by Ian Rodgers
Finally out of sight from the citizens and in private at long last, the king and queen throw aside all pretenses of decorum and throw themselves into each other’s arms, noisily making out and coming close to groping each other.
Liliana blushed violently crimson and turned away while Julius gagged and looked ill. The maids and various servants all studiously looked somewhere else while maintaining an air of ‘oh, us? No, we’re not embarrassed. Not at all.’ Very classy.
The only people who did not seem bothered by the blatant display being put on by their royal lord and lady were myself, Sir Blaine, and Queen Amdora’s personal maid. My excuse is because I have no concept of love and desire beyond caring for my owner, and human notions of courtship have always baffled me. The captain of the Dire Sword and Miss Karina just had a stoic look on their faces. They’d seen this before, being the personal guards of the Roan family, and so very little the royal couple did surprised or shocked them anymore.
“Oh, I’m so glad you’re home,” Queen Amdora uttered in a breathy whisper, separating partially from her husband.
“I am as well. I’m just happy to make it back before the snow arrived,” King Tiberius replied before pulling closer.
“Perhaps you should change out of your armor if you’re going to continue this. And maybe relocate to your quarters,” Sir Blaine spoke up, a single eyebrow raised at his liege.
“You’re right, of course,” the king murmured, finally realizing where he and his wife had been getting intimate, and who exactly was watching.
“Liliana, Julius…” Acting not as a king at that moment but a concerned and loving father, Tiberius Augustine Roan lowered himself slightly and opened his arms wide, a clear invitation to his dear children.
At once his prince and princess leapt into them, tears of loneliness, fear, and love bubbling up after a long absence. He gave them both a firm and gentle hug, only reluctantly letting them go.
“I missed you both so much,” Tiberius confessed, smiling down at them. The expression took a sorrowful tint as he recalled the incident just days before.
“You’ve been very brave. I’m so proud of you.” His praise brought joyous grins to his children’s faces and I burbled with happiness of my own, the pleasure of my owner being my own source of bliss.
“Is it finally over?” Julius’ innocent question brought a faint frown to the king’s lips, but he nodded none the less.
“Yes. Count Darpel and his son are dead.” It might have been blithe and cold, but it was a fact that that man had been the cause of a lot of grief for the family.
But I knew, as did the king and queen, that the countess had survived and fled. She had been the one to dispatch those dark magic assassins, and I had no doubt she would try again once she found out they had failed.
Liliana Roan Darpel. The thought of her brought my gut to a boil. Despite being a sibling of the king and sharing a name with my dear owner she was truly a wretched human being. I’d have to be even more vigilant. No harm would come to my owner if I could help it.
“By the way! I do have some good news. Varda will be coming down after the Winter Solstice to visit,” King Tiberius said, bringing smiles to his children’s faces.
“Will he be here for my birthday?” Liliana inquired, childish innocence and hope in her eyes.
“He will. I know he won’t miss it. You and Julius mean the world to him,” the king assured, while I wracked my mind trying to connect a person to the name. Varda sounded familiar, but where had I heard it?
In the end I couldn’t remember and contented myself with relaxing in my owner’s arms as the family moved to the dining room for an early dinner. They were happily discussing what they’d do this winter together.
There were two events that were coming up this season. One was a religious festival based around the winter solstice. It was a day uniquely celebrated by humans, dwarves, and even elves. Each species did it differently, but the point was the same. That is, praying for survival in the depths of winter.
The second event was something I was personally excited about. The first day of spring, which was Princess Liliana’s birthday! Since that date was also New Year’s Day based on the human and elf calendar, the whole kingdom threw a massive celebration in honor of both the end of winter and the birth of the eldest child of the royal family.
I giddily wondered how she’d like my present. Ever since I’d found out about the date, I had been preparing a gift. It wasn’t much, as I had no money to my name, but there were some things unique to an Ooze like myself that were impossible for ordinary humans to obtain. As such I was confident that my owner would find it pleasing.
