Ashni sent Adira about her business with instructions to watch Amal, as he was too occupied lately, and returned to the throne room. She planned to work, but couldn’t focus on anything yet again. Come on, just do what you’re supposed to do. That little bit of coaching was useless and she sighed. Her concentration was shot. You promised Dad you wouldn’t be distracted. You promised.
After about an hour of trying to be productive, she found herself marching to Nakia’s rooms. She would speak to Nakia and explain to her what the hell happened. It wasn’t that serious and she was sick of acting like it was. She was sick of being treated like she’d done something wrong. She wasn’t a monster and Nakia wasn’t a victim.
“Time to put an end to this crap,” she muttered as she walked. She couldn’t believe a little hellcat like Nakia was still locked in her rooms. She understood Nakia was traumatized, but she assumed Nakia would eat that and spit it out. She should have come out by now, wreaking havoc where she went, just like before. “Hiding doesn’t suit her.”
Doesn’t suit her or suit your image of her? Ashni shook the thought away. She didn’t need things like that in her head right now. Pounding on the door, she didn’t care if she knocked the damned thing down. She was about to kick the door in when Min appeared. Ashni snarled, already determined not to be told she couldn’t go in. When Min stood in her way, she wasn’t sure if determination would be enough. No, to Hell with this. I’m Queen. They do what I say.
Min bowed her head. “My Queen.”
“Where’s the little hellcat?” Ashni pushed her way past the servant into the front room. There wasn’t much to see, but there was even less to hear. There was no noise aside from the shuffling of the servants as they tidied the place.
“She’s gone out, Highness,” Min said.
Ashni turned back to her. “Gone out? So, she got out of bed?” Okay, so she’s alive and kicking, just avoiding me entirely, I guess. The news should have made her feel better, but it didn’t.
“A few days ago, after Lady Bashira arrived.”
Ashni blinked, but nodded. So Bashira had done the trick. “How…how has she been?”
“She and Lady Bashira have become fast friends. If I might be forthright, Highness.”
“You know I never stop anyone from being honest.”
“I think Lady Bashira has done your guest more good than you know. I know she was sent here to comfort the Princess, but they seem to be genuine friends now. They laugh together and talk nonstop. One day soon, I’m sure I’ll walk in here to find Lady Bashira asleep on a seat or something as wild because they enjoy each other’s company so much. Could you imagine such a delicate noble like Lady Bashira asleep on one of the sitting pillows? I never would’ve imagined the Princess allowing someone in her presence so long.”
Ashni frowned. She didn’t want Bashira to get that close to her little hellcat. But, then, she knew there was nothing to fear. Bashira’s taste lay exclusively in men. Wait, what do I care who Bashira is attracted to? Or Nakia, for that matter. It didn’t matter. The good news was that Nakia was up and about. Maybe they could talk soon and get everything straightened out.
“I think she will see you soon, Highness.” Min smiled. It was a knowing smile that made her eyes glimmer.
Ashni decided to ignore the expression. Why does everyone think there’s more to this than me caring about getting our gold? “Good, then we can put this whole silly matter behind us.” And I can focus on actual important things. She couldn’t rely on Adira to run the government forever.
Still smiling, Min tilted her head a little. “I suppose, Highness. She misses you, you know.”
“Misses me?” Ashni scoffed. She doubted that.
“Until Lady Bashira arrives, the Princess doesn’t know what to do with herself. She wakes, dresses, then paces. She mutters constantly, wondering under her breath if she should just go to the throne room.”
Ashni snorted and folded her arms across her chest. “Probably looking to confront me over imagined crimes.”
Min frowned and wagged her finger at Ashni. “You should not belittle the Princess’ pain, Highness. If you truly wish to put this behind you, you need to acknowledge that you hurt her, even if you didn’t mean to do such a thing. Your accident doesn’t invalidate her agony.”
