Richard
He had let his frustration and disappointment out on Rowland. That was the conclusion Richard had come to after replaying the event in his head over days of deliberation. He told himself that he would apologize, as soon as he saw his old protégé.
That gesture, which he swore to himself he would carry through with, had been delayed. Richard had not seen the young man in nearly a week now. He had made some casual, indirect inquires by mentioning Rowland’s name to other herbalists in the royal laboratory, but no one had any sense of where the young man was. Had he already disappeared with the two goons from the Shark Eye? Richard would have believed so, if not for another detail that he felt was more than a coincidence.
Esther, the royal herbalist, had been absent as well. One day, she had entered the laboratory muttering to herself frantically after a meeting with the Divine King. She had taken some notebooks from a shelf and disappeared. She had not been seen or heard from since. Carlisle insisted she was occupied and could not be bothered. No one else was brave enough to even chance a guess.
It was midday and Richard was performing a test to measure reactions between the seeds of the glorifican flower from the island of Kinorick and a fungus found locally. The fungus was an untested ingredient, but its bright red color hinted at potential. Over the years, the study of herbalism had developed a number of guidelines which had been recorded and which were followed by serious herbalists. One was that plants and fungi with brighter colors were more likely to have properties which could affect the human body. The petals of the glorifican flower were an intense yellow, a color which reminded Richard of the sun at midday. Not that I can view it from within this cell.
That was how he now viewed the royal laboratory. He had nearly forgotten what it felt and looked like to be outside during daylight hours.
He swirled a glass vial containing the two ingredients along with an equal portion of fisilin, all of which had been mashed in a mortar and then placed in boiling water before being combined in the vial. The mix resulted in a slimy brown concoction which clung to the sides of the glass. While there was no visible change in the substance, the true test would come later. This was the initial testing of the two ingredients and the catalyst of the filisin. Glorifican was used with other ingredients in tonics which increased the amount of time one could hold their breath under water. Esther had wished for it to be tested further in these respects.
What was Esther searching for? She had said the laboratory’s development was focused on the military, yet this offshoot of research did not seem related.
She is lying to us. Not exactly a revelation. Oh, how I detest the Crown.
He had not visited the Shark Eye since his last visit with Rowland and Frederick. The latter continued to be a patron each night, but Richard did not want to risk a chance of seeing the two fanatics again, and so had simply gone home at the end of the day. The lack of a numbing agent in his brain had not had a positive effect on his mood. He felt tenser and more agitated as each day passed, keeping to himself when possible, and attempting to lose himself in his work. It had not been a successful strategy thus far.
Steps from behind caused him to pause and look over his shoulder. Rowland stood, or rather held himself up, against a wall as he looked at Richard. The young man looked gaunt and ghastly, his skin had lost color and drooping bags hung under his eyes.
Richard placed the vial he had been holding into a wooden rack and gave his full attention to his former student.
“Rowland?”
“What day is it?”
“The 17th of autumn.”
“I must sit.”
Richard pulled a stool out from under his work station and helped Rowland onto it. The young man closed his eyes and said nothing.
“Where have you been?” Richard asked.
“I’m not sure,” Rowland said, his voice faint. “I’m sorry, Richard… I’m… exhausted.”
“Lay your head down. I will find a better place for you to rest.”
Rowland’s entrance into the lab had been noted by the other herbalists. As Richard searched for a suitable location for Rowland to lie down, the other workers stood silently, watching his every move, looks of concern and unease on their faces.
The main workshop of the laboratory was not designed for comfort. The only pieces of furniture one could use for rest were the backless stools. Richard noted that Carlisle was absent now as well. He took advantage of this to begin checking other rooms. Although more than two months had passed since he was conscripted, he had only seen a handful of the rooms in the royal laboratory. Carlisle monitored the employees studiously, only allowing them to visit certain rooms, and only at specified times. Richard did not recall seeing any place a person could truly rest, but he also knew Esther spent most of her nights in the lab. Certainly, there was a cot somewhere.
Eyes still on him, Richard looked back and shrugged at his coworkers. Then he opened the door to the large meeting room. Inside, as he knew, there was nothing but a table and chairs. But off to the right and left of the room were other doors. Doors he had never been through and did not know to where they led. When Esther would leave a meeting to visit Oslian, she took the door on the left. Richard went to the right and opened the door.
Like all of the rooms in the facility, there were no windows. Richard found an oil lamp and lit it. The room was smaller than he had expected, and full of notebooks, with but one door straight ahead. Was it truly worth the risk to have Rowland lie down somewhere they both knew was implicitly forbidden? What could the possible punishment be? It did not seem to be an intelligent risk to take. Curiosity had overpowered his better judgement. What else existed in the royal laboratory?
The next room likewise held notebooks, but led in three other directions. He was about to continue forward when his eye caught a reflection in the lamp light. His every move now feeling as though it would be his last before he was detected, he slowly walked over to the door on his right, where he saw the source of the reflection. A small pool of water had formed under the door. When he placed his hand on the wooded door, he felt a slight chill. Pausing to ensure he was not being watched, he took a deep breath and gently pushed the door open.