Dinner passed by quickly and the rest of the evening was just spent cuddling on the massive bed in the royal quarters. It had been a trying time for my owner and her sibling being separated from their father for so long, let alone having assassins come after them. After all that tension drained away, they were left exhausted, and fell asleep quickly.
The king and queen stayed awake just a bit longer, as did I. Listening in on their whispered conversation might have been rude but it was about the campaign, a scandal at some place called the Tower of Chains, and lastly about the implied threat on their family. I felt it was my duty to listen in.
“Tiberius, I want to enroll Liliana in the Royal Varian Mages Academy,” Amdora mentioned, slowly stroking Julius’ hair.
“Do you really think that’s a good idea? Having her so far from home might be too lonely for her, plus she only just started her magic training…”
“Liliana is nearly an adult, Tiberius. She’ll be fourteen when spring rolls around, and then it’ll only be one more year before she’s legally an adult, and thus will either have to start looking for a fiancé or find some sort of respected career to keep her independence,” Amdora countered, her voice still low and calm in spite of her words. “Plus, there are few other places as safe as the Academy. You’d have to be either stupid or suicidal to attack a place with an X-ranked guardian.”
“Lastly, she’s my daughter, after all,” the queen said softly, gazing lovingly at her daughter. “She’s picked up magic like a sponge in water, and has a great desire to learn more.”
“At least she’s kept the collateral damage to a minimum,” Tiberius joked, only to be rewarded with a slap on the arm and a pouting glare.
“You destroy part of a garden and wreck two wings of a mansion and no one lets you live it down,” I heard the queen mutter under her breath. Her husband didn’t appear to hear it, but could see the look on her face none the less and moved to comfort her with nuzzles.
“If you truly think she’ll thrive at the Academy, then we can talk to her about it in the morning. Classes only begin in mid-spring so we have time to enroll her, and let Petrus catch her up on the bare minimum for passing the entrance test.”
Queen Amdora nodded happily at that, snuggling closer to her husband and children. A look that was a mixture of fear and relief washed over her face as she observed the rise and fall of two tiny chests.
“I was scared, Tiber. So very scared. When those three... scum… breeched the defenses and came straight for our children, I thought I’d have a heart attack! And their magic! I haven’t seen anything that dark and corrupted before! Petrus looked them over and claimed they were using Curse magic. If such people come after us again, I’m afraid I won’t be able to save them next time.”
The king carefully extracts his right arm from the pile of sleeping adorableness and wraps it around his wife’s shoulders. I too inch closer and vibrate in a soothing manner next to her side. Blinking back tears Amdora allows herself to relax in the safety of her family’s embrace.
As they finally let themselves succumb to the call of dreams, I thought about what I could do to protect Liliana. My magic was not enough, though I improved day by day. My own abilities as an Ooze were still fairly new and unknown to me, and I needed to practice with them some more. There were other avenues of training op
en to me, but they would need more time and effort than what I had at the moment. For now, all I could do was continue to be my owner’s companion. There was time to grow, but now was a time to heal first.
Chapter 22: Under the light of truth
Snow piled up on the streets, upon the roofs, upon the people. Winter and it’s ‘gifts’ had come to Varia’s capitol, and in a great deluge that stunned me.
Since I was technically a newborn, this was my first experience with ‘snow’ as well as the biting gales that howled down from the mountain slopes. I was honestly shocked at how cold it got, and had I not been filled with an inordinate amount of mana my semi-liquid body would have turned into an ice sculpture.
Had I been in my old body and out in the streets I would have frozen to death on the first snowfall. Even inside the palace I would have been sluggish and in danger of icing over on some of the colder nights. Thankfully as a Royal Ooze I was slightly more resistant to the cold, but only to the point that I would not freeze solid in minutes. Now it would take hours. Lucky me!
