Princess Reviled

by Butler, J. M.

  "No, sweetheart. Nothing to trade today. I've got to get this to the king." Amelia waved him off but smiled. "Go on and play with your friends."

  "Can I borrow your dagger? We're playing kill the dragon. Did you hear they killed the dragon and the bads? We won!" Excitement shone in the boy's face.

  "Sorry, but I need it. Go back and play." She slowed the skelros' pace to make it easier for him to leave. "Have fun, all right?"

  "I am Retrab, and I'm a shifter slayer!" the boy shouted. He climbed higher on the wagon and then leaped off, whooping loudly.

  "I get to be the dragon then," another boy shouted. He jumped off a nearby boulder, spreading imaginary wings.

  "Well, what am I going to be?" a tall girl with an upturned nose asked.

  "You can be the village. He'll chase you. Then I'll save you," Retrab offered. "You run really fast."

  "No." The girl wrinkled her nose. "I'm going to be a dragon too."

  Amelia found herself smiling even more. The quarrel lasted until she was out of earshot, and it was likely to continue for quite some time longer. Amelia wondered whether Naatos, AaQar, and WroOth had ever played that way.

  What am I doing, Amelia thought, shaking her head abruptly. That was a ridiculous consideration. She shouldn't even be thinking about such things. It didn't matter whether they had played together as children or were similar in some respect. What they had done recently was most important, and she did not need any more misplaced empathy pushing her off course.

  Passersby became more frequent the closer she came to Telhetum. Her heart swelled with emotion to see the tall glistening walls surrounding the city. It was so beautiful. Wiping the tears away, Amelia let herself smile. For all the problems she had encountered, this place was not without many positive qualities.

  An increased number of guards patrolled the top of the walls, but the gates below were cast open. Amelia paused, catching sight of a lone figure sitting outside. Her stomach lurched.

  Shon.

  Excitement, dread, fear, and hope swirled within her. If there was another unseen way into the city, she would have taken it in a breath. But it was too late. Shon had already seen her. Even from this distance, she saw his face brighten as he supported himself on a fence post.

  Amelia struggled to think of the right words as the wagon rattled closer. From his expression, he obviously hadn't understood her message to Matthu. Or perhaps he didn't care.

  "Amelia," Shon called, waving his arm. "I need to talk to you."

  Amelia slowed the skelros, tightening her grip on the reins. "Shon…" She stepped down from the wagon seat, uncertain what to do. Her heart screamed for her to hug him. To fling herself in his arms and bury her face in his chest. But she couldn't.

  She forced herself to look at him, keeping her expression as neutral as possible. As soon as she opened her mouth to speak, her voice cracked. "You look amazing. How are you feeling?"

  "Almost back to order. I've been strengthening while I was waiting for you. It's going a lot faster now." Shon's eyes shone as he gazed at her. He grasped her by the wrists, his hands shaking. "And look at you. You're stunning."

  Amelia pulled one hand free, tucking a stray strand of dark hair behind her ears. This was getting harder by the moment. Her heart throbbed. "Shon, I've got to get this to the palace. It's very important. I'm not sure how much time I have left."

  "I know." Shon waved down one of the guards from the wall, clinging to her other hand. "I've asked Elber and Fian to take these three the rest of the way. They'll still be unconscious so there's no risk. The Machat are waiting at the Horse Gate."

  Amelia hesitated. She glanced over her shoulder. No movement had stirred beneath the cloth even once since they had left, but that might not mean much. "King Theol put them in my charge, and I have to talk to him as soon as possible."

  "Amelia…" Shon's grip tightened as his expression became pained. "I need you to listen to me. This is vitally important."

  She should have said no. Her gut told her that. But given the reality she would have to remind Shon about, Amelia believed she owed him this. "It can't be long, and I don't want Vorec or anyone associated with him near the wagon. We can talk with the wagon here as long as it isn't long."

  "It isn't any trouble," Shon said. "It would probably be best to get that inside."

