A foggy mirror greeted us enthusiastically a little later as we finally got out of the shower. I dried off and went to get dressed before she could prepare. I laid down on the bed. With my hands behind my head, I just switched off for a while. The pain left is gone and I know for sure that as long as she is here with me, it will not return. But it doesn't change how tired I am. I guess that's my reward for a night spent in my brother's company. Time got moving with him. Unfortunately for me, so did everything else. He took my mind off of what I was desperately trying to avoid. Everyone around me fears for my life. They concluded it could end very quickly. And they lead me to it too. How much time do I have left?
Not much, I guess by the way she's acting.
The rustle of the fabric tore me up from my thoughts. She chose a beautiful red dress with a tight corset and a loose skirt decorated with small flowers. She doesn't like patterns and usually avoids dresses and skirts. “Now it looks like I'm not properly dressed.” I laughed, brushing her perfectly straight hair aside, kissing her neck softly. She wanted to turn around, I held her tighter so she wouldn't. I have an unobstructed view of our reflection in the mirror. I smiled smugly. Andrea is the most beautiful woman, everyone has generally agreed on that for quite a few hundred years, she is also the kindest and most selfless person I have ever met. And of all the people she could have chosen, here she stands with me. I guess it never ceases to amaze me.
We fit perfectly with each other, I'm tall, with broad shoulders, I can hide her small figure in my arms without even trying. She is tiny, almost innocent, yet anything but helpless, even though she seems that way. I firmly believe with all my heart she is the one who will change my life for good. She's already started it, I can't go back to what it's like without her. She gave me meaning I didn't even know I was looking for. A meaning I found just by accident in a place I didn't even want to be. Meaning I will not give up, no matter what happens. "I love you."
Andrea smiled, a perfectly beautiful smile on her lips. She took my hands off her. "Nice try. We need to find that ship." she announced bossily. I rolled my eyes and laughed. Of course we have to find that ship. That's the most important thing. Her dedication to work annoys me, but at the same time I admire it. I have the same annoying habit, and when I need to finish something, I just finish it no matter who or what interferes with it. So, I can't blame her.
She opened the door and disappeared into the living room. Before I came to her, she was already writing something at the table on the other side. The place has changed completely. "Did you clean?" I asked absolutely amazed. Her desk is almost empty now, there are no pending letters or her usual notes, most of the books and other notes have left the coffee table, I didn't even know there was a drawing on the wood until now. The sofa is not cluttered with my and her sweaters and other items of clothing, and the blankets are gone. Suddenly it feels deserted and impersonal. Like my apartment in Dithune. As if someone cleaned her apartment of her. One of the first things I noticed about her is that she leaves her stuff all over the place and I really like it. It's not a mess, just her, all around. That's why I don't like this one bit. "I liked it better here before. Where are all the books?"
"On the shelves or down in the library where they belong." she looked around. A piece of paper burned in her hand as she added. "Give me a few days and it'll look the same here, maybe less depending on how often we're up North. It's just… I like to think when I clean. All the chaos around transforms to something coherent.” she sighted. “But if you don't like it, you can throw a few things in and it'll go faster."
It's a tempting offer, it's where I spend most of my free time anyway. And the time I should devote to work. Like today. So why not bring more of my stuff here. On the way to her, a flower on the coffee table caught my attention. “I thought you don't like roses.” I picked up a red rose with an incredibly large blossom. She prefers lilies, but as far as I know she doesn't like cut flowers at all.
"You’re right, I don't." she confirmed.
"And Jonathan doesn't know that?" I asked with a paper card in my other hand. His neat handwriting never ceases to fascinate me. It also clearly convicts him.
“Of course he knows.” she took the flower from my hand, as well as the card. She looked at the large flower, smiling sadly before smelling the flower. I'm missing something, again. "But in the end, it's just a flower." she said quietly, setting the rose aside, looking at me. "He doesn't send it here for me. Not really. Every year I place it on a marble slab, inside an old friend's tomb. I just forgot it was another year. Time goes by so fast." she grabbed my hands. I have a terrible urge to ask whose grave it is, but I don't think it's any of my business, if she wanted to tell me, she would. "After all these years, it's a tradition. A habit. The dead listen and they don’t judge."
"I can do that too."
"Don't be jealous, Steven." she carefully placed her hands on me. "He's been dead for almost four hundred years."
