by J. C. Owens
As it turned out, no one was looking, everyone was exhausted and either resting or were continuing with the task of burying the dead or cleaning up the destruction that had swept over this small village.
Shame made him duck his head. This was neither the place nor the time…
“It was my fault. You are so beautiful, with such a good heart. I selfishly wanted a moment of warmth among all the death.” Dransin tried to smile, but it fell flat. “Forgive me.”
Isnay shook his head. “I’m fully able to say no, Your Majesty.” He smiled a little and reached out to lay a hand on Dransin’s arm. “Thank you. As you said, it was a moment of warmth much needed. There is no harm done.”
Dransin searched his expression thoroughly before inclining his head. “It will not happen again. Again my apologies.”
“And if I want it to?” Isnay whispered.
Dransin’s head snapped up, his gaze incredulous. “Why…?”
“When this is over, our responsibilities done, let us see where things lead. When we are only Dransin and Isnay with nothing of duty between us.”
Dransin swallowed hard, drawing in a harsh breath, before nodding.
Before either of them could speak another word, a horse and rider came thundering into the devastated village. The young rider dismounted quickly and raced to Dransin, dropping to one knee.
“Rise,” Dransin ordered gruffly, seeming almost embarrassed by the rider’s bow. “What news do you have?”
“I’ve been sent from Ferulum, Your Majesty,” the rider said quickly. “The council of nobles demands your return to the capital immediately.”
Fury crossed Dransin’s face. “What is the meaning of this? I am needed here.”
The rider paled and bowed again. “Your Majesty, your sister… The princess and the nobles are calling for your return so that you might face an inquiry into…”
Isnay’s heart sank as the rider’s words trailed off. He could see by the anger and concern on Dransin’s face that the king considered this a threat to his rule.
“Speak, man!” Dransin said, his voice rough as he fought to control his reaction.
“An inquiry into your betrayal of the people’s peace,” the rider finished. “Your…your role in provoking the invasion of Anrodnes. That you have failed your duty as the monarch appointed by the gods—”
“Go tell my sister that I will return when I have finished helping my people. After I have seen these invaders driven out of our kingdom. If she has a problem with that, she may come find me.” He swept a hand at the graves and the burned village. “She can see what I have seen.”
The rider bowed yet again and scrambled back onto his horse. He rode away as quickly as he had come.
Dransin turned to Isnay. His expression was bleak, but he managed a tight smile, a bare curve of his lips. “Come, my friend. I need to see my duty finished before I return to the capital.”
Isnay could not believe what had just happened. The sheer outrageous gall of it nearly stole his words away. “They can’t mean to depose you,” he finally managed to say. “That would be madness.”
Dransin caught his hand and held it tightly for a long moment before turning back to the graves.
“We have work to do,” was all he said.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Raine
Raine took his courage in hand and, taking a deep breath, approached Sarnwa.
The Chosen was sitting off by himself, reading a book, while Taldan and Demarin were poring over lists of goods that were to be sent to Bhantan to begin the rebuilding process. It had been decided that supplies would be sent first, followed by offers of labor to rebuild. It was not at all certain Bhantan would accept given what had occurred, but the offer would be made regardless. Taldan hoped that Isnay’s presence and diplomatic skills had begun to repair the political damage done and helped the rulers and citizens of Bhantan see that Anrodnes had no interest in conquering their lands.
So far, Taldan had received very little information from Isnay, but the last message had claimed that he was traveling with the new king, viewing the damage and destruction to get more information on what Bhantan needed.
Raine worried about his friend, so far away, with only a few companions and a potentially hostile situation within Bhantan. He had no doubts of Isnay’s diplomatic skill, but a wounded country could sometimes lash out, and Isnay was far from home.
Still, Taldan seemed confident that his head diplomat could and would turn the tide in Anrodnes’s favor. Raine was reserving judgment. They were so different in their views. Raine expected nothing good from people, while Taldan expected that they would do the best for the empire or for the good of people, simply because that was central in his own beliefs.
