Rumors About Nicklos

"Has our Prisoner spoken yet?" I asked approaching the jail cell that Emmanuel was staying in. It was so dark and gloomy down in the dungeon that even I was starting to feel uncomfortable. There where no windows to illuminate the dark and decrepit room. The air was full of moisture and it stank heavily of stale mold. I swear I felt like I was swallowing an ocean every time I inhaled. We seldom have any prisoners, at least ones worthy of keeping around. Negligence was the key reason the dungeon had gotten so bad, but at this rate having a maid clean down here would be beyond punishment. Hopefully, he would speak up soon so we wouldn't have to keep coming down here.

"Ah greetings Princess Alliah! No, I unfortunately regret to inform that he has refused to say a single word. He has a very strong will power. I don't think basic torture is going to get anything out of him." Marquise spoke as he bowed. His blonde hair had been tucked over his shoulders and tied with a ribbon down at the base. The fake smile he put on, had fell away once I stood before him. We both turned to watch Emmanuel who was sitting crouched on the ground, a rope tied tightly around his wrists. His head was bent forward as he breathed, heavily panting from exertion from his recent beatings. His gash had appeared on his forehead, bleeding down his face and into his eyes. His clothes had started to form holes from the rough treatment he was receiving, making him look more like a bandit than before.

"Make sure our 'guest' is treated for his wounds. The last thing we need is our informant dying right before we get what we need. But, if you need to, break his bones. Illia is a possible intended target for an assassination. We need to stop that at all costs." I glared at Emmanuel's crumpled form, his shoulders rising and falling. I wanted to do nothing more that to bash his skull in with the butt of my sword, but I still had to hold my vision as a future Queen. Such acts would cause more of a stir, and I didn't want or need any more heat.

"As you wish Your Majesty." Marquise bowed slightly before turning to leave but stopped before he could finish walking down the hallway. "I know it is none of my business my Lady, but there is a rumor going around about Prince Nicklos. Given the nature of your friendship, I would advise that you take caution in his presence." I kept my eyes fixed on Emmanuel as he spoke. Thankfully Nicklos was summoned to my father's study earlier this morning, so he was not in attendance. I told Nicklos I would wait for his reply, but if Marquise was bringing this to my attention, then it had to be something serious.

"And what rumor is that Marquise? It's not like you to be worried about me." I stated blandly. A soft chuckle came from his direction. I am so glad that I appeared amusing to him. I thought bitterly.

"You are a remarkable human being Your Majesty, I not only pledge my life to serve you, but I will follow you till the day I die. It would be a shame that my future Queen would be mixed up with something so dangerous." He paused for a moment, clearing his throat. "As for the rumor, he appears to be a dangerous man. Last year I heard he went on a rampage at his father's request and slaughtered thousands of people. I am still gathering information on this rumor, but I figured you should know. If this onslaught was conducted out of the guidelines of the Knight order, he will be tried and sentenced based on our laws. We don't need a rouge dirtying our reputation. It's already bad enough that we have so little in our ranks. That last thing we need is another reason for people to look down upon us." Marquise stated. I turned to face him, knowing he was talking about my presence amongst the Knights. He didn't mean anything ill by it, I knew that much. If only people saw women in a different light, we might even be able to train more Knights.

"I appreciate your concern. If you happen to find anything more, write to me discretely. Nicklos is still very much my friend, and I will not judge him until I have facts sitting before me. I will head your caution and take necessary measures in the future." The last thing I wanted was getting wrapped up in this drama as well. There was just too much sitting on my plate, and I didn't want to get sidetracked because of some fact less based rumors. It wasn't hard to just open your mouth and start spreading lies.

"I will do as you ask, your Majesty. One more thing, General Bregus came down earlier in search of you. I think he said something about your father and dinner arrangements?" I gave a disgruntled sigh. I really didn't want to deal with my father right now, especially when I had so much to do, but I also couldn't just ignore him either. I was still ticked at him for last night, forcing Nicklos to sleep in my room without a damn cot. What a formidable man.

