by Billy Wong
Finn grinned at her and touched her shoulder. "Don't worry about it. Just rest, and if there's another fight, I'll take care of it."
"We did give their morale quite the beating today," Sean mused, "and with Regis dead, it'll take time for the Fanteians to regroup. All thanks to you, Rose."
She smiled. "It's no big deal that I helped you out. I just do what I can."
"You suffered a lot for us." And would pay with her life for their victory. "I wouldn't call that nothing."
"Well, thanks. I'm glad I was able to help."
"Hey, give me some credit too!" Finn said.
"Of course," she teased him. "Who else could pick up the scraps so well? So Sean, you think it's time for me to leave yet?"
He still didn't expect her to live, but said hesitantly, "Well, you'll have someone to take your place, because apparently, I'm a prince..."
"You? Well, I did hear Finn just call you 'prince,' but I thought he was mocking you. When did you find this out?"
"Kelvin told me that I'm Gregor's son as he lay dying. You believe me, don't you?" He wasn't sure he believed it himself. It all seemed so unreal...
Rose chuckled, her apparent lack of shock making him think she must have figured from Kelvin stepping up his training that something was up. "Of course. I'm really glad I have somebody to give the throne who I trust. But, you think you're ready?"
"No..."
She tried to look him in the eye and said in a slightly aggravated voice, "You're probably readier than I was. At least you've had some time to get used to this kind of environment. I'm not saying you absolutely have to take on this role, if you're really not ready, but... I do want to go home."
Slowly, he nodded. "Fine. It must've been what Kelvin was grooming me for, so I should do... not as badly as I otherwise would."
"You'll do fine. If anything, you can make like me and let other people do all the work."
"I wouldn't be much of a king then. I mean, I'm not supposed to be just a placeholder like you."
"Hey, I was personally chosen by King Gregor," Rose protested with a grin. "So what if he was delirious?"
She was obviously joking, but her words reminded Sean of something that made eyes moisten and head hang with grief. "I never even knew my father, and now he's dead, and the man who was like my father as well. Both my fathers are dead."
He saw tears well up in Rose's glazed blue orbs, and knew she felt terrible. "I'm sorry I said that. Stupid of me to forget who he was..."
He couldn't pretend things were all right anymore, and turned to leave. He needed some time alone. "Take care of her, Finn. Rose, get some rest."
After exiting, he broke into a run down the hall, tears flowing uncontrollably from his eyes as he fled to his room. Kelvin was dead, he'd just found out his birth father had died right before his ignorant eyes weeks ago, and now his friend, the hero who had saved his country, lay dying... how could life be so cruel? It didn't matter he had learned himself to be royalty—he'd gladly give that up, if only he could trade it for Rose's life!
#
"Will he be okay?" Finn asked his love.
Rose frowned worriedly. "I have no idea. He's tough, but to lose two fathers in the same month... I wouldn't want to be in his place."
Finn stroked her fluffy hair and grinned. "I'm glad that at least you're all right."
"All right?! I got two big weapons stuck through my torso, and have huge holes in me where they were. I'm hardly all right."
"You know what I mean. Alive."
"I promised you I would be, did you think I'd break it? I think Sean believes I'm going to die; I could hear it in his voice. But I'll give him a happy surprise!"
Her voice was small and weak, and Finn asked with growing concern, "Should we stop talking so you can rest? You're hurt awfully bad."
"No, let's not stop. I'm not hurt so badly that I can't talk. Besides, hearing your voice gives me strength."
"Okay. But don't you dare die on me!"
"I won't. I haven't yet, have I?" She paused. "I'm glad we'll be home soon. Jacob, Amber... I miss you so much..."
"What about being queen here?"
"It's over. Sean's going to be king from now on."
"I don't know that he's so ready for that."
Rose blinked. "Surely you don't want me away from our kids any longer? I've been enough of a horrible mother without you helping it along, and no great queen by any measure. What use am I here, if there's no battle at hand? It's already been months—I need to see my babies, and hold them..."
