Raimie made a face. “I’d almost forgotten about that,” he said, the words emerging as if they were rotten fruit. “They won’t explain what’s wrong with the tear, and yet, I’m expected to fix the issue. Sure, I’ve recently traveled to several of Auden’s tears, hoping to get a feel for their number and how active they are. I thought it useful for me to know what to expect from that facet of the kingdom’s economy. That doesn’t make me an expert on the damn things, though, despite what everyone may think.”
“You understand them better than anyone I’ve ever met, my friend. That makes you an expert,” Kheled teased.
“Regardless,” Raimie rolled his eyes, “I’m not sure what a fix for the tear will require of me, and it makes me nervous.”
A hopeful expression took hold of his face, and Kheled quietly groaned.
“Will you come with me?” Raimie asked. “I could use a friend.”
“Why are you even asking? You know what my answer will be,” Kheled replied.
“Fantastic!” Raimie exclaimed, clapping his hands together. “I’ll let Little know, and we can depart.”
“Hang on!” Kheled exclaimed before his friend could reach the door. “I’ve crisscrossed the Wastelands for the last week and returned to Qena only an hour ago. At least let me grab a bite to eat before we charge into those monsoon-plagued lands.”
“I suppose you can have your meal, but I’m on a tight schedule, Khel.” Raimie shook his head at Kheled’s questioning glance. “I’ll explain on the way. Let’s say an hour? Will that be enough time for you to recover?”
“Plenty.”
“In that case, I’ll meet you outside of town once you’ve finished.”
Chapter Twenty-One
We've given the Audish king too many years and chances to change, to abandon pride or see anyone other than himself or his family as significant. If he’s our only hope against the immense danger which threatens our people, then we are well and truly doomed, and I can’t help but think it’s your fault for not seeing a better solution.
I’m sorry, my love. I didn’t mean that. I didn’t mean any of the anger. My frustration is reserved for the new King of Auden who has kept me waiting in this dark fortress, haunted by the ghosts of long-dead Esela, for weeks. He delays our meeting at every turn. I must inform him of the storm which comes, and he refuses to hear me. I begin to despair, my love.
An hour later, Kheled trudged from the village of scientists, making for the cluster of figures huddled by the nearest windmill. Hostile stares greeted him from unfamiliar faces, and he had a momentary concern he’d need to defend himself from Raimie’s men. Then, his friend bounced from their knot.
“Are you ready?” he asked.
Despite the slight fatigue hovering like a threatening raincloud, Kheled knew he was. His quick bite had revitalized him, and while he’d miss the prospect of a bed this night, the sacrifice would be worth it if he was allowed an evening wandering the countryside with his friend. If he tried very hard, he could almost imagine the unfriendly soldiers didn’t exist.
“Let’s get going!” he exclaimed.
The band of soldiers set off, Qena at their backs and Raimie and Kheled in the lead. The skies were clear as far as the eye could see, but Kheled would keep a mindful eye on the horizon. Hurricanes could sneak up on the unwary traveler, and even this far inland, they were exceptionally unpleasant to traverse. Hills blocked his view, gently rolling into the distance, but enough sky peeked over the summits to allow Kheled a significant warning period.
“Why are you on a tight schedule?” he puffed, intent on discovering the reason for his friend’s rush.
Why couldn’t this trip wait until morning? Why was he only allowed an hour’s rest?
“The investiture has a date: a little over two weeks from now,” Raimie replied. “Seeing as how travel between Qena and Uduli takes almost two weeks, the problem with Qena’s tear must be promptly resolved if I’m to be back in time…”
“Who’s to become the new King?” Kheled asked.
Please, please don’t say Kylorian.
“That would be me,” Raimie mumbled, a flush of color spreading across his cheeks.
“Oh, thank Alouin,” Kheled said in a rush. “Don’t get me wrong. Ren’s adoptive brother has many admirable qualities, namely a fierce loyalty to those he loves, but he wouldn’t make a good king.”
“And I’ll be better?” Raimie breathed.