He glanced over at the emperor. Taldan had not looked up when Raine had entered the room, though the man knew full well that he was present. They could sense each other through the magic of the Illumitae, and that would never change.
But apparently Taldan was prioritizing right now, and Raine ranked low on the list. He kept his chin high, refusing to let it drive him away or bring his spirits low. He had accepted low priority all his life. But here and now, he found that he was out of sorts, wanting something more that he could not even identify.
So here he was, finding the determination to speak to Sarnwa. It was all well and fine reading histories written by Chosen, but here was a man who was living it. Of anyone, he might have the most insights into what Raine faced. According to Taldan, Sarnwa had cared enough about him to risk Demarin’s displeasure and had broken protocol to comfort the child of his emperor.
He might be an assassin, but like Hredeen, he had to be a good man.
Raine approached cautiously, unsure what the former assassin’s reaction might be to his presence.
Sarnwa looked up from his book, dark brown eyes calm and inquiring, nothing of threat within them. Yet Raine had felt the danger that had fairly radiated from Hredeen after he had revealed what he truly was, and Raine could detect a similar energy coming from Sarnwa. What lay within them was deadly, but it was masked and chained until needed, a control that Raine could not imagine possessing. All the same, he felt like he was approaching a wild animal, and hoped that Sarnwa would not be offended at his nervous, stuttered greeting.
Instead, the Chosen inclined his head, a regal gesture that seemed completely at home upon him, though the assassins were reputed to come from poverty. It was said that the guild took them from the streets and molded them into something else entirely for their own good. A weapon whose only equal might be the Shadows.
Raine found himself doubting those stories. There was something about both Hredeen and Sarnwa that was otherworldly, noble. No training could produce such a thing.
Sarnwa set aside his book without the slightest hint of impatience or irritation at the interruption and gestured to the chair across from him.
Raine seated himself, then fought to find words to explain his presence.
Sarnwa leaned back, giving him space, and smiled. It was not the same seductive smile as Hredeen possessed. It was more edged, more dangerous, as though his violence lay closer to the surface than Hredeen’s.
Raine swallowed hard. “I’m sorry to disturb your reading. I just wanted the chance to speak to another Chosen.”
Sarnwa eyed him in silence before nodding. “You doubt your place at Taldan’s side, feeling that your choosing was second best. That is not so.”
Raine gulped. This man was unsettlingly perceptive.
“I have been told that the gods chose me,” Raine continued. “Therefore, I need to accept that, for some reason, I was meant to be the Chosen for Taldan.”
Sarnwa eyed him, nodding again.
“I have read the histories of the Chosen. Some I can relate to. Others are beyond my comprehension or ability to emulate.” He twined his fingers together restlessly, shooting a nervous glance across the room. Taldan seemed safely occupied.
“However, Talda
n is suggesting something that I cannot find in the histories. I do not know if this has ever been done before.” He forced himself to meet Sarnwa’s steady gaze. “I do not know if I can force myself to accept this change in tradition.”
Sarnwa’s eyebrows rose, his eyes narrowing.
Raine took a deep calming breath. “He is considering…a second Chosen.”
Sarnwa blinked. It was completely evident that he had had no idea of Taldan’s plans. “Two? Why would…?” He cut off, lips thinning, disapproval evident. “Hredeen.”
Raine nodded, relieved that he did not have to stumble through an explanation.
“With Hredeen sent away, the contract has become null and void. He thinks that he can have his heart’s desire now.”
Raine licked dry lips, leaning forward to lay his elbows on his knees. “I’m in the way. I offered to step aside, but he said that I was the gods’ choice. I know that life here is very different from my upbringing. Harems are a matter of course, and I respect that. But I was raised differently. I…I’m afraid I will not have a place. That…Hredeen will eclipse me, and I will be forgotten.” He choked off the words, fearing that he was sounding selfish and needy. He only wanted Taldan to be happy…but part of him wanted to be happy as well. Wasn’t he worth some happiness in his life?