He knew she did, but had a solution. "How about I bring them here to you? It'll be like a family vacation. I mean, we can expect peace here at least for a while, so let's stay for a bit, at least until Sean's ready to take over for you."
"So me, you, and the kids all here? Who's going to take care of the center?"
"Derrick's doing it right now."
She raised her brow. "Isn't he supposed to be in Dunwal?"
"The Dunwal negotiations fell through. Derrick got into a dispute with the mayor over the location of the new branch, and got us rejected altogether."
"Ugh, same old argumentative Derrick. But maybe he had a good reason for it, like the mayor wanted him to set up in a waterlogged basement. But why do you want us to stay here? You like seeing me as queen?"
He stroked her face with a smile. "I'm proud of you."
"Over nothing. The king picked me because he was dying and delirious. I've done nothing queenly since my coronation."
Finn slapped her arm, lightly out of consideration for her wounds. "What about your fighting? You're the queen of fighting."
Rose rolled her eyes dubiously. "Sure. If that makes me a queen, wouldn't I have been one long before ever coming here? Maybe I could give you the crown, of Terlon that is. You'd see that being king isn't all it's cracked up to be."
"You'd really give me the throne?" She snorted, and Finn realized she'd been joking. "Uh, so what about the vacation idea?"
"Nope, not going to do it."
A little surprised, he asked, "Why not?"
"I... well... after being here so long under less than joyful conditions, it would be a tough switch for me to suddenly think of Terlon as an ideal vacation spot. Having just seen Belar under attack, I don't find the idea of my kids being here so appealing. I'm sure I'll look forward to visiting again someday, but right now, I'd rather go home."
"Fine, Rose. We'll leave once you're better—and you better get better! Are you sure Sean can handle things here with Julian still around?"
She frowned, and Finn could see the uncertainty creep onto her face. "I really don't know. You sound like you're trying to convince me to stay. Don't you want to go home too?"
"Yes, I want to go home. But I make the argument I do because a long time ago, you promised yourself you'd see every battle through to the end, so you wouldn't have to bear the guilt of letting things worsen if you ran away. And you're looking to break that promise now. So I just want to keep you happy, in the long run."
Rose took his face in both hands and smiled. "Thanks for thinking so much of me and my guilty conscience. But what does seeing this through to the end mean? Earlier, I thought it would be when Regis and Julian were dead, and the latter is still alive. But I could've also decided it to be when we beat back the Fanteian army, or in the opposite case, after I spent the rest of my life as queen here.
"Right now the enemy leader is dead, Sean's safe, and we've discovered a new heir to the crown. If we insist on waiting for Julian to attack again so we can kill him, well, what if he never attacks? When do we judge he really has given up and isn't just waiting for us to leave? Fanteia's invasion has been thwarted and Terlon should have some time of peace in which to rebuild. If Sean does need help later and asks for it, I'll be glad to come, but we don't have to exile ourselves to guard against just a possible future threat."
In his heart Finn agreed, as he'd only been trying to look out for her conscience by playing devil's
advocate, and what he really wanted was to take Rose home. He did worry about how she'd feel if Fanteia attacked again soon and they couldn't get back in time. "Okay, if you're sure about it, I've got no problem with leaving. Are you sure?"
"Yeah, I mean I understand what you were doing and I am a little anxious about leaving Sean to handle things alone." She grinned widely. "But I really miss being home—home home home home home!"
"Boy, the kids are going to be glad to see their mommy."
"And she'll be glad to see them!"
#
Though she looked forward to going home, Rose still did worry deeply about Sean's state of mind. When he visited her the next morning, she didn't engage in small talk for long before asking, "So are you ready to take the crown or not? I know what you've been through, and I'm sorry about putting such a burden on you so soon, but the longer I stay, the longer my kids are without both their parents."
"You're still bedridden!"