The air inside was cold enough to make him shiver. Richard held the lamp high and surveyed his surroundings. Blocks of ice covered the walls, the floor layered with melted water. At first glance, there did not appear to be anything other than the ice blocks. There were no other doors than the one he had entered through. A few steps forward showed indentations in the side of the blocks. On both sides of the room, fit snuggly between the ice, Richard saw the reason the room needed to be kept so chill. Glass jars with stoppered cork tops sat on small shelves. Inside each jar was a red liquid. Richard did not need to do further investigating to know what the liquid was.
Rowland’s appearance. It was as if his body had been… drained.
He thought back to what Rowland had told him about Esther and his grandfather. He could not believe his grandfather would have done something like this. The man had spent his life protecting others. As for Esther, the evidence was directly in front of him. He did not believe Rowland’s condition was a coincidence. Despite the cold of the room, Richard felt a heat rise within him. It was the heat of outrage, a fire which one enjoys seeing grow. He turned to leave before looking back at the shelves. Without evidence, the others would have reason to doubt him. Holding a jar of his friend’s blood was not an appetizing prospect, but he knew he did not want to risk returning to this room. Closing his eyes, he lifted a jar, then hurried back to the workshop.
As eyes turned to him as he entered the room, Richard made no effort to conceal what he was holding. Now and again as he would meet the eyes of a fellow herbalist, confirming their fears without words. Their employer was a monster who had broken the unwritten rules of herbalism. It was people like Esther who gave the profession a negative reputation and invited herbalism to be seen as witchcraft by the ignorant. This woman who claimed to have worked with his grandfather; she was a disgrace to his legacy. Richard was tempted to reveal her to the rest of the world as well. He would have, if not for the overreaction he knew would follow. If people saw that one herbalist was delving into the use of human blood, they would quickly lump together all the others, and violence would follow. Restraint was not one of humanity’s strengths.
He found Rowland still sleeping. Though he did not wish to wake the man who had obviously been through much over the past week, he needed answers. He nudged Rowland’s shoulder until the man moved his head and made a whimpering noise.
“What is this?” Richard asked, holding the jar to Rowland’s eyes.
“It’s mine. She gave me no choice; said I would be imprisoned if I didn’t cooperate.”
“Why did she do this to you?”
“I arrived after a night of too much ale. She said she was curious as to the effect alcohol would have on… I don’t remember what. I don’t remember much at all, Richard.”
“What is she planning on doing with this?”
“I don’t know. She didn’t tell me. I need to rest now.”
He believed that. The young man looked awful. It was difficult to make out his words, and as soon as Richard stopped talking Rowland fell back into a deep sleep.
He was disgusted that he had helped this organization and its demonic leader. But what could he do? As soon as he missed a single day of work, someone would begin searching for him. He felt trapped, but also knew he was not thinking clearly enough, so blinded by rage as he was. Then an alternative course of action came to him. If he could not leave, that did not mean he had to aid in the production of immorally developed tonics. Instead, he could sabotage the process.
Everyone else had seen the blood, and Richard was sure they had come to the same conclusion. But who could he trust? Only one person came to mind. He left his station to seek him out.
Frederick was seated at his workstation, his head in his hands. Richard approached from in front of him and saw that the man was staring off at an undetermined point on the room. He did not show any indication of even recognizing Richard’s presence.
“Rowland is not well,” Richard said.
Frederick slowly looked up at him, his head still in his hands. “Who could be after that?”
“Did you know she was doing this? Has she done it before?”
“I had suspicions. But there was never any overt evidence. She’s desperate now. You can see it in the way she speaks. Her words are frantic and she moves from one topic to the next without segues.”
“Where has she gone?”
“Collapsed from exhaustion is my guess. I arrived early the other day, unable to sleep after the Shark Eye closed. She was still here, working. She looked at me when I entered and called me Oslian. She was delusional, Richard. Something is pushing her even more than before, and that is saying quite a lot, as the woman is the hardest working person I’ve ever seen.”
“And Carlisle?”
“Checking on her, I assume. He has no idea how to run this operation. If she falls ill, he will not be promoted, he will be replaced.”
“This place deserves to burn down.”
“Are you making an offer?”
“I would if I could do it without losing my life. I have another idea instead.”
“Sabotage?”
“How did you know?”
“You don’t think I’ve thought of it myself? It’s good that you came to me. One person alone would be flushed out by the data and stand out quickly. But with two people, or three if your friend ever recovers, we can cover each other’s tracks, at least for a while.”
“You’re willing to risk it?”
“I am. I cannot continue this way, Richard. I was drinking to fall asleep so I could forget about my life. That no longer works. I have nothing and nowhere to go. But maybe I can take this bitch down with me. The question is, are you willing to risk your life?”
“You think we can’t pull this off without being discovered?”
“For a time. Or, if Esther were to fall ill… or...”
Neither man spoke for a long moment.