“Have you told Taldan this?”
“I have. He didn’t seem to think my concerns held value.” He tried to keep the bitterness from coloring the words, but Sarnwa gave him a shrewd look, leaning forward to mirror Raine’s posture.
“The relationship between emperor and Chosen has always been of a sexual nature. The question is, would he hold you to that bond if Hredeen actually accepted his offer?”
Raine glanced at him sharply. “Of course Hredeen would accept.”
Sarnwa’s lips quirked. “If you believe that, you don’t know Hredeen well. He might have been a concubine, but there is pride in him, great pride that was never quite beaten out of him. For Taldan to go against tradition for him, to bring him in as second Chosen, I’m not certain he would see that as a compliment. Not to mention that he holds Taldan to account, always has in a way that no one else could manage…” Those shrewd eyes turned back to Raine. “Although, perhaps you are learning.”
Raine ignored that. He wasn’t worthy of the praise. “He loves Taldan. I hardly knew him and that was completely evident.”
Sarnwa nodded. “I agree wholeheartedly, but the ways of the heart are never simple, never linear. If Taldan had offered this before, used his power to negate the contract, Hredeen would have accepted…if the guild allowed it, saw it as necessary. Now?” He shook his head, doubt in his eyes. “I think this will end up being a tangle, a tangle you will be caught in no matter how you might wish otherwise.”
“I want to be a good Chosen.” Raine sighed. “I have a lot to overcome. The reputation of Odenar is not going to do me any favors. Now this. If people see me as doubly cursed, neither the true Chosen, nor the one the emperor desires, I will live a life similar to the one I had in Odenar. I grew up attempting to avoid people’s notice, passing through my home like a ghost.”
He met Sarnwa’s gaze unflinchingly. “I want more than that here. I can’t even describe or identify what I want, what I need, but I don’t want to live like I did in Odenar. I won’t be a ghost, imprisoned within luxury, held to submission and hidden away, like you were.”
Sarnwa tilted his head, a gleam in his eyes. “Was I?”
Raine blinked, thrown off balance.
“Taldan wanted to free you when he became emperor. I heard him say that.”
“He had no true idea what my relationship was with his father. No one does. That is between Demarin and me, and the world didn’t need to know how we dealt with each other. Since I was not seen, the assumption was that I had become submissive, beholden to my emperor’s will.”
Raine was wide-eyed. He glanced across the room once more to where Taldan and Demarin were gathering the lists together, nodding over several and frowning over the last one.
“He knows now. I have given him the bare facts about his father and I. I wanted him to see his Chosen as a partner, not a burden foisted upon him by tradition. I want you to be able to be more openly free than I could. My freedoms were behind the scenes. I often went off on missions for Demarin. I was his eyes and ears within the empire. I did tasks for him that he would trust to no other.” He smiled, eyes soft with memory. “He gave me far more than I had ever dreamed possible when I had been bound to the War Guild. Like Hredeen, I had never imagined a relationship that was not painful and humiliating. We were raised to expect nothing. We were nothing. Yet with Demarin, who did not understand how to love any more than I did, we found our own way, and in doing so, created something fine and good. Something unique to us.”
His glance toward Demarin contained all the love that he spoke of, a fondness and warmth that came from years of close familiarity and genuine care.
Raine envied him fiercely, then felt shame for his reaction. If Taldan was complex, then so was his father. It could not have been easy to forge a relationship with him during those times when Anrodnes was so much more military in aspect and belief.
Taldan was heralding a new age, and Raine was fortunate in his timing, if nothing else.
“He is opening to you. I see it growing daily.” Sarnwa’s expression was encouraging. “Be honest with him. He admires that, even when he truly doesn’t want to listen. He is as stubborn as his father.”
Raine gave a feeble smile before asking the question that had been nagging at him for days.
“The guild. Are you going back? Is that where Hredeen will be now?”
Sarnwa narrowed his eyes, then shook his head.