Ashni flinched. The old bag was right. It wasn’t in Ashni’s personality or status to admit fault. She was the Queen, damn it. She was the daughter of the Eagle’s Son. She was partially a god herself, their ichor following through her veins, and she always saw signs of their favor. But, none of that mattered. She had wronged Nakia and everyone could see that.
“Let me know when it’s safe to return.”
“Of course, your Highness.” Min bowed again.
Sighing, Ashni returned to her duties.
***
The marketplace was beyond amazing and Nakia enjoyed being there, despite the return of the heat and how dry the weather made her skin. There were so many people. Sights, sounds, and smells seemed to go on forever. Nakia doubted they would be able to see the whole place before sunset, but Bashira wasn’t interested in the whole place.
“The marketplace is sectioned off by item. It makes it easy to shop and it also makes sure perfumes aren’t next to pets or a butcher or something else that would smell really bad,” Bashira explained as they walked past stores and booths with all types of clothing.
Nakia noticed how much she stood out in her clothes, but what she noticed more was how colorful Roshan clothing was without any designs on it. The Queen and those around her wore many colors, but seeing the full spectrum of colors and the fact that not everyone wore those ridiculous pants caught her eye. There were brightly colored dresses and beautiful gems. She wanted bangles like the Queen. She enjoyed the way they rang out as the Queen moved and how they announced her whenever she entered a room.
“Is there anything in particular you want?” Bashira asked.
“Well…” Nakia looked around and started buying new outfits. Bashira was right there with her, going through a multitude of fabrics and colors.
Nakia learned several things during the trip, mostly about Eastern fashion and the marketplace. The most important thing she learned was that living in the palace made delivery easy, which she should’ve known from her own home, but realized here. Whatever she wanted would be sent to the palace and the Queen would get the bill. She hoped she made a considerable dent in the gold she was being held for.
No one questioned Nakia, probably because Bashira was with her. Some of the shop owners knew Bashira, but others didn’t. She would talk to them for a while and they would agree to send their purchases to the palace. Nakia wanted to learn that trick.
“We should get back,” Bashira said as the sun started to sink below the horizon.
Nakia nodded and they began the long walk back to the palace. She didn’t mind the walk, even though she had never walked so much at home. Here, everyone walked or rode horses. The only person she had seen carried by others was Amal.
“Hey, wait a moment,” Nakia said as they walked past a puppet show. There was something familiar about it.
Bashira paused. “You want to hear the story of how the Queen’s parents met?”
“Is that what this is?” That explained why the Queen and Layla screamed the whole time. They must have thought the story was inaccurate, even though she knew the Queen held her father in high esteem.
“Yes.”
“Is the story untrue?”
Bashira listened to the puppets for a moment. “Sounds accurate. You won’t find many people willing to lie about that. It was an epic love story, after all.”
Nakia arched an eyebrow. “Epic love story?” She doubted anything these barbarians did could be an epic love story.
“I can tell you on the way,” Bashira offered, glancing up at the sky.
“Please.”
Bashira nodded and they set off again. “So, I know the popular version of the story. It’s
probably the most famous story in the whole empire. The Queen always heckles whoever tells it when she’s around, but I think she’s teasing more than anything. The Empress has never disputed the tale.”
“So, what happened?”
“It’s said that the Great Amir Khalid, son of the Great Eagle, met his wife Chandra in the wilds of the frontier north. He sought to extend the Empire to the mountains and rode in with his whole army. He was still a boy, really, roughly seventeen summers old. But he had already conquered enough for the Roshan kingdom to be called an empire.”
“Wait, so he conquered everything?”
“Well, his grandfather united the Roshan tribes of the eastern plains and started the conquest. Amir Khalid carried on when he was old enough. Now, do you want to hear the story or not?”
Nakia grimaced. “Hey, I have questions. This is the first time I’ve heard the story, after all.”
“True enough, but let me get through the story and then you can ask what you want, okay?”
“Okay.”
