“Thank you, Tási,” I said as I squeezed her hand. “I appreciate that so much. But after tonight, you can wear whatever you want. If this summit is successful, I intend for it to mark the last time either of us feel the need to bend to anyone else’s standards. We will set our own example from now on.”
She felt no need to reply, and we walked the rest of the way to the little side room where we would wait for our time to enter the reception in silence. After a few minutes, I grew tired of the charade, and made my first calculated move towards the future.
“This is bullshit,” I declared as I rose from my seat. “We’re joining the party now.”
Karina’s eyes widened in surprise as she and Aiva hurried to follow us into the grand hall. The rest of my guards remained behind, as the two lieutenants would be the only ones to shadow me during the reception. That wasn’t the only limitation we had placed on them, and I chuckled as the two women struggled to keep up with us in the formal gowns they had been required to wear. As I stopped to lift a cup of wine from the tray one of the servers carried around the room, Aiva and Karina finally caught up to us.
“It’s bad enough you required us to wear… these,” Karina complained, as she motioned at the heavy fabric of her dress. “But could you please not rush away like that?”
I took a deep sip of the elven wine and gave her a ‘who me?’ look as I peered over the rim of the glass at her. Karina sighed in frustration at my lack of concern and began scanning the room for any possible threats.
Once we learned that we would indeed be hosting this summit, we had enlarged the Grand Hall considerably, breaking down several of its walls and combining many of the surrounding rooms to make one truly huge chamber. The masons and others had worked feverishly to make the tremendous room ready for the occasion, and their work was absolutely incredible.
They had combined the dwarven technique of highlighting any jewels or mineral veins in the stone, of which there seemed to be an extraordinary abundance for some reason, and the elvish style of carving graceful arches and delicate features into every surface. The collective effort produced a result that was more beautiful than either style alone, and it would have taken my breath away had it been the first time I’d seen the incredible results of their collaboration. I hoped that the splendor of their work, and its implications, would not be lost on our visitors.
“Tási!” an unfamiliar voice called out nearby.
I turned to see who had called out to her just in time to observe a middle-aged looking halfling take Tási up in an enthusiastic embrace. Tási seemed almost puzzled by the woman’s actions before her expression resolved into one of recognition and she replied.
“Aunt Dalona?” Tási finally responded. “What are you doing here?”
“I’m part of the Queen’s delegation, Tási,” her aunt replied. “Her Majesty made me one of her counsellors several months ago.”
“Oh,” Tási stumbled. “We should talk more later then. You’re not supposed to be introduced to Dreya Sintári yet.”
“I won’t stand on ceremony when it comes to your family, Tási,” I offered Tási’s aunt my hand as I broke in. “I’m pleased to meet you, Dalona.”
“Dreya?” Tási’s aunt hesitated. “You are the Sintári that the King of Dhel-Ar has told us so much about? Tási mentioned that name in the letter she sent me. Are you the same one who put my daughter Seera’s soul to rest?”
“Yes, that was me,” I replied softly at the obviously painful memory. “I am so sorry for your loss.”
“Thank you for that,” she responded with almost a whisper. “Not many would even bother seeking justice for one of us.”
“My goal is to see that justice exists for everyone everywhere, Dalona,” I replied. “In my Empire, no one will be seen as less than anyone else simply because of who they are.”
“That is quite an admirable goal,” she said. “But I’m not sure that it’s even possible.”
“You have not been in my Realm very long, Dalona, but you only need to take a look around this room to know that my vision is within reach,” I replied as I gestured at the ornately worked stone of the Grand Hall.
“Dwarven masons worked alongside elven crafters to carve out the very walls around us,” I continued. “My master smiths, an elf, dwarf, and half-orc worked together to forge the armor and weapons of my troops. We have even welcomed a band of orcs into our community, one of whom serves on my own personal guard.”
“Everything I believe in has already been brought to life here,” I finished. “All that is left now is to spread the concept of tolerance and cooperation beyond my own borders.”
Dalona’s eyes had followed, as I indicated the table where smiths shared their drinks together, and where Hilgreth and Renn held hands in an obviously loving manner. And her jaw dropped open as I concluded by drawing her attention to Rhal, as he stood guard directly behind the chair I would be seated at on the dais.
“She has done all this and more,” Tási added as she took my arm in hers. “And that is why I not only follow her but love her as well.”
“I did not know that you…” Dalona stopped herself, but the words she left unspoken were clear as she stared at our arms around each other.
“I didn’t,” Tási replied to her unspoken words. “At least not before, but Dreya has made me happier than I’ve ever been, and I can’t imagine my life without her.”
“Interesting,” Dalona mused as I could see the wheels of her mind turning towards political considerations. “Queen Nadiel will be most intrigued to know that you are so close to the throne that seeks to lead us.”
“I was told that I should not meet your queen until after the summit tomorrow,” I said as I decided to take advantage of the situation. “But if she should wander over while I’m here, I certainly wouldn’t miss the opportunity to make her acquaintance.”
“Yes, I see,” Dalona said as she easily recognized the opening that I had left for her. “Forgive me, but I should return to my Queen’s side and apprise her of what you have told me.”
