Born of Embers

by R A Lewis

  Talon bowed slightly and ran off to do her bidding. Callum turned to his men and began barking orders, Anders joining him. Together they left, leaving Kalina with two palace guards, Leif, Kari, Jormungand, and a limping Rangvald for company in the now quiet hallway. Kalina took off, heading for where she knew her mother’s rooms were. She wanted peace and quiet. She wanted a few moments alone to scream, or wail, or even just process everything that was happening. When they arrived outside her mother’s rooms she turned to her entourage.

  “Leif, you know what to do.” He nodded to her, curiosity flashing across his face for a moment before he turned.

  “Kari, you will stand guard out here. You, what’s your name?” He addressed one of the guards.

  “Stan, sir.”

  “Stan, you will stay with her and guard your Queen. Jormungand, find the healers hall and get Rangvald some help. Then I want you to send for Calla. We’ll need her to help organize the castle.”

  Kalina smiled. She admired his ability to take charge in any situation.

  “Commander,” she said and Leif turned, an eyebrow raised. “Go to Mistress Aynne in the kitchens and tell her to come to my rooms.” She paused. “Tell her to bring Margy and Master Alexil as well.”

  He nodded and marched off down the hall with the other guard who he began talking with amiably. Jormungand threw Rangvald’s arm over his shoulder and began hauling him down the hall.

  Kalina turned back to the door to her mother’s rooms. She didn’t bother looking behind her at the doors to the king’s rooms. Those rooms she would save for later. Someone else could tear those rooms apart for all she cared. She rested her hand on the ornate golden door handles and paused, letting out a heavy sigh.

  “Are you alright, your Majesty?” Kari placed a surprisingly gentle hand on Kalina’s shoulder.

  “Yes. I’m fine.”

  She pushed the door open. Stale air smelling of dust and mildew, mixed with the soft floral scent that was uniquely her mothers, met her. Her chest tightened at the smell, but she stepped inside. It was dark, but soft moonlight filtered in through high windows falling across the enormous four poster bed. Kalina made her way to the bed and sat, a puff of dust rising around her. Her chest felt like it was going to cave in with sadness.

  She buried her face in her mother’s pillow and before she knew what was happening, she was asleep.

  Chapter 35

  A knock on the door woke Kalina. She hadn’t realized she’d fallen asleep and she got up feeling groggy, the events of the day crowding in, threatening to overwhelm her. When she opened the door, all thoughts were banished as Margy rushed in, enveloping her in a huge hug. Kalina laughed, hugging the girl back and moving back into the room to allow Scholar Alexil and Mistress Aynne inside. Mistress Aynne held a candle and taper and began lighting the lamps in the room until it was aglow with soft light.

  “I knew you were someone special!” Margy said in Kalina’s ear. “I just can’t believe you are the Princess!”

  “Good to see you too, Margy.” Kalina gently extricated herself from Margy’s embrace and nodded to Mistress Aynne and Alexil. “And I am glad to see you both. We need to talk about what has happened since I left, and how we can get this castle in order.”

  Mistress Aynne raised an eyebrow, her usually stern face trying unsuccessfully to hide a small smile. Alexil was grinning beside the older woman, his white hair sticking out in all directions.

  “I take it you know I was in communication with Eira?” Alexil said, taking a seat at a small table that occupied a corner of the room. The others joined him.

  “Yes, she told me that you were doing everything you could to help my mother.”

  Alexil’s wrinkled face fell at the mention of the late queen.

  “I was. Sadly, it wasn’t enough.” The sorrow in his voice was palpable. “Leif told us of her passing.”

  Kalina reached across the table and squeezed the old scholar’s hand in empathy.

  “You did enough. She was able to make it to us, and we helped her have Osian, my half-brother. He is safe and will be here in a few days.”

  Alexil brightened slightly at that.

  “I’m sorry for your loss, your Majesty.” Mistress Aynne finally chimed in. “But if I may, we need to get to the business of running your castle. There are still those who will challenge your right to rule, and the faster you gain control, the easier it will be to combat those who dissent.”