I stayed as close to the fireplaces, furnaces, and boilers as I could whenever my owner and I had to leave the comfort of our warm beds or her arms. This of course meant that the maids and staff were almost tripping over me each time they tried to tend to the various heat sources. Which in turn meant they would lift me out of the way or shove me aside. Had I been an animal with vocal cords I might have hissed and growled at anyone who tried to take me from my tiny, temporary sanctuaries. As it stood the most I could do was wobble in anger and maybe make a tendril to gently slap them on the wrist when they did so.
Oh how I wished for eyes at that time, so that I might glare at those who dared to disturb me!
Alas, I did not spontaneous grow eyeballs. I did focus on more of Petrus’ lessons though. The one with the Self Heating cantrip had made me jiggle with joy. It proved harder than I’d thought however, as heat based magic reacted poorly with my semi-liquid form. First the element of Water, and now Fire. I am truly a deprived soul!
It took much more effort and mana to construct a working Self Heating spell than it should have. Annoying. Truly annoying. What’s the use of having more magic than most other humans if I cannot even use it to stave off the chill of winter?
“Looks like Jelly is extra grumpy this morning,” Princess Liliana teased as she carried me in her arms. I grumbled good-naturedly and sunk into her body heat in bliss, willing to put up with her jokes for the sake of not freezing.
“If I had to be awake when it’s this cold and early, I think I’d be grumpy too,” Prince Julius mumbled to himself, earning a glare from Queen Amdora and a chuckle from King Tiberius, the couple walking slightly behind their children.
The royal family was dressed in thick layers of winter clothes, though as befitting their wealth and status they were ornately decorated and made from the finest materials available.
In addition to the expensive Hycon wool and Dire bear fur, the clothes had numerous defensive spells woven into them, capable of withstand a barrage of Level Five spells!
I spent some of the time analyzing the unique enchantments in the clothes and was impressed, but fairly confident I could pull them off on my own with just a bit of study and practice. Shield spells, barriers, and wards came easier to me than any other magic, and Petrus and the queen had noticed this.
Queen Amdora was participating in the magic craft lessons as well now. After she and King Tiberius had discussed sending my owner over to the Mages Academy the queen had spent more time with her daughter, teaching her the various tricks and spells she had picked up in her youth. It was amusing to find out that her nickname, the ‘Duchess of Destruction,’ was actually a well-known one in the kingdom! Seeing her flesh red with embarrassment when Liliana found out was utterly priceless! Thank the gods I cannot laugh, or she’d have blasted me in a fit of abashed pique.
My owner had been so excited to hear that she’d be allowed to attend the premier magical finishing school and academic center in all of Orria! Well, it was the only one in the northern part of Orria, and until three hundred years ago it was the only one in all the continent. But the point still stood!
Ever since that announcement, my dear princess has been studying even harder, and absorbed all that was being offered to her. Come spring, she’d pass the entrance exam with flying colors!
On a side note, I was worried Julius might feel neglected by his mother focusing on his older sister over him, but King Tiberius stepped in and has made sure he has lots of time to teach and play with his son.
It seemed that government slowed to a crawl during the winter months. Letters, packages, and reports were slowed, travel became difficult and limited, and while magical means of communication do exist, for the most part they’re saved for emergencies. So with most of the bureaucracy stalled, King Tiberius had more time to spend with his family. Seeing the two of them joyously sparring with wooden swords in the exercise room gave everyone a happy expression on their faces.
“Alright, quickly get inside! Don’t let out all the warm air!” Queen Amdora ordered, ushering her family into a small shrine in the center of the gardens. This was the reason we were outside in the first place.
Located in the expansive courtyards of the palace is a small, worn looking building. It carried a somber, almost depressing aura, and the fairly basic looking stone and old fashioned architectural style made it feel as if it was displaced in time.