  "I don't want to risk anyone doing something foolish. And the elder commander and I have had some strong disagreements." Amelia turned her focus on the guards in cloth armor approaching them. Neither were Ayamin. They lacked the typical insignia, and the way they carried themselves was wrong. Most likely these were new recruits to serve as volunteer guards. "Thank you for your offer of service but return to your duties on the wall."

  Amelia checked Naatos, AaQar, and WroOth once again. Nothing had changed. They breathed at a slow but steady pace, showing no signs of stirring. She secured the sheet once more and returned her focus to Shon. "What did you need to talk about?"

  "I'm just so glad to see you again." Shon caught her by the arm and drew her off the path. His fingers clutched so tight they left red marks.

  "I'm glad to see you too, Shon." Amelia looked up into his eyes. They were so clear and hopeful. Her elmis told her what he wanted. What he wished. That tenderness and strength that had made her feel safe and loved before was still there beneath a more frantic need. She brushed her fingers over her cheek, heat rising in her face. Her own desires made themselves known with even greater strength. "You look a lot better."

  "I'd be hard pressed to look much worse." Shon laughed a little. His need intensified.

  Amelia managed to smile weakly. "I'm sorry, Shon. But I really don't have a lot of time."

  "I understand. And I have to tell you something serious," Shon said, his expression becoming more somber. "You have to promise you'll listen."

  "I'm listening."

  "You have to leave with me now. I've packed everything we will need in those bags over there. And then we've got to get away from this place."

  "What?" Amelia pulled back, startled. Of all the things she had expected to hear Shon say, this hadn't been one. "You want to leave?"

  "I know it sounds cowardly, but, Amelia, if you remain with the Paras, you will die. There is no way to stop it. When I was in the Levthro, I saw it over and over and over again. There were hundreds of variations, but the one thing that was true in all of them was that a tall, blond-haired man attacked you and you eventually died. Sometimes you killed him and then died from the blood curse. Other times he killed you. Sometimes you both killed each other." Shon cupped his hands along the sides of her face. "I don't know where I was or why I didn't save you, Amelia. But I cannot let that happen. You have to come away with me now."

  "A blond-haired man?" Amelia frowned. She pressed Shon's hands down, her thumbs curled over his palms. "Was there anything else significant about him? Anything I would notice?"

  "He was tall."

  "Most people are next to me," Amelia said.

  "He made lava from his hands in the last vision. But I've seen him do all kinds of other things. I think he might be a Shivennan. And that's…you have no chance against him, Amelia. Not with the blood curse. More often than not, I saw him destroy you. And I never saw you survive."

  Shon's words startled Amelia, but they did not move her. She gripped his hands tighter, biting her lip. "I can't, Shon. If I leave now, then everything fails, and I will have failed my people and Elonumato."

  "He will forgive you! That's what He does. He forgave Te, and Te is the one who brought Full Death to the races! He's forgiven many others. No one could blame you for this. It's too much. After everything you've endured, how can you be expected to keep on at this pace?" Shon leaned his forehead against hers, hugging her close. "And we can be together now. That's why you brought me back. Because you couldn't bear to lose me. Because you need me just as I need you."

  "Shon…" The words choked Amelia. She dropped her gaze to the thick grass, struggling to sw
allow back the tears. His warmth comforted and cursed her. "Shon, I love you. You know that, but this is all so much bigger than us. What about the Tue-Rah? What about—"

  "I don't care about the Tue-Rah, Amelia. I care about you. And you are going to die. Away from everyone you love. Do you understand that?"

  "Yes, I do!" Amelia jerked free. Anger and sorrow expanded within her as she spoke. "I do know that. I've known that since I was a child. I have lived with that knowledge every single day! This isn't a surprise. I told you that's why I never got into a relationship before. I am an insect who serves its purpose and then dies. It's what I've always been! Before I thought Naatos or a shapeshifter was going to kill me. The fact that it's a blond-haired elementalist instead of a black-haired shapeshifter doesn't change anything that matters, Shon. I have been given a duty, and I will see it through. It is up to me to stop these three." She jabbed her finger back at the wagon. "And it is up to me to restore the Tue-Rah."