  Kalina smiled and nodded, grateful that the woman could stay on task.

  “Just what I needed, Mistress Aynne. I am promoting you to Steward. I need your expertise and your planning abilities to help run this place.”

  Mistress Aynne’s face blanched slightly before she steeled her features and made a small bow from her seated position.

  “As you wish, your Majesty. But who will run the kitchens?”

  Kalina turned to a stunned looking Margy.

  “I was rather hoping you would do it Margy?”

  “But Kalina, I mean, your Majesty, I don’t know how to work numbers!”

  “That’s alright. I will teach you,” Mistress Aynne said.

  A terrified Margy nodded in acceptance.

  “I also have a dear friend, Calla, coming to help but she will be my personal assistant until a better one can be arranged.”

  “What would you like me to do, Majesty?” Alexil piped up.

  “I need you to go through the King’s rooms and see if you can find anything useful to support my claim. Perhaps a mention of me in a book? Use the libraries as well. In the meantime, you may also put back every tome the King took from the library.”

  Alexil’s eyes lit up at that.

  She dismissed them after telling them a bit of her story. They deserved an explanation for her coming in and changing their lives so suddenly. Then she blew out the lamps and fell asleep again, exhaustion and stress taking over.

  Kari shook her awake just after sunrise.

  “Get up. You’re wanted in the council chambers.”

  Kalina jolted upright at her words, rubbing her eyes that felt like sandpaper. Kari left her alone to wake up fully. Her mother’s rooms faced south and she could see the pink sky to the east. Her bundle of Valdir clothing had been delivered in the night and was sitting on the foot of her bed.

  She donned her red leathers once again and carefully extracted the iron crown from where Eira had made her pack it. She went to the gold, ornate mirror that stood in a corner and placed it atop her freshly braided hair. She looked like herself again. This was how she felt most comfortable. She strapped her axes to her back and strode into the hall, Kari and the other guard following behind her as she made her way to the council chambers. They weren’t hard to find, for when she turned the corner from the royal’s hallway, a door stood open half way down the next hall, angry voices emanating from it.

  As Kalina entered, the voices died down as all eyes turned to her. She was relieved to see Mistress Aynne standing in a corner as well as Jormungand, Leif, and Rangvald all seated around a crowded table. Rangvald looked haggard but definitely better, his wounds treated and healing. Extra chairs had been drawn up and seven stuffy old men sat on the opposite side from her Valdir council. Kalina had to suppress a giggle at how put out the Ethean noble men seemed.

  These were the council members of the king, and she knew she would have to remove some of them from office. They wouldn’t like an upstart young woman, let alone a Valdir, telling them what to do. She took the chair at the head of the table and sat down as Kari took her place beside her brother. Mistress Aynne opened a servant’s door and in marched Margy, another servant girl in tow, with trays full of refreshments. They laid them before the nobles and the Valdir in almost complete silence.

  Kalina let the silence stretch, allowing the tension to build as the Ethean noblemen eyed her, letting them wonder what she would do. Finally, as Margy retreated with a wink, Kalina spoke, breaking the tension in the room.

  “Noble c
ouncil members of Ethea, and my trusted council. Today is an exciting day.” Her panic began to rise but she’d addressed a large group of people before. She always felt she must look ridiculous and sound ridiculous standing before them like this. But she belonged here. This was her birthright, and if she didn’t take it now, they would take it from her by force. So she cleared her throat and kept speaking.

  “Today the old ways die and a new order rises. Ethea is no longer just Ethea. It is Ethea and the Valdir combined as one people. My father was Hakon, King of the Valdir. And my mother was Queen Cherise Stanchon of Ethea. I am the marrying of two peoples, two races, two thrones. You sit before me divided-” she gestured to the fact that they were on opposite sides of the great oak table. “But you will part here one people. We are all Etheans.”