Kheled allowed the question to pass unchallenged. His friend knew he’d make a good king, but his self-doubt needed room to breathe, otherwise, it would cripple him. Better he voiced such self-deprecating comments now than hesitate when it came time to make a life or death, snap decision.
“Kaedesa’s returned from Ada’ir,” Raimie continued once the moment had been put to bed.
Kheled froze for a split second, scrambling not to trip on the incline.
“Oh? Does that mean wedding plans are also imminent?” he asked, dreading the response.
He well remembered the days following Ren’s shunning of Raimie. Even distracted by fury with Ele, Kheled had taken note of his friend’s sudden intensity. Raimie had approached preparations for the Uduli assault with a ferocity which bordered on fixation. His tension hadn’t eased until the shanty towns outside the capital had been demolished, their former residents lodged in abandoned homes within the city wall, and Raimie hadn’t truly been himself again until Kaedesa had decided she’d done all she could for Auden. As soon as she’d departed for Ada’ir, a tightly wound coil deep within his friend had loosened. Ever since then, fixing crisis after crisis had kept him too distracted to mend his broken heart.
“I don’t know,” Raimie whispered, face twisting. “I’d planned for the ceremony to commence soon after the investiture, but…”
Again, his friend left Kheled in suspense.
“But what?!” he asked.
“Ren’s in Uduli,” Raimie answered, looking anywhere but at Kheled.
Oh, dear Alouin. Drama like this was why Kheled had abandoned any desire for romance after Lirilith died. Raimie had kingdom-defining, potentially world-ending problems on his plate, but he spent unnecessary mental effort on a woman. It was, quite frankly, ridiculous.
“How is my dear sister?” he asked.
“She’s fine,” Raimie mumbled. “She kissed me.”
Of course she did. Kheled loved Ren and would do anything for her, but she possessed the worst possible timing in everything she endeavored. He’d no clue what he’d do to his sister if she’d stirred hope within his friend only to crush it once more.
“I see,” he mumbled.
“What’s that supposed to mean, Khel?” Raimie asked. “I tell you what happened between us because I don’t know what to do! Dare I break my engagement to Kaedesa? I thought the Queen of Ada’ir become the Queen of Auden was what Ren wanted! Now she kisses me and offers her love. She casts doubt in my heart at a time when it needs to be steadiest. What do you think your sister intends?”
Kheled restrained a frustrated growl. He was not the person to ask for advice when it came to the heart or to his temperamental sister.
“Better to court caution, my friend. Ren should understand the position in which she’s placed you. She can wait to see whether you can diplomatically extricate yourself from your promise of marriage,” Kheled advised.
“I don’t know, Khel. My heart wars with my brain.”
“You’ll figure it out,” Kheled said. “You always do.”
“You’re not very good at offering advice like this, are you?” Raimie asked.
“I’ve had no time for romantic entanglements since Ele claimed me,” Kheled grumbled. “What do you expect from me? An easy solution for the mess into which you’ve fallen?”
“I’d like your opinion!” Raimie said, hurt evident in his tone. “That’s all! I want to know if you still approve of your sister and I as a couple.”
“Of course I do, my friend,” Kheled sighed. “I�
�ve thought the two of you would be perfect for one another since I discovered she survived our childhood home’s Harvest, but Raimie, she’s a half. Your future subjects won’t take kindly to a queen who claims traces of Esela blood, not after centuries of tyranny perpetrated by a full Eselan.”
“You’ve succinctly summarized my dilemma, and you’re right. I can’t expect you to provide a solution. I’ll have to concoct one on my own,” Raimie said. “I can only hope I soon come to a conclusion, so I don’t marry one woman and later realize I’ve made a terrible mistake.”
Kheled softly chuckled to himself.
“What?!” Raimie asked. “Do you find something I said funny?”
“No! I only laugh at us.”
“What about us?”
“We don’t see each other for months, and as soon as we meet again, we immediately plunge into serious topics,” Kheled said. “Does our friendship not include casual banter or mundane conversation?”