  "Then just let us kill them and get it over with," Shon said darkly. "Surely they can't survive being bound and buried alive."

  "The Tue-Rahs will never be restored then, Shon. We need them just like the Paras need the Nalenths to do that."

  "We've gotten along without the Tue-Rah for a couple hundred years. We can get along without it forever if we have to." Shon crossed his arms, his expression one of disbelief and frustration. "And if Elonumato wants it fixed so much, then He can fix it another way."

  "That's not how it works. He lets consequences play out, and we can't go forever without the Tue-Rah." Amelia put her hand to her head. The tension rose between them. When Shon stepped toward her, she compensated, moving farther away. "Without the Tue-Rah, more disease and illness and grief will come! Each world will tear itself apart! Here people can live for hundreds of years if they don't get killed in a war or get one of the few diseases that exist. But do you know how long they live on Eiram? Eighty. Ninety. A hundred if they're lucky. The days are physically shorter. Only twenty-four hours, and yet people live shorter lives even if old alone takes them. Millions die from cancer and disease, not to mention the problems with infrastructure and corruption."

  Shon scoffed. "We both know that these three are going to get loose. And they will kill just as many, if not more."

  "I won't let them." Amelia punctuated her words, jabbing her finger in the air. "I may not like what I have been called to, but I'm not going to walk away. That means I have to be here. I have to be with them. I have to intervene. I have to fight. I have to stand. I have always known that this would cost me my life, and I accepted that a long time ago."

  Shon shook his head as he rubbed the back of his neck. He paced out a few steps, then stiffened. Turning, he gave her a hard look. "No. That's not it at all. It's Naatos. You want to be with him. You like being part of that family."

  Shock flooded Amelia. She crossed her arms protectively over herself. "That's ridiculous, Shon. You know what they've put me through."

  "Right now, make your choice. If you want me, all right. Let's seal it. We'll tell Naatos I'm alive. And you'll tell Naatos you're not his wife, and you and I can live as husband and wife before his death. He shouldn't have trapped you like that, and you don't have to remain in it. I will deal with the public shame if there is any to be had, but no one would fault you for this. You would probably gain people's favor from it!"

  "Shon." Amelia gritted her teeth together. Her frustration grew with each breath. "The last thing I want is for Naatos to know you're alive. And what good would any of this do?"

  "It'll show him that you aren't his toy to manipulate. That you are not on his side."

  "He knows I'm not on his side. I just tied him up and imprisoned him."

  "But you're his wife."

  Amelia closed her eyes, her heart beating faster. "I agreed to accept the marriage, all right? And Vawtrians don't have divorces. Plus I'm already being called a pinchat and a traitor. It's complicated enough dealing with Naatos. I don't need anything else to make my life harder or get more people killed."

  "You are a cold-hearted pinchat." A tear rolled down Shon's cheek. "You really don't love me. Vorec was right about you."

  Amelia recoiled, her stomach flipflopping. "What?"

  "Vorec has been telling me a lot of truth I didn't want to hear. But it's all clear now."

  Anger set the shock aside, burning through her. Amelia set her arms akimbo, glaring at him. "If I didn't love you, why would I have saved your life?"

  "To absolve your guilt. To control me. I don't know! But what life could I ever have apart from you? How can I love anyone else if not you? If you didn't plan to be with me, you should never have brought me back. Why did you bring me back?"

  "Your death was wrong. It was meaningless!"

  "My life is meaningless now! What do you want me to do? Slink away and find some hole to scrape out a different purpose?"

  "I want you to live!" Amelia grabbed him by the shoulders. "Find someone else! Make a life for yourself, a future! You don't have to be involved in this anymore. You're free, Shon. All I want is for you to—"

  "I've had enough." Shon tore free and stepped backward. He glared at her, his eyes tight and his jaw set. "It's pointless arguing with you." Crossing to his fallen bow, he secured it to his back and hoisted up one of the packs. He laughed, his voice strained. "That's what this comes down to. It isn't about the Tue-Rah, and it isn't about the worlds. It's about two men. One of them disrespected and abused you, crushing you with his boot and tormenting you. And the other? He respected you, cherished you, and did all he could to support you. He was even willing to lay down his life for you. And which one did you choose?" Shon paused, the tears fresh in his sea-blue eyes. He pointed at her. "That says everything about you, Amelia. Everything. I can't believe I ever loved you."