Glancing around the inside, the interior could best be described as austere. There were no windows, nor were there any carpets, tapestries, or gilded displays of wealth. Only nine rows of pew made of stone that had been smoothed and polished by generations of posteriors, and a raised platform that held a collection of religious icons and paraphernalia at the very end were set-up. In brackets along the walls small glass lamps had been placed in alcoves all over that filled the area with an even, steady illumination.
“The Shrine of Ar-Varia,” Liliana muttered under her breath in reverence. “The ancient clan that founded the kingdom of Varia built this easily overlooked building millennia ago as a place to pray for and lay to rest the deceased.”
“Beneath its unassuming exterior is a vast network of catacombs that house the noble dead of the royal family, and it acts as a vault for the most precious and valued artifacts of the kingdom. These chambers extend throughout the entire mountain that the city rested upon, and also acted as anchors for a complex array of spells and runes that prevent or limit natural disasters. From avalanches to earthquakes, this small, tucked away shrine is the focal point for numerous defenses for the wellbeing of the entire city,” King Tiberius explained to us, more for my benefit than that of my owner.
He had come to understand I was vastly more intelligent than he had first thought as he had observed me in Petrus’ lessons with his daughter. The king had no issues with it, much to my relief.
“It also serves as the local site of prayer for both royalty and the servants and guards. The ground floor was converted long ago into a tiny church of sorts, with benches for visitors to rest at and a set of statues and icons of the Divine Family, as well as the other sanctioned gods and goddess of humanity. Any member of the staff, be they maid or knight, can access these facilities any time of day if they so choose,” Queen Amdora continued, teaching her children the history behind the shrine. “Access to the lower levels was, of course, restricted, and it was impossible for an ordinary person to even detect the hidden entrance.”
I could spot the superbly wrought wards as I looked around. Anything that even tried to circumnavigate their way through the countless barriers or attempt to usurp the spells would be met with instant, lethal force. I shivered at the sight of the Backlash runes and Revenge curses layered upon every part of the array. It was a necessary precaution. If this place fell, the whole city would be at risk.
It was the religious aspect and duty of the Shrine of Ar-Varia that the royal family was here for. It was the morning of the Win
ter Solstice.
First we’d wake early, fast and pray to the Divine Family for success and survival, and confirm New Year Resolutions. Then there’d be a large luncheon where everyone in the castle was invited to partake. The day would end with one final round of prayers and the lighting of devotional candles. Normally there would be bonfires, but in a city it was safer to limit the amount of open flames as much as possible.
As was tradition, before dawn on the day of the Winter Solstice the king led the rest of the palace staff in the annual rites of this event. Princess Liliana and I were preparing for a day of religious devotion alongside the rest of the family.
I didn’t mind the hustle and bustle, and was only slightly bitter about the brief moment of biting cold. I sort of liked the feeling of community everyone had at this time. Though the king and by extension the rest of the royal family would never directly mingle with the lower servants, at least normally, today was a special occasion. King Tiberius offered a smile to the various guards and male staff, while Queen Amdora politely spoke to the women about this and that.
Whatever could be said about the king and queen of Varia, they cared for and respected the commoners and their servants.
Slowly, a hush fell over the assembled people, and soon seats were found and claimed. Up at the front was where Liliana sat, sandwiched between her parents on a bench. In the nave before us, a set of five familiar looking figures stood. Icons of Cynthia, her husband the Knight-God, and her children Selika, Kardale, and Nia. Cast from gold and silver, they shone in the candle light.
There was a sixth icon standing with them, a statue made of green jade. It looked like an elderly woman, stooped with age and wearing a shawl while being supported by a cane. I didn’t recognize this deity. Something about the statue put me at ease though, as if I was in the presence of a doting grandmother.
King Tiberius moved to the collection of statues and knelt before them, silencing any remaining conversations in the tiny chapel as he prepared the tools and rituals for the ceremony. A sealed lead box that wafted with fumes of chilled air was placed next to King Tiberius by Sir Blaine alongside a marble bowl. A grateful nod was given before eyes focused intently on the altars.