“Demarin is ill. That is why he had to step down before his time. I will be taking him to seek healing in a southern country, Dalareem. His heart…” There was pain in the words, but tempered with a hard determination. “I will not return. I will be a rogue. They might hunt me, but it is doubtful they will find me within Dalareem. They might be a nation of healers, but they have strict borders. Once we are there, I believe we will be safe.”
“You…are leaving the empire? Forever?” The words rocked him to the core. A former emperor and his Chosen would be fleeing the empire. It stretched the lines of credulity.
Sarnwa nodded slowly. “If not for his illness, we might stay here guarded by the Shadows. But Demarin has a better chance of true healing in Dalareem, and I will never leave his side.”
Raine shot a concerned look at Demarin. Now that he knew, he could see the exhaustion, the pale skin and shadowed eyes. So it was not simply the strain of being emperor that marked him.
His gaze slid to Taldan. His heart went out to the man. He was just beginning to connect with a father that had been an imposing, emotionless figure in his life, and now that would all end. Perhaps for good. He blinked back tears. Life seemed so unflinchingly unfair. Sometimes it was so hard to keep his head high and hope in his heart. “Does he know?”
“No. Demarin doesn’t wish to distract his son from all that is happening. Besides, their relationship is strained enough without adding this to the mix.”
Raine frowned. “I think he should know. This could change everything between them.”
Sarnwa shook his head and gave a soft snort. “Demarin has just as much pride as Taldan, perhaps far more. He will not admit to anyone but me that his condition scares him. Besides, Taldan might order him to stay. That would cause problems… If Demarin recovers…” A flash of pain ran over the assassin’s face before he mastered it. “When he recovers, perhaps we will return, and then they can forge something new from the ashes of the old.”
Raine didn’t agree. He felt that it needed to be addressed now. Who knew what the future would bring, and then the chance could be lost.
Yet he kept his silence, pushing away the concerns for Demarin. Who was he to attempt to heal a breach that had been since Taldan’s birth? It was up to Taldan i
f he wished to reach out. It seemed unlikely given his nature and the lack of any true contact with his father.
It just seemed so wasteful.
He stared blindly at his fingers. If he was a father, he would treasure the child completely, make sure that they knew they were loved, wanted, special. He would never let them be abused by their own siblings or create a climate where they competed for his attention. Never like his own upbringing.
A sense of regret for something he would never have washed over him.
He would never have a child. Not now, not ever. His future was mapped out in a fashion he would never have foreseen. Yet, his bloodline seemed rife with madmen, and surely it was good that it would end with him.
A large, calloused hand came to rest over his own, stilling his restless fingers. He looked up into Sarnwa’s eyes. They were surprisingly compassionate considering he was a stranger to the man.
“This role will be what you make of it. Taldan is in control of your future. That is a fact. But you will have influence on him, more or less depending on how you manage things. Don’t be a spectator in your own life, Raine. Change what you can. Work around the rest. You will find a purpose in it, even if it is not evident, not concrete in nature. If you do not—well, you have read the histories. More than one Chosen has ended their life, or gone quite mad. I would not wish that for you.”
His words were confirmation of things Raine had read, things that had been written in vague terms, what had happened so long ago shielded under time and a lack of written proof.
Sarnwa pressed on, his expression darkening, his words gaining an intensity Raine had never heard from the man before. “He will need you, Raine. He wears that golden mask for a reason. The Illumitae changes a man in ways both good and bad.” A shadow crossed his face as he abruptly stopped talking.
“What is it?” Raine whispered, barely able to breathe.
“I fear the magic may have changed or…been damaged during the ascension, the assassination attempt and what it did to Taldan. Emperors train all their lives to master control and master their emotions. The magic is there for Anrodnes’s protection, but it is not to be underestimated. The Illumitae grows stronger, more intertwined with a man over time, strengthening like a muscle, twisting like a vine crawling up a tree. As a Chosen, you can feel that as well.”