“Like what?” Raimie asked before exclaiming. “Wait! I’ve got something! You’ve missed our sparring sessions for the last four months. I’m disappointed! Of the people housed in the palace, Oswin and the Hand are the only ones, besides you, who pose a challenge to me, and the Hand’s always too busy ‘keeping me safe’ to indulge in a friendly fight. I’m afraid I’m falling out of practice.”
“My apologies, Your Majesty,” Kheled said with a mocking bow. “A considerable chunk of my time has recently opened, however, so hopefully, I can make my absence up to you.”
“Good.” Raimie lifted his nose and sniffed. “You wouldn’t want to offend your monarch.”
“Oh, heavens no! That would be unthinkable,” Kheled exclaimed with mock horror. “Otherwise your cranky men might glower at me even more sharply than they already do.”
Raimie glanced at the soldiers marching behind them. “You lot are on your best behavior for my friend, correct?” he shouted. “I know none of you think I’m a bad judge of character. Those dour expressions must be for something other than the Eselan beside me.”
The tiny regiment chorused a string of protests, and their expressions shifted more toward uncertainty and away from the murderous glances Kheled had caught directed his way.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t realize they were being antagonistic. They shouldn’t treat you like an enemy now,” Raimie said.
“I appreciate that.” We’ll see how long it lasts.
“What other ordinary topics could we cover? Hmmm… I know! Why don't you tell me what’s occupied you for the last few months?” Raimie asked.
“Since you’re so eager to know…”
Kheled shared his exploration of ancient Lyzencroft’s ruins and the lack of results from the far east side of the continent. From the graveyard of Auden’s sister nation, he’d made a circuit of the kingdom in a counter-clockwise fashion. He’d wandered the woods the Matvai claimed as their own, venturing for a time into the tundra beyond the northern mountains.
After a week of frozen hell, he’d made a brief stop in Nephiron but hadn’t bothered with the west coast Outskirts. Since Auden’s liberators had made first landing on the Outskirts, it had remained firmly under Raimie’s control, watched and monitored by trusted officials and allies from Tiro. Supplies from Ada’ir often entered the kingdom at Nephiron’s port, and large swaths of Raimie’s armed forces patrolled the main roads from the coast to the capital. After a brief respite in the newly revitalized port city, Kheled had quickly traveled south to Qena and begun his search of the Wastelands.
As Kheled wound down from the last of the tales he’d accumulated, Raimie chuckled.
“So many times we barely missed one another,” he mused. “I treated with the Matvai’s Vasnavai only a few weeks ago.”
“I’d heard rumors of your visit while scouring their forests,” Kheled admitted. “I considered coming to see you but didn’t want to cause a severe diplomatic incident. The Matvai…”
In the dense mountain forests of their Homeland, the Matvai regularly hunted Esela for sport, but Kheled didn’t think it wise to share that fact with his friend. If Raimie discovered the clan’s mistreatment of a race he considered as equal to his own, he’d cut all ties with them, and while Kheled hated what the Matvai did to his people, he also understood how important friendly relations between Auden and the clans was. So, a half-truth instead.
“The Matvai aren’t exactly fond of Esela so I stayed away from them as much as possible while in their territory.”
“You couldn’t have made more of a mess than I did.” Raimie fiercely grinned. “The Vasnavai tried to kill me toward the end of our negotiations.”
“She did?” Kheled laughed. “Well done, you! She must have liked you.”
“The knives she forced me to dodge would disagree with you,” Raimie said. “But back to your tale! Where were you next headed before our chance meeting?”
The relaxed, carefree mood Kheled had carefully cultivated in the last hour crumbled to dust.
“My final destination was the Esela Haven’s remnants,” he answered. “Although frankly, I’m glad you’ve provided an excuse not to go. I wouldn’t care to see the shining cities of my youth brought to destruction. I don’t need a visible reminder that those of my race have lost such strength and power we must bow to human superiority. I may be resigned to the fact that the Esela will soon cease to exist in this world, but reminders like the Haven are a slap in the face, an addition to the sting of our slow extinction.”
