness will progress as it always does.” He met Valerio’s gaze. “I’m skeptical that something so powerful will be mitigated by whatever power you possess. I tried countless things to solve Isabella’s problem—the Archwizard tried countless more with Edgar.” He looked to her. “But rest assured, Isabella. Whatever happens, I won’t rest. I’ll be with you every step of the way.”

“You intend to come?” Isabella said, looking between him and Valerio. “Is that really…?”

“I think it’s unfortunately necessary.” Valerio put his hand over hers. “He knows things of Edgar. And… I’ll admit that he has become quite the force of nature in his own right. He saved my life. Given all he’s done, I think there’s no real risk in bringing him to the Ithilian.” Valerio looked at him. There was a strange pity in his eyes, but Isabella didn’t know why.

“I see. Still, I must ask again. Why are we not meeting at the port in Ambrose?” Isabella looked to Valerio.

“Because Edgar would capture you there, without a doubt,” Arthur explained. “Edgar would have you everywhere. There’s only one safe route.” He gestured toward Valerio. “It’s a route that I’ll admit that only the Duke of the Isles could take.”

***

Isabella leaned against the railing as she stared out into the distance. She saw something that was almost unbelievable. A gargantuan mountain of snow—or perhaps it was ice—adrift on seas of the clearest blue she’d ever seen. There were small islands of this ice spreading out on the sea, floating like wooden platforms.

“If we’re encountering ice…” Isabella began, looking to Arthur.

“Indeed. We’ve gone north,” Arthur confirmed. “That’s why Valerio needs to remain focused to the utmost. One wrong move, the ship could capsize. Still, not half so risky as going south. If we were to go south as we had been, I have little doubt that Edgar would have engineered a trap for us. He understands what it is to trap enemies. He’s been doing it for centuries.”

“Centuries?” Isabella repeated.

“Mmm.” Arthur nodded. “Repeating the same day, again and again. That’s what he does. Week after week, month after month, year after year. But he is still human. I imagine the only reason that you escaped was because you made things difficult enough for him that he got frustrated. He’s underestimated you. I hope… this time, it can be his downfall.”

Isabella looked back out to the ocean. As she watched the distant platforms of ice adrift on the sea, she gasped in delight when she spotted something that Abigail had sketched a million times.

“A seal!” Isabella said, then cleared her throat to calm herself. They both watched it with an intense curiosity. Eventually, Isabella looked to him. “And the link the Archwizard formed between me and him… there’s no way to simply remove it?”

Arthur looked depressed. “If I were to give a metaphor, I would liken it to a barbed arrow. It’s stuck in firmly. Pulling it out would rip out great chunks of your soul—killing you at worst, vegetablizing you at best.” He looked at her. “It’s an angle that I considered many times over.”

“All those years, I had no idea that you were so devoted,” Isabella said. “I…”

“Devoted? There’s no forgiving what I’ve done.” Arthur looked out to the sea. “I… with Bernadetta, I…”

“You allowed her to get in?”

Arthur didn’t say anything, but he nodded. It stung her a little.

“Even if that’s true, you gave me another life. I’d say that evened it out,” Isabella suggested, then smiled.

Arthur looked at her. “I missed you.”

Isabella looked away out at the ocean immediately. She didn’t quite know what to say. But then, being silent helped no one. Even though the claws of guilt clutched her heart, it was better to speak now than to draw this out painfully.

“I love Valerio,” she said, her voice a half-whisper. It was a truth she’d barely accepted herself, and vocalized for the first time today.

Arthur sighed and leaned up against the railing. Then, he nodded. “I know.” He drummed his fingers on the railing for a bit. “It’s… better this way. For everyone.”

Isabella looked at him. “What do you mean?”

“What I’ve done, Isabella…” Arthur shook his head. “It’s a trick. I used your ability to facilitate my own return. But my body isn’t like yours. My mind isn’t like yours. I don’t have the hereditary predisposition that people like you and Edgar do. Even if things were different… it couldn’t work out.”

Isabella’s throat clenched as she worked through what he was saying. “You mean… you don’t mean… surely not, right?”

“The things I did… I can’t live that down. I’m not who you think I am. It’s better for everyone that it happens this way.”

“What way?” Isabella demanded. “What way, Arthur?”

Arthur smiled, staring out at the ocean. “I want you to be happy. That’s why I came here. I knew what I was doing long before I got into this. It was my choice, not yours.”

Isabella pushed him, but it was so weak it was pathetic. “What exactly is going to happen to you? Will you die? What is it?!”

Arthur sighed. “I shouldn’t have even brought it up. No, I won’t die—and I did, I’d keep it quiet, because I don’t intend to leave you with that guilt. But ‘me,’ as you know me… will regress. Day by day, I’ll lose memories. I’m already losing some. It’ll continue to progress back to the day that you returned. In short, both of the ‘me’s’ that you knew will be gone. It’ll be as if I’ve returned to before we met.”

Isabella exhaled as tension left her. She’d been fearing for the worst, but this was still quite the devastating affliction. “How fast is it progressing?”

Arthur shrugged. “I don’t know. That’s why I intend to dedicate myself to writing down all the pivotal information.”

“You should focus instead on figuring out how to reverse what you have,” Isabella suggested.

Arthur scoffed. “Believe me, there’s a lot that I’d like to forget. What’s more important is putting an end to Edgar the Great. I need to bury him before I forget what kind of abomination he is.” He gripped the railing firmly. “And if Valerio’s power can’t save you… I need to think about what must be done next.”

***

Roderick read the note that had been delivered to him. One line in particular stood out to him like nothing else.

Isabella will be arriving, likely on the…

Provided that nothing went wrong… the princess herself would be coming to the Sylvath Delta. She would meet the Ithilian, see their city, speak with their leaders. It was utterly beyond expectations, in his view—a Princess of Dovhain, among the first humans to come to their civilization.

And yet Roderick rolled the paper, set it down, and set out to prepare for their arrival. He had a feeling this visit would fundamentally change elven society, or perhaps even the fate of both their nations.

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