Chapter 26 - Coming Clash

"He said they will be stationed at the southern gate in the next two days" Harold delivered Quentin's words to James.

James had sent him out to Quentin to notify him about the next phase of the plan. He would need the presence of the soldiers to go on.

"Isn't that a little bit too late?" James had thought Quentin would deliver faster than that.

"The next two days will be upon us in no time" Harold smiled at James impatience.

"I just remembered something" James scratched a side of his head as he delved into deep thought.

"Won't our patrols notice something strange when an army of two hundreds appeared at the gate without being seen before reaching the gate. That might affect our plan a little bit" he concluded.

"I think Quentin had also put that in consideration. The armies would be seen marching towards the gate and there would be nothing anyone can do to stop them except you" Harold smiled, he surely had something at the back of his mind that he wasn't telling James right now.

"Except me?" James didn't understand his words coupled with his strange joy.

"Yeah, he gave me this" Harold brought out something. It was a well wrapped package.

"You will use this to control them, their strength, their end and everything like that" he handed the package to him.

"What is this?" James was about tearing it out of the wrap.

"No!" Harold yelled to stop him. "Until its need arise. It should remain wrapped" he warned.

James walked towards his inner chamber. He was going to hide that somewhere.

"Wait!" Harold had skid to his back. "I don't think you can keep that here. Your chamber is not safe enough to hold this" he quickly grabbed his hand with the package.

James held on to the package. He stared into Harold's eyes. He didn't want to leave the package for him.

"Did Quentin say that?" he asked.

"No. I just think with that witch here. We need to be more careful every time" Harold finally took the package from him.

"She is not a witch. She is just a very smart maid" James said to himself. "So where are you going to put that?" he asked Harold.

"I will not tell you. She obviously has a way of getting words from your mouth. For safety purpose. It should also remain a secret to you" Harold held the package to his side like he was avoiding James.

"You think I am the one telling her everything she knows?" James asked in surprise.

"All those things are between the two of us. So if not from you, who else?" Harold said straight to him.

"I will never do that" James believed he would never be that foolish to divulge their secrets to her.

"This women, they are expert in deceit, you will be spilling before you realize it" he was surely never going to believe James no matter how he kept denying.

"Whatever you say it is" James succumbed to him. "But make sure that package remains intact when its needs arise" he warned him with a threatening voice.

"It is safer with me than you" Harold affirmed.

"So we will be on our own during the war. Quentin is not going to show up" James knew that for sure. The package was going to be used for everything they would need him for.

"James" Harold called softly. "He wasn't in support of this wholeheartedly" Harold revealed with a sad face.

"And you?" James noticed his countenance.

"It is your war. You will fight it any way you deem fit" he proclaimed and walked outwards.

James watched him and shook his head. They didn't agree with him in trying to convince his father. He was sure he would be convinced but Harold and Quentin believed it would not work.

"You will see what happens next" he boasted.

"There is nothing that will happen than you becoming disappointed and regret not taking this chance to do what is necessary" Harold turned back to face him.

"I will remind you, you said that" James chuckled.

They just wanted him to kill his father like that. He was not going to do that. His father had just been misled by the prophecy. He would correct that.

"And I will remind you, you didn't believe" he also chuckled and turned back to move out.

One of them would be right and James was damn sure it would be him if he executed this successfully.

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Julia walked slowly into Michael's chamber. There was nothing else she could do than telling him everything.

Michael was in his inner chamber, dressing up. He was about putting on his shirt when Julia got to him.

She held the shirt and stopped him from wearing it. Michael looked at her, he smiled. He obviously didn't understand what she was up to.

"You don't like the shirt?" he asked her with smiles.

Julia didn't bother to respond. She hugged him and fell over her back to the bed. She wanted him to be joyous before she would tell him.

"You dreamed of me throughout the night?" Michael was still in confusion. She was holding him very tight to her body.

"He has caught me" she groaned.

"Yes. I have caught you from a long time ago" he giggled and tried to kiss her.

"He has found out" Julia avoided his kiss and breathed heavily.

"You mean James discovered you? Then that is nothing to worry about" he chuckled and wanted to continue with his smooching.

Suddenly, he stopped abruptly and flew up from the bed.

"We have to get you to somewhere safe or you will be killed" he had become unsettled.

"No. He is not going to kill me. He made me a deal. He want me to spy on you for him" she declared.

"That is going to be a little bit hard. You should accept that" he moaned weakly.

"Yes. That is easy. He also wants me to give you misleading information" she continued.

"That is also easy" Michael pulled her up from the bed. "That is nothing to worry about, Queen Julia" he smiled.

"It is everything to worry about. It is a trap for me" she pressed her lips together to brace.

"You mean he had someone on you?" Michael still obviously didn't see anything serious about what she was saying.

"You have to act in accordance to what he wanted you to know or he will expose me as a spy" she urged him.

"Is that why you have been so sad?" he lifted her off the ground and turned around with her in his hand. "I will dance to any tune to see you are safe" he flashed his eyebrows at her.

"Thank you" she moaned and smiled subtly.

"Thank you? Where is that coming from?" he teased her? "So what did he want you to tell me?" he asked.

"He said he will start a war to seize the kingdom. He will usurp the throne" Julia recounted.

"Isn't that what you told me earlier?" Michael seemed confused.

"It is going to be a fake war and he will end it singlehandedly. But you said that didn't make any sense" she reminded him.

"Why would he cause a war that he is going to end with his own hand? A waste of time" Michael contemplated.

"Just act in accordance with the message you are supposed to know" she advised.

"No. We need to know what he is up to or else we will be far behind" Michael argued. He put Julia back on her feet. He turned to the wall to think critically about James plan.

"Why will you start a war that you will end?" he muttered to himself. He kept shaking his head but he was obviously not getting anything.

Julia had become bored behind him. She couldn't give him the answers he wanted.

Michael turned back to her smiling broadly. It seemed he had gotten what he was mentally sweating on.

"You had known just like that?" Julia smiled. She was very sure he had come up with something.

"The king is sick. The kingdom is under attack. The heir to the throne will save the day" Michael laughed loudly.

"I don't understand" Julia was perplexed.

"That is history. James is rewriting history and hopes to become what the hero of the story becomes" Michael was the only one understanding his words.

"Okay" Julia gave up asking what he meant. "How do we stop him?" she asked anxiously.

"We do not stop him. We will change the course of his plan. We will thwart his story" Michael spoke in riddles again.

"And how do we do that?" Julia couldn't understand him at all.

"Honestly, I do not know. But I'm sure we will once we change the course of this discussion" he smiled.

"The course of this discussion?" Julia breathed deeply. She had become frustrated in the process of not understanding him.

"Yes!" he carried her and threw her back on the bed. "Now we set a new course" he dropped his body on hers.