“He?” she rolled her eyes. "Four centuries and you still go there?" I didn't even have time to think about the question, I just asked. It seems like an awfully long time for her to go there just to lay a flower. Each year. For an old friend. She doesn't even bother visiting the cathedral on holidays or the days devoted to the memory of her mother, like the rest of us. And it doesn't matter how long this friend of hers has been gone, she looks just like father when he thinks of something like this. He can't let it go and neither can she.
"I go to a lot of places, repeatedly. You're overthinking it." I can't agree with that. But I understood from her tone she had her say on it. “If you don't mind, we need to talk to Thalus.” if I don’t mind… even if I could be against it, I wouldn't try to stop her. She is already waving her hands and drawing something in front of her. Another set of runes that tell me nothing.
“Our dear Heiress… oh, and the young Steeles.” blue eyes focused on me. He freaked me out a bit with that, it offended me a little. Like I have nothing to do here. "How can I help you?"
"Find someone in Tre'Asco and send them to the port in Ecrana, Pier 47. There was a small incident." his eyes quickly returned, back to her. That way, I can get an unobstructed view of the frighteningly young face of the man who routinely refers to Aner as his friend. Completely casual, as if it were something normal. I find it more inappropriate than Jonathan just referring to him as father.
“I know, I already sent our people there.” Andrea frowned, out of breath when he overtook her. "Edgar insisted I arrange it immediately. I assumed you knew about it. It sounded that way."
“We just got back, how would Edgar know about this?” I thought the question belonged to him. She turned to me angrily.
"Why are you looking at me? I've been with you the whole time, except well..." the vial appeared in my ready hand. "I thought you'd want this."
"What exactly did he tell you?" she carefully took the glass container from me. The elongated bubble shimmered in the rays of the warm southern sun. The remains of the purple liquid settled on the thin walls. It shouldn't be a problem for her to find out what was inside. And I think it will tell her more than me.
“He said there was a disturbance at the harbour in Ecrana while there were going on celebrations in honour of Aelineth.” celebrations in honour of her mother? Do they celebrate in Tre'Asco before we do? "He mentioned you were there and insisted no more people than necessary should know about it,"
"But how in the Light does he know about that? He's supposed to stay away and leaf through his translations." she interrupted his explanations. She didn't give him much of a chance to explain anything. “He hasn't spent much time working on anything important lately, but he has no business in Tre’Asco.”
"Perhaps not, but I can only assume his youngest son accompanied you. And as far as I know, our dear friend is not in the habit of leaving his offspring unattended." his gaze returned to me.
"Since I have the crown, he can't follow me. That’s the rule, no? And I didn't know I'd be in Ecrana today and An took us there. So, if he was there, it wasn't because of me. Come to think of it, father was supposed to be at a meeting with the Athran Council as was I." the black eyebrows above the blue eyes drew dangerously close together. Like he didn't believe me one bit. It’ll enough if she understands me. “I think he just can't help it and wanted to stop Mallette, just like us.”
Andrea turned the bottle in her hand again. She's thinking about something, and whatever it is, she doesn't like it. It took her several long moments before she lowered her hands to her body again. Even our over-aged friend didn't try to snap her out of her thoughts during that time. “It's one possible take on the whole thing, he might’ve decided to be useful… I'll have to talk to him.”
"That will have to wait, he left already."
"Where to?" I beat her to the same question she wanted to ask him. He shrugged his shoulders eloquently.
"You should know he had the whole unit prepared." it almost sounds threatening. What does father need a unit for? And why is he telling her like this?
"So what? It's still his right." she replied without interest.
"Of course it is, Commander Leynthall will lead them. He requested him personally."
“Of course... he is my best commander.” for some reason unknown to me she added a smirk. “Thal, try to find out what was in this.” the glass container disappeared from her hand. “Find whoever is responsible and bring them in so we can talk. And while you're in Ecrana, make sure the rest of the festivities are going Damien's way. It will be best if we keep an eye on all of Tre'Asco. And ask Jonathan to honour his wife's memory along with her people.” before his image faded, he bowed and gave her a fleeting smile.
"How come the celebrations have already started in Tre'Asco? Isn’t there a set date?"
“You're acting like Athran didn't change anything.” she glared at me sharply. I didn't change any of it. "Besides, these aren't traditional celebrations. The point is," she took a deep breath, probably to calm down. "the people of Tre'Asco feel like they own everything that has anything to do with my mother because of… well, you know." she pointed to her ear and giggled. "It's nothing special, just the anniversary of her birth, it’ll all be over in two days at Camalin."
"So they just appropriated her legacy?" at times I feel like she hates her. She talks so little about her mother that I'm not sure what she really cares about concerning her.