She laughed, causing agony to shoot through her chest, and shook her head. "I could probably move a little if I really needed to, although I didn't mean I'm leaving right this minute. But in a couple weeks at most, I think I'll be quite ready to go. Ready to become King Sean?"
His gaze drifted downwards. "Fine, the world waits for no one, I suppose. I'll just have to bear it as best I can."
"Sorry." Feeling guilty about rushing her friend, she offered, "I'm willing to stay queen for a little longer, if you really need it."
"No, you've done more than enough. More than anyone expected."
Well, she had come thinking just to negotiate the opening of a research center, not become queen and lead a country in war. "Thanks. I'm sure you'll make a great king."
"Yeah, right."
She grinned. "I mean it! It'll be great to add a common man's touch to the crown, I think."
"You're one of the few who thinks that."
"Maybe not. I'd think that maybe just a few of the common folk who live in Terlon would agree. Of course, you will have your hands full with the nobility who don't."
"You didn't get that much opposition."
Rose shook her head. "I didn't really try hard to do anything they disapproved of, or much of anything at all. Told you I wasn't a real queen. It'll be different—harder—for you, if you really intend to rule and improve this nation. You'll have to be strong."
He looked expectantly at her. "What would you do if you had to be a real queen, then?"
"Oh no, you're going to ask me for political advice? Gee, Sean, I don't seem to know too much about that kind of stuff. But I guess... if you want to know how I try to deal with people who disagree with me, I'd say the first thing is to try to understand how they feel, and what they really want. Then think how you can help them get their way, or something close to it, without hurting your own cause too much in the process. It's not always going to work out, hell, it often doesn't, but the thing is to try. A good compromise is a beautiful thing—more so than me getting a torso full of metal!"
"Still picking on me for calling your fight beautiful last night? Thanks for the advice, but I've heard that so many times before, it's all but useless to hear again. I was hoping for something more specific than the value of compromise."
Rose felt sorry she couldn't offer more help, but if she didn't know about something, she didn't know it. "I told you I'm no politician. I think you'd do best to make friends with some of your father's old confidants. They'll serve you much, much better than me in this regard."
He nodded in agreement. Then he asked, "Just how in the world are you still alive after what happened to you? I'm glad you made it, of course, but... ouch. How are you so strong?"
She smiled bashfully. "I'm just really hard to kill, that's all. Always have been, remember? To be honest, I don't know if I would've made it this time if not for Finn calling me back when I was fading. Julian must have been pretty shocked when I got back up to chase him, though!" Looking at Sean's face, she pointed out, "Speaking of injuries, you've got a nasty bruise yourself."
"I know. Julian sure hits hard."
"Not really, I've fought stronger," she said with a wink. "Say, someday when you're more settled... think we can talk about opening that branch of my magical research center here, like I was supposed to with your father?"
"No problem. What, did you really think I'd say no? So when exactly do you plan on handing me your crown?"
"Anytime you're ready. I never wanted it in the first place!"
#
Not two weeks later, Rose stepped on board a ship back to Kayland, still hurting very much but anxious to return home. She'd abdicated her crown the day Sean agreed to accept it, placing the gold circlet on his head with shaking hands from her bed in spite of the nobles who demanded proof of his lineage—proof which was nowhere to be found. Without such evidence, many people were reluctant to accept the previously unknown prince, and it became clear he'd have some trouble winning the nation over. Still, Rose trusted him to be the real deal; he nor Kelvin would lie about that.
Honestly, Danica would likely have made a better ruler, and maybe they should have tried harder to find her or confirm her death before placing the nation in Sean's hands. But Rose was really tired of being faux queen, and needed to go home. Now, if this had happened in Kayland, she would have given Sean the title of regent, with the provision that if Danica returned, she'd take her rightful place as monarch. Unfortunately, there was no concept of regents in Terlonian law, and Rose didn't think it the place of a figurehead queen to try and change its ancient edicts, especially as weary as she was. King Sean waved her goodbye while she boarded her transport home, and she warmly returned the gesture. She'd miss him, and didn't doubt she'd come back to visit someday, but for now, her work in Terlon was done. She eagerly imagined being home... home home home home home!