  12

  A Father's Plea

  Shon's words sliced through Amelia's soul. Her mind blanked. She could only stare as he strode away, pack in hand, back to her.

  "Princess Amelia?" a voice behind her asked.

  Shon was little more than a speck now. He had almost reached the top of the third hill.

  "Excuse me. Are you the princess?" The speaker cleared his throat.

  "Yes." Amelia dashed her hands across her eyes. "Yes, that's me." She turned.

  A young attendant with freckles and light ash-blond hair bowed. His long striped sash trailed to his knees. "King Theol bids you to hurry. You are to meet him in the dungeons."

  "I'm…coming." Amelia forced a smile. Her heart throbbed with pain. She struggled to push it down, but it bobbed to the surface like a cork. What had happened was almost beyond her comprehension. What Shon had said, whether true or not, his reasons for saying it, and everything else had to be set aside. And yet it stung like a thousand hornets trapped in her chest. "I'm coming."

  The attendant bowed again, turned sharply, and started toward the gates. Amelia climbed onto the wagon and chirruped the skelros forward. The wagon creaked into motion.

  Tears leaked from Amelia's eyes. Several times she hid her face briefly, pretending the tears were caused by dust or sunlight. But no matter how hard she sought to quell them, more spilled over. Stop it, she chided herself. This isn't appropriate. Just stop.

  On either side of the main road, the townspeople repaired their lives. Fixing flat stone roofs. Replanting fragrant blue coneflowers and trailing pink clematises. Scrubbing eight-sided tiles. Not one person bothered her or did more than nod hello or give a brief greeting. But that was because they didn't know who she was or what was in the wagon. She was no more than a well-dressed stranger riding with a royal attendant. If only it were as simple as that.

  No one interrupted them as they reached the lowest dungeon entrance outside the horse gate. The dungeon itself rested to the east of the central courtyard. Eight Machat waited at the entrance. Almost a dozen other Libyshan attendants were present as well. As soon as she stopped, they all hurried up to her, bowing their heads and wishing he
r well.

  "We will assist in bringing them to their cells," the apparent Machat leader, a woman with multi-layered braids, said.

  "Thank you." Amelia passed the reins to another attendant and stepped down carefully. Her balance faltered briefly. As the Machat began uncovering and moving Naatos, AaQar, and WroOth onto the wooden planks, she followed the first servant down the staircase and farther into the dungeon. It was not large. The passage and chambers themselves were well lit and dry, scrubbed clean and free from spider webs or mice nests even though the dungeon had been rarely used in recent years. All stone here was a soft cream and pale brown, more like light sandstone than the pale peach of the rest of the palace.

  King Theol waited at the bottom, alone.

  "Father…" Amelia paused, her hand resting on the wall. The word still sounded strange in reference to him.

  King Theol smiled when he saw her, though some hint of sadness and concern could not be hidden. "Inal—Amelia." He shook his head. "I suppose you would rather be called Amelia."

  "Yes." Amelia hesitated. Inale was the isolated little girl who everyone feared because she would grow into a monster who could barely be controlled. Amelia was supposed to be stronger, better. But perhaps she would be even worse than any ever expected Inale to be. "Why are there no guards down here?"

  "The Ayamin will be stationed at the entrances and the exits to ensure no one enters. No one else will be allowed down here except you. It is at least one concession I could make to your concerns. We are also installing additional alarms and warnings in the event of a breach."

  Amelia nodded though she doubted that they would do much good. "Was that what you wanted to see me about?" She moved back as two Machat and two Libyshans brought down a stretcher with AaQar.

  "Essentially," King Theol said. He smiled.

  It was a lie. Amelia felt it so clearly it was if he had stabbed her with the knowledge. There was something else going on. But if that was the way he wanted it to seem, she had other matters to address. "I'm glad to see you though."