"Legacy?" that smirk again. "That's a strong word… I mean, she's not that special. All she's ever been able to do is give Jon a baby and she needed help with that as well."
"What do you mean?" I'd say her birth was probably the highlight of their relationship, but it's certainly not the only significant deed her mother accomplished, she was an Immortal. Which didn't work out very well, but there's definitely more. I just can't remember.
"I mean, my father always wanted a big family with lots of kids, grandkids… and yet he has one, single daughter. Pretty weird, isn't it?"
Three quick knocks didn't give me the chance to ask anything else. The door opened at once. An elderly man in plain trousers entered and bowed deeply. "Your Majesties," he said solemnly. He looked up and smiled at us both. His face is average and easily forgettable, eyes of uninteresting color, round nose and thin lips. It's unbelievable how ordinary he looks. "I hope I'm not interrupting." he is, but I can't tell him that.
"Steven, I would like to introduce you to Willam'Ethe master of disguise, uncovering all things that should not be exposed to the light of day and my good friend."
"It's my great pleasure." I said with a fake smile. I could almost swear she claimed William was a woman. Not a weirdly ordinary guy, that doesn't really fit her spies, most of them are rather eccentric. Andrea poked my ribs gently. She doesn't like that fake smile.
"Believe me the pleasure is on mine, the first Athran heir to sit on the throne is something unexpectedly exciting." William smiled mischievously, he must know a lot about me by now. All those little secrets from the court, like who I was spending time with before her. And I'm guessing that's how she got the information.
"Will…" her single cold instruction cleared up that first misunderstanding. The guy turned into a tall curly redhead with yellow eyes and a rather provocative dress. Even more than the tight dress, I was drawn to her ears. Pointy, just like those of all those people in Ecrana. That explains a lot.
“You must excuse me, Your Majesty, I am used to not showing up at the Palace.” she explained with a cute smile. Her attitude has completely changed, she enunciates every word carefully, seductively even. And I've seen her somewhere before. I just don't know where it was. “I have information about that ship.” she handed her some documents.
"That was fast." I grumbled, her people are annoyingly efficient. I peered over Andrea’s shoulder as she leafed through the papers. Among others, there is a voyage plan, a detailed cargo list, passenger information, and a long list of something that looks important but I can't read, even though the language seems familiar to me. Mallette had been preparing long and well for his little escape. He booked two cabins for himself and his belongings were already waiting on board, a week before the actual sailing. "What is it?" I pulled out a paper I don't understand.
"Can't you read it?" she wondered.
"Why should I?"
“Because it is the language that gave rise to Athran.” she explained, equally surprised. Why would I even be interested in such a thing?
"Well, I make sure I have all the information at hand at all times," Will broke the silence. Her gaze shifted to An. “I've seen you stop people in their tracks before they even thought to run. Pull them out of the portal they've already entered. And this Mallette just ran away?”
“First stop is at Wat'sar, he'll get off there and try to get on another ship or if he's smarter he'll go through the portal and try to disappear again undetected.” An assessed without adding to her comment. Will's right, Immortals can do anything, stopping one ship shouldn't be a problem. But she didn’t stop it. Did she want him to run away? Why? I looked again at the papers in her hand. Wat'sar is the first stop on the other continent, maybe he'll try to come back here from there? Mallette is pretty established on this continent. There's no way he really wants to leave. “Will, send a message to Zaik to arrest Mallette.” why bring the emperor into this? Doesn't she have her own people in his country?
“Of course, how about something like I appeal to Your Imperial Eminence on this unpleasant matter, in which your invincible nation gets a chance to show its strength?” Will said with a touch of irony. Andrea laughed, not sure what amused her so much. I don't find it funny. This guy built his ego on the size of his empire, not its importance. And it shows a lot. Meanwhile, Will pulled a cloth-wrapped notebook and a pencil from her pocket and waited.
"You'd like that... I'd rather see it as something more formal, perhaps dear Zaik, I've considered your offer and although my answer remains the same, for a man who offers me the whole world, I'm sure it won't be a problem to find one fleeting thug in it, put his portrait, name and so on, you know it, regards the Heiress…” she waited for Will to finish and added. "Don't ask him for anything, he already has a huge ego and thinks he's going to blow me away with inappropriate, ridiculous offers. That title of his doesn't mean much since he serves me and he knows it all too well.” why should he serve her? And what offer? Why don't I know anything again?
“Hmm… we wouldn't want the emperor to make a real claim on you.” she winked at me, tucked the diary away and bowed again. What does she mean by that? Wait a minute, I remember where I saw her. "If that's all."