Raimie was quiet, lips silently moving while he decided what to say. Kheled was happy to wait. His friend could take all the time in the world if that’s what he required. He’d rather Raimie considered his response instead of blurting what first came to mind. Such thoughtfulness would save him from embarrassment countless times once he sat on the throne.
“You should return to Qena,” his friend eventually said, surprising Kheled.
Had he unintentionally offended Raimie?
“Tired of my company already?” he asked.
“What? No!” Raimie exclaimed. “I simply realized how silly our actions have been. We decide to establish a primeancer refuge, and after our resolution, the first thing we do is charge off on an adventure. You should have stayed behind with Miranon and Tejesper, using the time to begin resolving logistics. We’ll have all the time in the world to catch up while on the trip home. We don’t need to do so now.”
“You want me to work on your project while you’re adventuring?” Kheled asked.
“Can you manipulate tears?” Raimie asked. “Because unless you’ve developed the ability in the last four months, we can’t switch places, and trust me. I’d much rather tackle what I’ve asked of you.”
“Fair enough,” Kheled acknowledged, inclining his head. “What should I do in Qena?”
“Mostly keep watch on our two students and make sure they’re soon ready to leave,” Raimie answered. “But come on, Khel! You’ve seen much in your years. Surely you can imagine the issues we’ll encounter before we can establish a school.”
“I can think of a few,” Kheled agreed.
“In that case, I’ll see you by morning,” Raimie said, stopping and extending his hand.
Taking it, Kheled shook, unable to break the foreign gesture’s strangeness. Ada’ir and it’s bizarre customs…
“Be careful, Raimie,” he murmured, releasing his grip.
“I will.”
* * *
Raimie watched his friend climb the hills toward Qena. Sending him away with such a lie hurt, but he couldn’t bear to see melancholy on Kheled’s face. A despairing countenance appeared more than it rightfully should on his friend. He wouldn't cause it again by bringing Kheled to the dead Esela city which was their destination.
“It is for the best,” Nylion commented as someone else broke the silence.
“Kindly done, sir,” Little said beside him.
“Was that a compliment, Little?” Raimie asked. “I thought only snark came from your mouth
.”
“I believe it was praise, sir. I’ll avoid it in the future.”
“See? Much better!” Raimie teased.
“How much further to the tear, sir?” Little asked, blatantly ignoring his charge’s own attempt at snark.
Dim?
The splinter stared into the distance, eyes glazed, and Raimie frowned. He’d asked for the Daevetch splinter because, more than Bright, he could ignore his whole’s pull, but for today, Dim refused to follow the status quo.
Dim? Question for you, buddy.
Nothing from him, but Bright slightly stirred from his lethargic state.
“Would one of you please pay attention?”
Surprisingly, it was Raimie’s Ele splinter who broke from the drink-addled condition which had trapped he and Dim.
“What is it?” he asked slowly as if each word required a great deal of concentration.
How close are we?
“To the ruins?” Bright asked, slurring the words. “A couple more miles. To the tear, a bit longer. It’s in the middle of the former city.”
“We’re close,” Raimie told Little. “I’m not sure how much longer I can take the lead, though. My splinters aren’t being the epitome of help at the moment.”
“Not a problem,” Little said. “You point us in the right direction, and we can find our destination.”
“That way,” Raimie replied, pointing toward where his splinters avidly stared.
“Right. Our turn up front has come, men,” Little shouted to the soldiers. “Let’s go!”
Conversations which had rumbled behind Raimie while he and Kheled had taken the lead dwindled to nothing, but the quiet of the empty, rolling hills was calming. Raimie had spent the last several months in cities and on busy roads, surrounded by people and their accompanying noises. He’d missed the beauty of relative solitude, surrounded by nature.
“Raimie,” Nylion said as he hiked alongside his other half, “I know you have already given your word to the Qenans and the splinters, but will you promise me as well you will not close the tear?”
A King's Caution (The Eternal War Book 2) Page 42