Once Dalona wandered away, Tási and I went to visit with our people. I hadn’t seen many of them in some time, as my own trips outside the Palace had become severely limited with my increasing duties; not to mention the restrictions that Tási and Ella imposed on my movements due to the threats that continued to plague me.
When I stopped by the smith’s table to speak with them for a while, I was delighted to learn that Hilgreth and Renn had decided to get married. While that wasn’t quite a surprise, their choice of officiant was.
“Would you be willing to do the honors for us?” Hilgreth asked. “We don’t have anything grand in mind. You could even just stop by the forge one day and say a few words, if that’s what you’d prefer.”
“So, whenever I want?” I attempted to clarify their intent.
“Sure,” Renn answered. “We just want to make sure to include Georl. He’s become our closest friend in the time we’ve been working together.”
I smiled at the three of them and reached out and took Renn by the hand.
“Then I choose right here and right now,” I said as I dragged the reluctant smith towards the dais. “Come with me.”
Hilgreth followed behind, only slightly less reluctantly than Renn at having the affair take place so publicly and at such a high-profile event, while Georl had a wide grin plastered on his face and was obviously overjoyed by the unexpected turn of events. I brought the couple to the center of the room and stood them at the foot of the dais where the nobility of five Realms would be seated in only a short while. With Renn and Hilgreth standing side by side, and Georl close by, I began to form some sort of speech in my mind, but quickly gave up, and decided to simply speak my thoughts instead.
“Before you stand two of the finest people in my entire Realm,” I announced to the room. “Not only are they both talented smiths, worthy of recognition in their own right, but they have each embraced the tenets of my Realm and le
arned to see beyond the petty distinctions that have driven this world into conflict and torn its people apart.”
“Today, they have granted me the honor and privilege of joining them together in the bonds of marriage, and as I do so, I hope that each of you will recognize their example as the symbol of our strength and unity that it truly is. Without the ability to look beyond the surface and see the remarkable person inside each of them, they might never have found the love that they share today. And without love, what do any of us truly have?”
“So,” I said as I draped Renn’s hand over Hilgreth’s. “On this day, I am truly honored to pronounce you husband and wife. May the rest of your days be spent together in happiness.”
The loving kiss they shared to seal the bond between them was not unexpected, nor was the enthusiastic round of applause that erupted from the crowd behind me—it was what followed that caught me completely by surprise.
“Dreya Sintári,” Madren asked as he came to stand beside me. “Would you be willing to offer Clorid and I your blessing as well?”
I hadn’t intended anything other than to use the opportunity to show my people, and especially the visiting dignitaries, just what was possible when people abandoned their prejudices. But Madren’s request, and the couples that I saw lined up behind him and Clorid, made me realize that I had done far more than I planned. It hadn’t been my intention, but I knew that my Sintári nature was at work yet again, and while I understood that none of them had been suddenly coerced into taking vows they hadn’t already seriously considered, I also knew that my influence was the thing that motivated them to do so right then and there.
“It would be my pleasure,” I replied as I motioned them to take the places that Hilgreth and Renn had only just left in front of the dais.
When I joined the last couple, I had performed eight marriages, the most remarkable of which was between two young dwarven men, one of whom was the young dwarf who offered Tási and I his best wishes when we’d first made our relationship public. The openness and complete acceptance of all who had come forward that day filled my heart with joy and reassured me once more that despite the many challenges that lay ahead of us, the dreams I had for a united land were within reach, just as I had both hoped and promised they would be.
As I took a much-needed deep sip of wine, yet another voice called out to me from close by my side.
“That was rather impressive,” the unknown speaker said before I could turn around.
When I looked to see just who was addressing me, I saw a halfling woman, clad in a soft blue gown and wearing a delicate band of gold around her head. She seemed to be in her late thirties, and her light brown eyes and hair reminded me of Tási somewhat, at least before I had woken her water spirit and her eyes had turned deep blue.
“Forgive me,” Dalona quickly broke in. “Introductions must be made. Dreya Sintári, I have the honor of introducing to you Queen Nadiel of Isouri.”
“The pleasure is mine, your Majesty,” I replied.
“I confess that I am a bit unsure how to react to you, Dreya,” the Queen responded, seeming to make a point of not using my title. “You claim to be something that has not been seen in this world for thousands of years, something I would have dismissed completely, had the King of Dhel-Ar not been so insistent. Yet I cannot deny what I have seen with my own eyes. Tell me, truthfully, are you what you claim to be?”
“How brave are you, and how much will you trust me to prove to you that I am what I claim to be?”
“What do you have in mind?” The Queen replied curiously.
When she finished speaking, I opened my hand and revealed the tiny glowing orb that I had gathered there. In it, I entwined a ball of emotions, comprised of the pride and love I had for my people and the hopes I had for the future of my Realm and all of Arrika. I kept the orb small, so as not to overwhelm her, and stripped off every shred of its harsher outer layers, making it as soft and gentle as I possible could.
“What is that?” Dalona asked as she stared at the indescribable light of the small, luminous orb.
“It is her, or at least part of her,” Tási replied for me. “A collection of her own emotions distilled into their purest form.”