“See that Mallette is apprehended, I honestly don't care if it's Zaik or not. And find Samson!” she called after her as she turned to leave. "Will!" the spy stopped in place.
Will slowly turned around, her good mood seemed to have left her. Every time An talks to someone in such a measured way, it scares me too. "Yes, Heiress?"
"There was a woman in Ecrana who helped Mallette escape, she had to give him documents." a golden scroll appeared in her hand. "Find her and bring her in for questioning in Athran."
"Your father,"
“My father is not your problem! Nor is he a king! I doubt she is one of your people and even if she is, I have no desire to interrogate someone like that. So, no lion will get close to her.” Andrea snapped, cutting off Will’s complaints before they started. “Go.” she ordered. The door slammed shut as I moved to the spies place. I need answers. "Where did your father go?" she overtook me.
"I'm probably going to repeat myself, but how the fuck am I supposed to know?" do I look like his babysitter? I don't spend that much time with him again. "I do not ask the destination of each of his journeys."
"You should probably start with that."
"What is that supposed to mean?"
"How many people do you think normally write in Old Athran?" she opened the folder again. "Besides, doesn't that handwriting remind you of someone?" she forced me back the paper. I don't know what the handwriting is supposed to remind me of. The small letters lean slightly to the side, but that's about it, that's what a lot of people's messages look like. It's definitely not Dad's handwriting, if that's what she's trying to imply.
"Not really. I don’t have the time to remember everyone’s handwriting." I put the paper down and looked at her. "She's sleeping with him on your orders, isn't she? The spy. Do you have to support him in his indulgence?"
"My orders weren't for her to go to bed with him, but it's quite useful. Someone needs to keep an eye on him and find out where he's going, seems like..."
"An, we screwed up with Mallette, but that's about it. We'll just find another way and bring him back." I try to back up my words with a smile. She’s not used to losing.
“Steven, we didn't screw up.” she placed glasses on the table and poured something unnaturally orange into them. It doesn't look very appealing, especially after she added a glowing capsule… like it’s the weirdest thing I've ever drunk. "First of all, that ship didn't put to sea, its captain drove it to a portal that opened on command. Which means it must have been opened by someone intelligent enough. Someone competent enough. Someone like me or Edgar." she drank, I don't have such a need to drink. Not after last night. "You may not have the time, but you should be more observant. It's the handwriting of the stupid old assistant of his that Vivian keeps at his place. Speaking of which, Edgar had no business in Ecrana. So I do hope he went there to pray, pay his respects to my mother or buy a fucking souvenir, because he’s on a very thin ice."
"An, what do you think he's doing? Planning treason when he's not sitting around your table, nodding to the Heirs?" she gets unnecessarily upset again and again because of him. Dad is on her side, as am I. “Calm down, dammit.”
"Yeah, the last time he gave us a nod like that it ended with an independent Athran. I won't let him do that again. I’m not like my father." she folded her arms angrily. I know this attitude of hers. "Try not to take it personally, if someone were to trip me up, I'd bet on my dad too."
"Bet on whoever you want. I trust him. I trust my family." I filled my mouth with the bitter liquid, just so I would keep it shut. How can she think father would ever do such a thing? "What kind of offer did Will mean?" I asked, folding my arms, the good mood leaving me very quickly. The bastard has no right to make any proposals to her. He shouldn't be leaving his damn continent, no one cares for his presence. Ever.
"Zaik believes I will marry him one day, he asks me from time to time, I refuse him again and so on and on. It's been our game for the last twenty years or so.” she said dispassionately, I frowned. It doesn't feel like a game to me, and certainly not with him. Of all the men who could have asked her this question, he is the absolute most disgusting. And what's worse, she didn't say a word about it. I have a damn right to know such a thing. This is not a game for me. I can’t afford to play games I might lose.
"Were you planning to tell me about it?" I set the glass aside.
"Why should I?" she asked, I just shrugged and remained silent. I will wait for her explanation, I do not intend to repeat my question. I honestly think I deserve it. With a sigh, she dragged me to the couch, she must be tired of standing and looking up into my eyes. “Zaik isn't concerned about me, well, not really. He believes together we could establish a new dynasty of powerful mages, strengthen our power and conquer the world... but it's such a bullshit. There is no guarantee it will work. And I have no plans to conquer anything. I'm already in over my head. Not to mention how horrible of a person he is. I mean, he’s better than his predecessor, but still. You don't have to worry about it, I would never do that. And any other member of my family would approve, Zaik is not exactly an ideal match, certainly not for me or our own dynasty.”