  She stood, placing her fists on the table before her. A few of the noblemen were looking at her with newfound respect. But a few continued to look at her like she had three heads, like she was dirt beneath their shoes and something that should be eradicated. Those she would have to eliminate herself.

  “For the last century, my people, the Valdir, have been persecuted, treated as nothing more than hired blades, something to be thrown into battle so that upstanding men such as yourselves could stay home with their families. We have been conscripted, killed, and sold. My people were forced to flee at the end of the war because we had been betrayed. My grandfather promised my mother to the Valdiran King’s son, and then reneged on that promise, forcing us into exile in order to save our people. Since then we have been hunted by the Askorian Prince who married my mother after I was born. He is no King of Ethea. My mother remained Queen until the day she died giving birth to my half-brother, Osian Stanchon.”

  Murmurs flew between the Ethean nobles at this pronouncement. Kalina let them whisper for a moment before taking control again.

  “And now I am the eldest living child of Queen Cherise Stanchon. The crown is mine by rights and from this day forth, persecution of any kind towards a Valdir or even an Ethean is a crime. For the Valdir are now Etheans.” She eyed the nobles one by one. Some looked away from her blue-eyed stare, but a few held her gaze.

  “I will have a coronation tomorrow evening in the throne room. I expect all nobles and their families to attend to swear fealty to my crown.”

  Then she turned and strode from the room, not even giving them a chance to question her. There was a time and place for questions, for them to ask for her entire story, for her to soothe their fears. But it was not today. Whatever the reason for them gathering in the council chambers, she didn’t care. There was enough to do without sitting and listening to grown men argue.

  Chapter 36

  Calla arrived with baby Issa strapped to her chest. She came into Kalina’s rooms like a whirlwind, straightening the space, dusting, and opening drawers and wardrobes. That afternoon, Eira and Osian arrived, along with the rest of the Valdiran army. Kalina immediately sent for the majority of her people to join them as soon as possible for her coronation. Mistress Aynne was the perfect choice to supplant the stuffy old steward who had been loyal to Terric, and as the day went on, men and women who had been fired when Kalina’s grandfather had passed, came flocking to the palace, eager to get their jobs back and serve her, their rightful queen.

  Kalina did her best to be a part of everything: answering questions about food choices for the coronation, decorations for the throne room, meeting new servants that Mistress Aynne presented to her for approval, a few noblemen who sought her out to kneel and swear fealty prematurely, or to fawn over her which she found nauseating. Despite a visit to Maska, who’d arrived after they’d sent Jormungand to fetch their waiting dragons, she still found herself exhausted and overwhelmed by the time supper rolled around. Calla caught her in a darkened alcove, trying to catch her breath and calm the panic that seemed to be lurking just under the surface ever since she’d addressed the council members. The woman took her hand and drew her into the newly cleaned queen’s chambers and sat her down for a cup of tea and a few cookies that Margy had sent up.

  Kalina was grateful as she nibbled on the edge of a buttery cookie and took a sip of her tea. It was the first moment all day she’d had a chance to breathe. Calla had laid Issa in a small wooden cradle that Anders had brought for her and was rummaging through Kalina’s mother’s old gowns in the huge oak wardrobe. She pulled out an ice blue one and held it up. Rhinestones sparkled in the light of the setting sun outside.

  “What about this one?” She said.

  Kalina frowned at the dress.

  “What do you mean? What about it?”

  Calla turned to her, a slightly exasperated look on her face.

  “For your coronation, silly.”

  Kalina’s face drained of color. She had gotten so used to wearing pants and leathers with the Valdir that it hadn’t occurred to her that as queen of Ethea and the Valdir she would need to change her wardrobe back to dresses.

  “But I can’t fight in that-” she said, her voice trailing off.

  Calla lowered her arms and gave Kalina a ‘you know what you need to do’ look. Kalina sighed heavily and finished her tea.

  “What about something new?” She said, standing to approach the wardrobe.