"Anything else Marquise?" There was a moment of silence from him, almost like he was trying to draw out the suspense in the room.

"I think that was everything I could think of Your Majesty. If I have anything else, I will write to you. Please enjoy the rest of your day." I watched him go, hands tucked behind his back as he went. I waited until I could no longer see the outline of his form before turning my direction back to the dazed Emmanuel. I grasped the oily and dirty bars in my hands, forming fists around them. Nicklos, what exactly are you hiding from me? You went on a rampage at your father's request. Not only does that sound uncharacteristically like you, but why hasn't anyone else heard of this?

If you weren't already acting weird about this secret of yours, I would have dismissed the thought. I hope you come forward about this rumor before I find out in my own ways. The last thing I want is to distrust you because I didn't hear it from you first. Is this something I should bring up to him? Should I demand he tell me what was going on? I didn't want to see him in pain again, but these allegations where serious. If the Council where to even find out about these allegations he would be thrown behind bars and tried. If they find him guilty, then he would face the punishment of a rouge Knight and he would not only be stripped of his title as a disgrace, but also, he would be beheaded for breaking Knight code. We weren't supposed to go around murdering without reason. In fact, no one is supposed to just go around murdering for fun. I had to get to the bottom of this before the Council get here. I owed him that much after all these years.

But what if he was guilty of committing such a crime? Could I really just sit back and watch my best friend get executed? Regardless of our romantic feelings for each other, he was always there to help me when I was in trouble. But I also had my duties to the throne, and I doubt father would let me interfere if he where to be sentenced to death. I had no choice but to find out who was behind these rumors, and to silence them. One thing about what Marquise said bothered me too. He was right about the lack of Knights.

My father started the order of the Knights when I was just a child. It was basically a program that weeded out the weak from the elite. Only those that could keep up with the handily strong ones where permitted to train, and that is a reason why there is so very few of us. Over the years, fewer and fewer people even bothered applying because of how intense the training was. People had even started calling the Knight Order supernatural and ungodly because of our strength, speed, and will power. It was all rumors obviously so that only the ones who were strong and brave apply. But it was starting to back fire and only a few of us where left. Nicklos, Marquise, General Bregus, Uriah, and a few other, plus myself.

I needed to find a way to promote the Order of the Knights without getting rid of the intimidating aspect of it. The purpose was only to train the strongest of the strong after all. So much to do, and so little time to do it.

"Sounds like you have quite the predicament Princess Alliah, what will you do?" Emmanuel said laughing darkly in his stall. He slowly brought his head up, his one eye meeting mine. There was no light behind his eye, almost like he was just ready to give up. So, I smiled at him, knowing exactly what that feeling felt like, when you felt like nothing was going your way and the motivation was gone. But I had no sympathy for him. He was the enemy after all.

"Don't worry your pretty little head about my problems and focus on your own. You will give me what I want eventually Emmanuel, and when you do, I will personally see to it that I slit your throat. Don't keep me waiting." I let go of the greasy bars and dragged my hands on the fabric of my pants. Suddenly, the state of the prison seemed fitting.

"You have no idea what is in store for your precious Kingdom madam. I hope that you enjoy the show. I can't wait to see the despair on your face when you lose absolutely everything. I can guarantee that you will fall." Another dark chuckle escaped him that slowly turned into maniacal laughing. He tossed his head back as he continued, causing the space to fill with unease and dread. There was something very unsettling about this man. All his marbles where definitely not present, and he would have to be handled with extreme caution.

"We shall see about that Emmanuel. I do hope you enjoy your next bout of torture. I will personally make sure that they treat you 'well'." I said smiling as his laughter continued. I turned down the hall, wanting to get far away from this lunatic as possible. I don't even think the extreme amounts of torture will get him to crack, but we couldn't just sit back and wait for the inevitable. From the way he spoke, there was something large at play, and I didn't want to wait around to witness it. It was my job to stop this and stop it I would.