“And what do you propose to do with it?” The Queen asked me.
“I’m going to give it to you, if you’re brave enough to receive it.”
My previous observations about Nadiel’s brashness seemed the be accurate, and she rose to the challenge I presented to her, just as I’d hoped she would.
“Go ahead, Sintári,” she replied with some skepticism. “But if this is some simple parlor trick, I will not be amused.”
I smiled, knowing that I had her, and sent the tiny orb floating towards Nadiel. It melted into the skin just below her neck and vanished inside her in an instant. To her credit, Nadiel withstood the rush of emotions that I sent her well, but could not suppress a subtle sigh as the powerful feelings coursed through her. I let the orb do its work for a while before dissolving it, but instead of calling it back to me, I let its power slowly fade out of existence inside the halfling Queen.
“That was unbelievable,” Nadiel whispered as the effects began to wear off. “You truly do care for all these people.”
“And yours as well,” I added. “But I will need their strength to see my vision brought to life.”
“There is a great deal I need to consider before I will be willing to put myself and my people under your control, Dreya Sintári,” the Queen replied thoughtfully. “But your demonstration has done much to persuade me.”
“Your Majesty, perhaps the two of you should speak more tomorrow when the other monarchs can join us,” Dalona offered.
Nadiel and I exchanged slight nods before we went our separate ways, and I immediately sought out one of the servers for another glass of wine. My refusal to wait until the ‘proper’ time to join the reception had resulted in a series of events beyond anything I had anticipated, and I needed a drink badly. I had only time for a quick sip before Tási joined me and downed an entire glass in one quick motion.
“Do you have any idea what you just did?” She blurted out as she grabbed another glass before the server wandered off.
“Something bad?” I asked hesitantly, since I had no idea what she could be referring to.
“Nadiel is one of the most powerful Evokers ever,” Tási replied as she took another sip of wine. “And you fucking dazzled her with one of the tiniest orbs I’ve ever seen you make.”
“Why are you acting like that’s a bad thing?”
“You can be so dense sometimes,” Tási replied as her hand massaged her temples.
“Think about it for a minute,” she continued after a moment. “If you can impress her with your weakest attempt, what in the name of all the Gods would happen if you truly pushed your powers to their limits?”
“I’m not sure,” I answered. “Do you think we should try and find out?”
“Fuck no!!!” Tási replied a little too loudly as several heads turned to see what she was so animated about. “You’ve killed people with just your thoughts. I don’t want to be in the same Realm as you if you ever try to test your limits!”
Tási’s rare use of profanity as much as her obvious concern made me pause to consider what she’d said. It was true that I had never really tried to push the full power of my emotions into one of my orbs. I knew I had limits, especially when I first started making the little balls of emotion, but those restrictions had almost disappeared as my control had grown. As far as I knew, I could probably channel everything I had into a single massive orb, but then what? Even if I filled it with only positive feelings, an orb like that would probably overwhelm anyone I tried to send it to. And I didn’t even want to consider the mayhem that an orb with all my rage would cause. Just like Tási, I wouldn’t want to be anywhere near the havoc a ball with that sort of intensity would wreak.
“I’m going to have to be more careful with that,” I realized.
>
“Yes, you are,” Tási replied.
“Wait. I’ve sent far more powerful orbs into you,” I responded. “And that’s not even considering the power of the more direct emotional links we’ve shared.”
“But not at first,” Tási reminded me. “It took a long time for me to be able to handle that, and I’m sure that you’re still holding back on me.”
That was true as well—there was a time when I was comfortable with letting Tási feel my desires completely, but as my power and control had grown, I found that I had to hold back more and more. Even then, as accustomed to experiencing my passions as she was, I was only able to feed her the barest portion of the power I held before it overwhelmed her.
“I’m dangerous,” I whispered mostly to myself.
“The fact that you’re only just realizing that now is what scares me the most,” Tási replied softly. “You have no idea just how powerful you’ve become.”
“Dreya Sintári,” Broda arrived and interrupted us before we could continue any further. “It’s time for you to be introduced to your guests.”
I cast a reluctant glance at Tási as Broda led us away, and she returned my look with one of reassurance. Our conversation left me with a great deal to consider, but Tási’s quick smile let me know that she would be there to help me figure things out.
The four monarchs were arrayed in a casual semicircle, and Broda led me to them and begun the introductions, moving left to right across the line they had made. Our greetings were polite and formal, but as had been agreed to, things were kept short and no gifts were exchanged. The summit the next day was where the issues of true importance would be discussed, so it had been decided that the reception would remain a light and almost informal affair.
Most notably during our brief introductions, I found that the tales of Líann’s beauty had not been overstated. Her ice-blue eyes and light blond hair lent an almost ethereal quality to her that was only heightened by her flawless pale skin. Her features were most definitely elven, slight and delicate in their near perfection, and rather than overwhelming her, the deep forest green of her gown only served to highlight her pale beauty. Something akin to a staring contest ensued for a brief moment after we were introduced before she favored me with a slight nod, and I was ushered on to meet the next royal.
Second Skin: Unified: A litRPG Adventure (Second Skin Book 3) Page 56