  “There’s not enough time to make you a new one by tomorrow night. We will have to alter one of these gowns,” she trailed off as she stuck her torso deep into the wardrobe that was full to the brim with dresses.

  Kalina’s hands grazed the fabrics, remembering her mother in a few of them during her months at the castle. Her mother had always looked good in blue. And her father’s dragon was blue. Her fingers stopped on a dark blue dress in satin. She reached up and pulled it from the wardrobe.

  “What about this one?”

  Calla stood up from her search and looked at the gown, her dark curls a bit of a mess. It was the dark blue of the deepest lake. The satin shone in the setting sun, glittering off the silver embroidery on the bodice, neck and skirt. The neckline was a deep cut v, but the top above the breasts and down the long sleeves was a delicate lace. It was stunning and elegant as it fell to the ground in an A-line silhouette. Calla let out a low whistle.

  “That would be just perfect. With a few modifications.” She took it from Kalina and began to shoo her from the room. “Leave it to me. Go find something else useful to do.”

  Suddenly Kalina found herself standing in the hall, two fresh guards waiting to escort her wherever she needed to go. She sighed and moved off down the hallway, curious what her old room in the library was like, and if it was still the same as the day she’d left it. Her guards trailed behind her, giving her room and privacy to explore.

  The library was just as dim, quiet, and cool as she remembered it. She moved among the books like she had found lost friends, her hands dragging gently along their spines. She recalled many happy times spent searching through books and translating them for the scholars. But she also remembered the times that the other scribes had bullied her. She frowned at the memory as she approached her old room. The door was unlocked and she pushed it open, coughing slightly at the dust cloud that rose.

  She brought in a small lantern from a nearby table and illuminated the dark room and was suddenly shocked at how small and cramped it was. Had she grown so much in a year that she no longer fit in this space? Or was it that this space had always been this small, but that she had learned to accept its limitations?

  She continued to wander the halls of the castle, visiting the kitchens and begging for a roll stuffed with cheese from Margy before making her way to the massive, ornate doors of the throne room. Gold filigree wound up the edges of huge oak doors, their surface intricately carved with twining leaves and branches. The more she looked, the more astonished she became. Among the leaves and branches she could see carved wyverns and dragons. Suddenly, she wondered if at some point in Ethea’s past the Valdir had been on the throne.

  She pushed the heavy doors open and slipped through. The mas
sive hall of the throne room was dim and quiet, only a few torches lined the walls, sending flickering light to dance across a large golden wrought throne. Kalina’s feet padded softly across the parquet floor and the closer she drew to the throne, the more certain she became that something grey was sitting in it. Finally, she paused a few feet away and broke into a huge grin.

  Moose, the grey tabby cat she had grown so fond of while she’d worked in the library, was sprawled out on the throne’s seat. At her approach, he began to purr so loudly it seemed to reverberate in the entire room.

  He rolled over, exposing his underside, and she climbed the stairs to rub his soft striped belly. She picked him up and sat on the throne, still stroking the purring cat. It was then that she realized that she was truly sitting on the Ethean throne. Her heart began to pound as she surveyed the hall, taking in every inch of it and memorizing the placement of all the doors.

  Tomorrow, when she was to be crowned, she might not have the forethought to plan an escape if everything went south. The prince still languished in the dungeons, guarded day and night by an Ethean guard and a Valdiran guard. But that didn’t mean he didn’t have supporters. The noble men she’d addressed that morning were a wild card. Some seemed accepting while others seemed ready to kill her. She sighed deeply. She would find out soon enough, and she needed to focus on the things she could control.

  She brought Moose back to her rooms and he curled up on her bed and slept with her all night. The following morning, she awoke to Kari saying that more of their people had arrived, those who hadn’t wanted to remain in the mountains as winter descended. Kalina didn’t blame them. Winter down here on the valley floor was harsh enough. She knew the Valdir had used animal pelts, primarily that of the huge wolves and bears that lived in the Great Grey Mountains, as extra warmth, but it didn’t feel like enough after a few decades living in the warmth of The Wastes.