The Man With Connections

Kingdom Ka'Pucao

The markets in the kingdom were filled with all kinds of people, both local and foreigners; most of them would come for the mere purpose of buying and selling their merchandise while a handful of them, would come for other reasons ―to gather information.

Due to the humidity and the crowd, it felt hotter on this day. Anyone could feel an elbow or the sweat of someone else at some point while walking through the open path made of dirt. The noises invaded the place, the smell of fish was the strongest as it would travel among the stalls, and the many colors that surrounded the area gave the impression as if it was a festival.

Only those that knew this place could move freely since they would know where to go, who to speak, and what not to do in certain places.

Adam knew these markets as the palm of his hand; while everyone around here knew the kind of person he was as well. This day he came with a coat covering his full body ―since catching the attention of any soldier could be suspicious―, to receive information from those he knew, who were so swiftly, that not even the guards of the King would notice their presence.

Walking into a wooden stall, at the very end, there was a door, where he had to knock in a certain way in order to into a small house.

He knocked three times in a row and after pausing, he slowly knocked two times, ending with three knocks in a row.

Looking behind, Adam took the hood off his head.

"Oh, it's you. Come in," a gravelly voice said after an eye with thick eyebrow sneaked at a small hole through the wood.

The door was opened and Adam, as if it were his own home, walked in.

This place had four brick walls in an area where fifty people could freely walk around, the sun was blocked by a roof made of dried palm leaves and other wooden rods.

Many men and women, all of them talking to each other, were all over the place. After surfing his eyes horizontally, he found the person he was looking for.

As he walked to a corner, a few people would greet him from afar, lifting their hands while shouting his name.

"Ooh! look what we have here! Ha haaa!" a tall and muscular man, with scars on his face, hastily stood up and walked toward him with a big smile and arms extended.

"It's been a long time, Kasatra," Adam said.

Kasatra was about two heads taller than Adam, and after stopping next to him, put his big naked arm around Adam's shoulder.

"First of all," Kasatra leaned over and said with his rough voice, "I feel devastated for what happened to the royal family. Were you the only survivor?"

"Yes… I fear that is correct."

"Well, you can tell me all about it once we sit down and have some drinks. It's good to have you back on the boat. Come 'ere."

Walking to the corner that Kasatra was sitting before seeing Adam, he lifted his arm up and shouted.

"Hey! bring two drinks o'er here please!"

Both sat down and the drinks were served. Kasatra taking the first gulp, put the cup of wine on the wooden table, and said.

"Now tell me what really happened?"

Leaning back, Adam drank some wine as well and started with his point of view of the story.

Every time he would mention the royal family, especially the name "Alya" his throat would swallow up, so each time this happened, he had to take another gulp of wine. It was too painful to remember every image, every sound and detail. He needed to take this sting off his chest.

Maybe this visit helped him more than he had initially planned.

"I see…," Kasatra scratched his eyes, "It must be hard having seen the girl you love suffer this much."

"Yes, it was… wait what!?" a heat ran up to his head all of the sudden.

"Every single thing you told me was about the princess! And how you still think she is alive somewhere; it's written all over your forehead that you are in love with the princess!"

"N-no… I…" Adam had no choice but to drink until the last drop of the cup, "You know I'm not allowed!"

"Ha, ha, ha, ha!" Kasatra almost fell from his small wooden chair, "love is love! Don't hide it boy!"

The sting that was replaced by a warm feeling, now it felt worse.

"Stop it!"

"Ha, ha, ha! Okay… Okay boy… so here is the thing!" Kasatra came back to a more serious expression, "I think I know where you are trying to get with all this…"

"Really?"

"You want to know who is responsible for the attack…"

"Yes!"

"Then I'll help you find out, but since we are talking about the Royal Family, the price will go up."

"No problem…" Adam reached on his belt and threw a bag to the table, "Take it as the deposit."

It was a bag full of gold coins. Kasatra's eyes almost came out of his head.

"How… how did you get… all this gold!?"

"I have my connections in the palace… adding to that, you are talking with the new general of the King's armies."

"You? But you are like 17 or 18? How did you get that position?"

"And here is the other part I wanted to tell you," Adam leaned over and whispered, "I accepted this position which opens many doors to investigate about the massacre, because I believe that the King is involved in all these."

"Isn't that obvious?"

"Hah?"

"When King Fu was general, he used to take some of my partner's men to the north as escorts. My partner never knew why he did those trips since he'd ask his men to wait in the forest every time he had his meetings. Why would he pay my partner's men to escort him…?"

"Knowing that he has an army… he could take anyone with a snap of his fingers."

"Exactly…," Kasatra took a deep breath, "…and did you see the new guards he has? He made a whole change of the royal guards right after being crowned."

"Yeah… I noticed it too."

"I've never seen those guards in the kingdom or even the country…"

"So, you think they are men from the North?"

"That's what my men and I believe."

"Let me tell you boy, my connections have informed me that an internal revolution is going to happen very soon in the Kingdom of the North and that's why they are getting ready to leave that country."

"Really? How is that possible?"

"Well, my connections say that their leader prefers to be called 'Master' since this man holds the powers that can control the trees, rocks and even move the mountains…"

"You said… he can control… all that?" Adam remembered the man who fought with Alya back in the forest.

"Yes. Adding to that, this man holds an intelligence beyond our comprehension, capable of making hundreds no, even thousands, follow him."

"So, you think King Fu is…"

"A follower of this monster? It's highly possible…"

"Then if that is the case, in any moment the kingdom could…"

"It could fall under the hands of this man."

"If this is all true, how would we get back the kingdom?"

"There is only one person that could prevent this to happen." Kasatra pointed to Adam, "and that is, the person you believe is still alive."

"The Princess…"

Was this the reason why they targeted the Princess? If King Fu were an ally to the man that wanted to kill the Princess then, what would happen if she came back?

No, if the Princess appeared at this moment then, she would be easy prey. Something was telling him she was still alive, and if that were true, he needed to find her and prepare beforehand the forces that would fight to get the kingdom back to its true heir.

"So, should we search for the princess?" Adam would not dare to look to Kasatra's eyes.

"No," but this answer made him look, "let's wait and gather more information. Besides, your position of general does not guarantee that the armies would listen to your voice, since the one who holds the highest authority, is the King. He could command them to kill you. So let's gather more information, and if our speculations are true, we would need to ally with as many people as we can for a potential war."

"I understand. I will gain the favor of the King and the armies, and once we can confirm it, we will act."