“Now, where was I? Oh, right…”
Amir Khalid Akshay was upon his mighty steed, his cape bellowing behind him, as he marched up a grassy hill, his mind set on the village below. The plan was to bend this valley to his will and add it to his father’s kingdom. The mountains surrounding the area, the protection for these people, seemed so far away, as if the mountains left this space open just for him. And then, someone stood in his way, literally. At the top of the hill stood a willowy girl, Chandra. She wasn’t any older than he was. She was dressed simply and didn’t seem like much of anything, yet there she stood as if mountains moved from her path.
“What is your business here?” Chandra demanded of him. She stared at him as if she could stop the gods themselves. He stared back.
The most fearsome men of the Roshan Kingdom were at the Amir’s back while Chandra’s villagers stood behind her. No one moved. No one blinked. No one even dared breathe too loud. The tension reached the sky and parted the clouds. A rumble of thunder clapped and it clearly wasn’t going to rain. The sky was charged, making hair stand on end.
Khalid and Chandra continued to watch one another, neither giving ground. Then, the impossible happened. The Amir blinked.
“Who are you?” Khalid asked, his voice low, as if she awed him.
Chandra regarded him with a tilt of her head, before turning away, flipping her long, flowing ebony hair as she did so. Khalid watched her walk away, his golden eyes wide and his mouth agape. No one had ever turned their back to him before and lived.
A general rode up beside Khalid. “Highness, shall we raze this village to the ground for such insolence?”
Khalid shook his head. Urging his horse on, he chased after Chandra. She didn’t turn around, but disappeared behind a cluster of huts. He scanned the area for her, but she was gone.
Growling, he hunted to find out who she was. He interrogated everyone he could, wanting to know everything about her. It wasn’t hard. Chandra was the daughter of the village’s chieftain. Khalid set up a meeting with him.
Khalid sat with the chief in his hut, but the chief did not speak. His wife did the talking. The Amir felt he was in the presence of one of the scariest women ever to live, but he had already blinked once. He’d never blink again.
“They tell me you’re interested in the offspring of my flesh and the fire of the underworld,” she said.
He arched an eyebrow. “The fire of the underworld?”
“My daughter, Chandra, is the daughter of the great fire god.”
Khalid glanced at the chief, doubting this man was a god of any kind. None of the villagers spoke of the chief being a god, but they spoke of his wife being a demon. Seeing her pale skin, he could understand how she could be confused for a corpse destined for the underworld.
The villagers didn’t speak of Chandra in the same way. They held her in high regard. They considered her a blessing, but felt her mother was a curse. Chandra kept their fields bountiful, healed the sick, and kept invaders at bay. But, they also whispered that they could see dark fire in Chandra when she was rubbed the wrong way. He was certain he saw that dark fire and wanted to know it intimately.
“You do know my daughter is the true bringer of death and destruction, unlike your title,” she said.
Khalid chuckled. “You think my title is all talk, witch?” He was known by many names, including Son of the Great Eagle, the God of War, and best of all, the God of Death. He earned each and every title with his actions.
She snickered. “Witch? I see my people talk too much.”
“Your people?” He glanced at the chieftain again, who said nothing. Maybe she was a witch and had him under a spell. It didn’t matter. The wife wasn’t much of a concern for Khalid. He had only one desire at the moment. “I would like to marry your daughter.”
She laughed again. “Marry my daughter? You, a lowly warrior, would marry the daughter of a god?”
He held his head high. “I am the son of a god, am I not? No one will ever be more worthy of her.”
His claim silenced the witch for a moment. Khalid was well known for being the son of the Sun. It was said that he wasn’t born of a human, but of the sky and the earth. Lightning struck a rock and he came from the stone. His father found him and claimed him as the prince of the Roshan kingdom. Khalid never told the tale, but he never disputed it either. Let others sort out the truth once he was dead.