Chapter 7
Julian gazed upon the helmet with dread. Though he'd taken full control of Fanteia, having Regis' children killed to snatch the title of emperor for himself, he felt less secure than he had in years. He figured the god expected his report soon, but feared what would come when he gave it. Was he doomed to be thrown away like a used toy? "My lord, I'm here."
The familiar glow appeared in those hollow eyeholes and Deathend's voice mused, "Indeed you are." Then his tone changed considerably, now booming with rage. "Not that I need you anymore! You've failed me utterly. Where is my Terlon, and where is my axe-bearer? You even lost your brother in your incompetence, useless as you are!"
"I am sorry, but Rose was so much stronger than we anti-"
Though heard in his mind, the war god's interruption almost deafened him. "Enough! I told you this was your last chance, and I stand by my decree. You, and all your fruitless ambitions. What use is there in a servant who can only fail? In my day, I took Terlon with the greatest ease. I had hoped that you and Regis would be able to create a Fanteia which lived up to my glorious empire. But soon it will be time for me to take your place, and this nation will once again be the jewel of all the world."
Julian pleaded then, "Please, my lord, I can still be of use to you. I'll accept a lesser role in your empire, be your loyal servant whatever you want me to do!"
"No. If I entrust two simple tasks to you, and you fail as miserably as you have, why should I believe you will be able to take on more? You must be punished. Only then will others see the price for incompetence."
Deathend stopped talking, but did not leave. The burning eyes continued to stare at Julian, stabbing his soul with tendrils of fear. What was he going to do? Somehow, he had to find out how to defeat the god he'd once served. Otherwise, he wouldn't even have his life to live, let alone his empire to rule.
#
Finn stumbled over to Rose's bed as the Mauled Salmon—the old, beat-up merchant ship they rode back to Kayland—tossed in the storm's turbulent waves. Looking down at her pained face, he asked loudly, "Are you okay? How do your insides feel?"
"I'm just seasick," she reassured him
.
He wasn't going to fall for that excuse. "You're never seasick!"
She didn't argue, but said, "If not for this stupid storm, I'd be fine. Say, did I tell you what happened on my ship ride to Terlon? We got attacked by a sea serpent during a storm, and I had to jump into the water to kill it. Got banged up some, too. Did you have any trouble on your voyage here?"
He remembered the smooth ride he'd had to Polier. "Nope, none at all. It's your cursed luck, Rose."
"Maybe so. I'm getting a bit scared this piece of junk won't be able to weather this storm."
"Don't be silly. I hand-picked this ride. It may look old, but the current captain said it looked old when he bought it, and it's held steady for sixteen years since!" His confidence decreased a bit when he realized it'd already been old for at least half his life. He heard a deafening crash up on deck and felt the ship shake violently. It could only mean one thing; the mast had fallen. Then he felt cold wetness flow around his ankles and looked down to see water lapping into the room.
Rose glared at Finn. He felt rather sorry seeing her hug her blanket tightly in pain. "Well this ship's going down, more likely than not," she said. "What the hell are we going to do?"
"There've got to be lifeboats on this ship."
"Are there any left at this point?"
"We'll see when we get up top." He dragged her out of bed and they waded through flooded hallways on their clumsy way up to the deck, where they found not a boat in sight. "Did they forget about us?"
"Or, they figured they didn't have room for us since the number of lifeboats probably wasn't decided with passengers in mind."
They spotted a boat tossing in the waves, the stocky captain shouting desperately at his crewmen to keep it right side up. Another boat had also been launched from the ship, but now floated overturned in the water, with no sign of the men who'd disembarked inside it. "What, abandoning us without even a warning?" Finn spat.
"We don't have room for you two big apes!" the captain yelled back.
