An interview with King Diagus from
The Servant Crown
We are talking with King Diagus Amar of Blade Rain.
Thank you for having us, Your Majesty.
No problem.
So, let’s start with this castle. Blade Rain. Pretty
intimidating if you ask me.
(Looks around) No. Just your average
300 room castle.
Haunted?
(Smirks) Aren’t they all?
With ghosts?
Naturally.
Oh! I would love to see a ghost!
(Cocks his head
narrowing his eyes) I would just let them be if I were you.
Let them be? No! Let’s not! Please, tell me about some
of the ghosts that walk these halls.
(Grinning) Not my stories to
tell but you’re welcome to stay the night and see if any of them might indulge you.
Really? That would be wonderful!
(Chuckle)
Speaking of ghosts, what can you tell me about Ice
Dragon Pass? Is it truly cursed?
Absolutely.
How do you know?
Stories from the unbelievers who arrogantly go in late, thinking they
would prove otherwise, and actually make it back out. Oddly, the stories vary.
From shadows coming to life to pitfalls suddenly opening underneath travelers,
to shifting pathways that lead to dead ends, no two accounts have been the
same. But it only proves the curse does exist with stories like that.
Why is it cursed? Who cursed it?
That knowledge was never passed down. I’m afraid no one knows why…or who.
Wow. Really? That seems so strange.
I thought so, too. But I have read every book in this castle, every
account of every session of every king since when they began to write these
things down. I’ve talked to minstrels, young and old, who would have the knowledge
in songs or poems that the books do not and …nothing. It’s as if the spirits
don’t want us to know.
Wouldn’t it make some sense that it was a witch,
perhaps from Dark Marsh, that did it? Who else would have the power?
(Shrugs) Maybe. Dark Marsh is
a very mysterious place.
What can you tell me about Dark Marsh?
Not much. I’ve only been there once and honestly don’t plan on visiting
again any time soon.
(Nods)
Yes. You were there once when you save Tama and Aydin, his son.
Actually, Aydin is my son, Tama’s
nephew. And I wasn’t the one who did the saving.
What happened?
(Sigh) Again, I’m not sure.
I really wasn’t much of a witness. That would be a question to direct to Tama.
Is he here?
Of course. With his ability to attract trouble, he is no longer allowed
out of my sight.
Are you serious?
(Laughs) No. He might be
smaller than me but he is very capable of taking care of himself. And our
little man.
Ah, the little man. What’s it like to be a father?
(Laughs again) I’m still learning. I
will tell you one thing, it’s exhausting.
I understand he can wield a little magic?
No, not Aydin. But he does have a toy rabbit that Tama made. That thing
seems to be filled with magic. It seems to act as a strong barrier between
Aydin and evil. Probably a good thing in this…haunted castle. (Wink)
Oh. We’re back to that, are we? So, tell me, have you
seen any?
Ghosts? Nope. Tama has though. At least, that’s what he tells me.
Really?
Being a healer he seems to be much more aware of things like that. He has
a way with plants and herbs, things like that. He has a vast knowledge about
many things that are natural and maybe more than a few that are un-natural. (Shrugs) I don’t question it.
Tama has seem ghosts wandering these halls? Has he
been able to identify any?
Like who? Past kings? Past queens?
Have there been?
Well, I did read about an account from
a past king about a tree he found in Raven Bog. The tree was large and
formidable and in the way of a road the king wanted to build. The king ordered
it cut down but his men all refused. Seemed there was an image of a face in the
trunk and they all considered it sacred. The king looked for and found the
face. I understand it was quite clear. Eyes, nose, mouth. Even teeth. But
evidently the king was not impressed. The king ordered once again to cut it down
although it took him a while to find enough men to do it. He then had it made
into a footboard for his bed. (chuckle)
Wouldn’t you know, the carpenter used that particular piece of wood with the
face on it. Put it right there in the center so it could stare up at the king
while he slept. Now, kings are not normally frightened of much. But after only
a single night in that bed, the king had the footboard moved to a different bed
in a far away room in the castle.
(Whispering)
What happened to him?
The way the story is told, the king said the face in the footboard came to
life in the middle of the night. It opened its mouth wide enough to swallow a
man whole. It evidently tried to tip the bed so the king would roll right in,
but its rotten, stinking breath woke the king and he was able to jump from the
bed just in time, scraping an arm in the process. After hearing all the
commotion, his guards rushed in but they found nothing out of the
ordinary…except their king sitting on the floor with a bleeding arm. The face in
the wood had returned to – well – not normal exactly. Seems there was a tiny
trickle of blood coming from its wooden mouth.
Blood?
Is the footboard… is it still in the castle?
I’m not sure. I can’t imagine it’s not, but no one knows where it is. The
servants say they have looked for it for years but none of the beds have a face
on the footboard. However, the rumor is, it is on the hunt for human blood.
Once it had a taste of it, it wants more.
So…
It wanders the castle. It might be able to travel from room to room, bed
to bed, which is why no one can find it. (A
door closes in the distance but a window rattles close by)
(Jumping
and then looking frantically around) Maybe it’s wise we
change the subject?
(Diagus yawned and
stretched) Maybe it’s wise we head to bed. It’s late. I’ll have a servant show you
to a room.
Ummm…a room? Bed? No. I mean, I don’t see any reason I
need to stay overnight. I have plenty of story right here for my blog.
Ahhh. You mean you don’t want to catch a ghost?
Someone once told me to let them be! That’s what I
always say, too. Let. Them. Be!
(Chuckle)