“Put that out of your mind,” Frederick said. “Oslian would see right through it. Do not think he would hesitate for a second to kill us all if she went down.”
The sound of a door slamming open diverted the attention of the two men. Richard saw Carlisle walk through the entrance, his head barely visible over the large crate he was carrying. The man stopped, then, using his knee to hold the crate, he turned to look back at the entrance. Richard heard a methodic tapping. A few seconds later, the royal herbalist appeared. She looked even older than before, frail now, her back hunched over a cane. She did not speak as she gestured for Carlisle to place the crate down before a workstation. He struggled to put it down without dropping it, but finally succeeded. The man then stood up, making great pains to hide how taxing the effort had been. Panting, he leaned down while Esther whispered something to him. As the old woman leaned on her cane for support, Carlisle stepped forward and looked over the laboratory before calling for everyone’s attention, as if they had not all been staring at the two recent arrivals from the moment the door opened.
Richard looked over at Frederick. The man’s expression was unreadable. He simply looked away and walked toward Carlisle. Richard stayed back for a few seconds, wondering what this was all about, and how he could keep Rowland hidden now that the royal herbalist and her lapdog had returned.
Do they even know he is alive? Did he escape from them? How much does Carlisle know? He was unlikely to get answers, but standing where he was, mouth agape, was not an option. Richard followed the others who had formed a small crowd in front of Carlisle and Esther.
The elderly woman’s eyes tracked from one herbalist to the next, across the entire staff. Richard was relieved when her visage did not change when meeting his eyes. She simply moved on to the next person, leaving him feeling secure that she had no idea he had left the main laboratory just minutes earlier.
“I have been unavoidably disposed for the past few days. You will find on the floor a crate containing my latest research notes regarding the efficacy of heretofore untested ingredients. I will return tomorrow morning. In the meantime, it is imperative that you all read my findings and are prepared to continue on the path I have begun.”
Esther swallowed then and licked her dry lips. When she looked out across the staff, Richard saw a dullness in her eyes. They were the eyes of someone who had been stretched beyond her limits.
“There are sections of the notes which are missing. Do not concern yourself with them. Follow the information you see. I will return in the morning.”
With that, she shifted her weight and slowly turned toward the door she had entered through. Carlisle’s eyes did not leave her as he followed in her footsteps, careful to walk at her pace. Richard watched the door close behind them.
The room was silent. No one made to move for the notebooks in the crate. After a few moments, Frederick stepped next to Richard and motioned him away from the group. They went to the far side of the room, behind a wall which blocked them from the sight of the others.
“What do you think?” Frederick asked.
“They won’t be back until the morning. We should get Rowland out of here. He can sleep at my house.”
“And afterwards?”
“I refuse to partake in this any longer,” Richard said. “I will feign illness. Better yet, I will drink enough that it will not be an act. Frederick, we cannot use research based on interactions with human blood.”
“She was working this whole time,” Frederick said, shaking his head in disbelief.
“What has caused her to sink to this level of desperation?”
Frederick looked Richard hard in the eyes. “There is only one thing Esther cares about. This is because of Oslian. I don’t know his reasons, but I know this is for him. He has demanded something and she would willingly die to provide it.”
“This is immoral. The woman has lost her humanity.”
“Richard, take advantage of this time and get the kid out of here. Hide Rowland somewhere. It’s likely they have no idea he returned to the lab.”
“Do you think anyone will give him away?”
Frederick shook his head. “Not now. Not after they saw what you were carrying. I don’t think they can hold up to an interrogation, but they won’t willingly offer up the information either. Now go. If Carlisle comes back, I’ll distract him.”
Richard held out his hand and the two men shook. “Thank you. You’re a good man,” he said.
Frederick did not reply.
It was a challenge to wake Rowland, but eventually Richard was able to get the young man on his feet. He escorted him out of the laboratory, heads turning to face their slow march of defiance. The guards halted them, but Richard invented a story about his friend being dismissed for drunkenness, and the guards were only too happy to accept it.
Spend enough time working under abusive conditions and you begin to delight in the pain and discomfort of others. I need to leave this operation, or the same will happen to me.
It took a considerable amount of time for the two men to arrive in the Jasper district where Richard lived. Too weak to support himself, the burden of Rowland’s weight, along with the heat of the day, forced Richard to pause every few hundred paces. When passerby would look at them askew, Richard would mentally repeat his line about Rowland’s drunkenness, as if saying it in his head would convince the stranger.
At the local well, Richard retrieved some water for Rowland and offered him some flatbread he purchased from a bakery which was about to close for the day. The dry unleavened bread did not have much flavor, which Richard thought would be best under the circumstances. It was clear Rowland had not eaten in some time, and he was only able to get a few bites down before shaking his head and falling asleep where he sat. It took a substantial amount of time to get him up again.
Nearly two hours had passed before Richard saw the roof of his house. Stumbling to hold himself and his friend upright, Richard was only a few dozen paces away before he looked up and saw the front door. From the front window, a face looked out at him. A face of terror and sorrow. His old friend, Lydee.
Absolutely compelling.
First class.