No one knew what else was said in the conversation, as it never seemed important. What was important was the witch agreed to allow Khalid to marry Chandra. Khalid didn’t raze the village, but Chandra almost did when she learned she was betrothed to the outsider. It was said she had to be held down by a dozen men during the marriage ceremony. Khalid almost didn’t survive the wedding night.
Chandra went to her new spouse’s tent armed with a dagger and tried to slit his throat. Khalid was no easy target. They ended up getting into a huge tussle, and not in the proper manner. The whole camp heard the struggle and the new couple had to be separated before one of them killed the other. In fact, they had to go to the surgeons for stitches and be treated for multiple bruises.
No one knew if Khalid and Chandra consummated their marriage by the time they returned to the capital of the Roshan kingdom. The King wasn’t happy to greet his new daughter-in-law and it was believed it was the only time the King showed displeasure with his son. How dare the Crown Prince, the Great Amir, marry some lowly, savage northern hill woman? And, the King said as much to Khalid and Chandra.
Khalid didn’t react, but Chandra moved as soon as the King finished speaking. She had a dagger to his throat before the King’s guards could move. Khalid smirked while amusement danced in his eyes.
“How can I not love her, Sire? Not when we are so clearly cut from the same cloth,” Khalid said.
“Son…” The King trailed off and swallowed hard. He glanced down at the hand threatening him.
“Sire, meet my one and only, my future Queen, Chandra Akshay. She is of our house now and you should treat her as the daughter she is,” Khalid said.
The King nodded slowly. “Yes, of course. Greetings, my daughter.”
Chandra eased the dagger from his throat and returned to Khalid’s side. From that point on, they were always together. When Khalid rode off for the warring season, she was by his side and together they conquered. They made the army beyond unstoppable. Nothing halted their war machine—no wall, no body of water, no army—nothing could stop them. They shared everything. He gave her all his power, commands, and shared tactics with her. She gave him something even bigger.
It was through Chandra that the Amir learned how to govern. Before, he conquered and moved on. She was the one who made sure people knew they were now part of the Roshan. The people began the Roshan Empire and they were all Roshan.
By the time Khalid came to the throne, he was ready to be an emperor. He still preferred the title ‘Amir,’ and used it on the battlefield. But, at home
, he was ‘Emperor.’ Chandra was his empress and he made sure that everyone understood she was him and he was she. They were the same, equal. Her word was his will.
People still gossiped about her. She and Khalid had been married for two years and Chandra hadn’t given him a child. It wasn’t from lack of trying by that time. They had come a long way from their wedding night. When they went on a campaign together, they spent every moment together, but Chandra never became with child.
There had always been talk that Chandra was a witch and she had enthralled Khalid, but now the talk was worse. Nobles and servants alike whispered that she had bewitched Khalid and the dark magic blinded him to the fact that she couldn’t give him what he needed, namely an heir. Some nobles tried to convince him to take another spouse, which was well within his rights. As long as he could give the other spouses equal attention and care, he could have as many spouses as he wanted, just like any other citizen of the Empire. He exploded with rage and almost cut one man down for saying so.
Chandra heard the rumors and each of them felt like hot metal poking her flesh. There were times she thought Khalid should take another wife, someone to bear him the mighty children he deserved. She once sneaked off and returned to her mother. She asked her mother to read bones and entrails for her. She was promised children, children like she and Khalid, children to be feared, envied and loved, children of the gods. Chandra had to be patient.
Chandra returned to Khalid feeling secure in their legacy, beyond the growth of their empire. The rumors slid right off of her. But, it would take another year to prove her mother’s reading correct. From the birth of their first son, Chandra made up for lost time. Khalid was overjoyed when Chandra gave birth to their first son, Jay for victory. Victory not only over those who wanted to see her reputation soiled and see her downfall, but also victory for the Empire as there was now a proper heir.
Chandra would bear Khalid six sons in total. In the middle of the six sons came their only daughter, Ashni. The sons were like their father, but Ashni was the perfect mix of both parents. Her parents loved her best of all.
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