“Don't you think powerful mages make a strong dynasty?” I asked curiously.
"Whose side are you on?" she shook her head. "You know it's just a genetic lottery. No one can guarantee that powerful mages will have an equally gifted child. That's like wanting a guarantee that your child will have, say, green eyes. Even though a lot of people still believe in it, in order for it to work, it has to be helped, controlled, and all the laws of nature fly out the window in that case."
"Seriously?"
"Seriously, Steven. You can't just dream up some outcome and expect nature to obey you." she's trying to tell me something, but she lost me. “It’s not like you don’t know how genetics work, is it? You had to read your fathers theories at some point.”
“Actually… I had a lot better things on my mind. Besides, didn't your father turn your mother into a mage just so he could marry her and have you? To start his own dynasty?”
"What? NO!” she shouted and laughed, trying to catch her breath in a fit of laughter. "You can't believe that. Don't tell me Ed let you believe that. It's just some bedtime story.”
"It's a nice story," I protested. "He found her in an old world full of chaos and darkness among ordinary people, whom she was the only one trying to help, he fell in love, took her in and made her an Immortal. And they had a smart, beautiful, but terribly annoying daughter.” I reached out to her, wrapped a strand of long hair around my finger and smiled. I really like the story, although not all the details may be true. It's just a classic love story with a happy ending. Kind of.
"It sounds so terribly romantic when you say it like that." she smirked, until now I hadn't thought about whether I believed it. I just take it as a fact, everyone repeats it. I've heard it probably a thousand times since I was little. So why question it? "It's just a fairy tale. Mother, like you or I, was born a mage. Rather ordinary, but she had quite a knack for healing, I guess that caught Jon's eye when she saved his ass. Even though he was already immortal at the time, he almost lost. She really helped people, but wasn’t the only one. I don't know exactly how the story about her not having powers of her own came about, but it caught on pretty quickly. After Jonathan met her, he started teaching her new spells. One could say that he helped her develop her potential. But I can't imagine how he would turn her into a mage, taking someone's power is incredibly painful and strictly forbidden.” she looked at me with a serious look. This is another generally known rule, I don't need to be reminded of it. I innocently played with a strand of long hair and listened to her. She doesn't often talk about her past, and certainly not about her mother. I feel like the mere mention of ever having a mother upsets her. Just like before William came, she is very obnoxious. It's a pretty strange reaction to someone she's never met. Like she’s angry she was never around? “Even assuming he had the power he wanted to give her, it would be at least as painful and he would receive an exceptionally harsh punishment for it, even as an Heir. Besides, he would never do that. He may be a hypocrite, but he has his principles, you know?” she wondered aloud.
“You think Jonathan is a hypocrite?” I let go of her hair in surprise.
"Not just him, all of us. Our immortality is based on centuries of pretence and hypocrisy. Everything seems the way Damien wishes, but the truth usually lies elsewhere. That's probably why the story seems more real to you than it really is. Every word in that book, every thought in the temples, is carefully chosen to fit the whole portrait of our family. And their little story caught on among people. How they met, how he fell in love with her. Immortal and untouchable Heir suddenly acts so ordinary and human." she brushed her hair back and folded her arms. "I think it's shit. They just used mother because it suited them like everything." I wasn't trying to piss her off. I obviously succeeded. "We claim that nothing is more precious than life and yet we lead with the death penalty, we kill everyone, who doesn't suit us. We say we are spreading the Light in peace while subduing the whole world, bit by bit. We ban spells we use on a daily basis, admittedly because we understand the core of it, but still." I nodded in agreement, they are terrible hypocrites in many ways, but the fact she knows it makes a difference. From my point of view at least, I enforce laws that are inconsistent with what I say and do and the ultimate argument is -I am your king.
“But even so… they are the couple everyone looks up to.”
“Right…” she moved her hand. A picture appeared. It’s without a doubt Jonathan and his wife, but I’ve never seen them like that. Serious, less happy and yet so much more real. “Do they look to you like a couple people should aspire to?” I realised I’m not used to seeing anyone touching Jonathan like this. Like he’s not an Heir, but someone’s husband. “Because I don’t see that.” an old picture of her parents vanished as she crossed her arms again.
"Is that why you can heal? Because she could?” I asked curiously a moment later. I wonder if she'll tell me anything else about her or if I've exhausted the subject.
"You think I just inherited everything, huh? I should be offended." she said with a smile. I've probably never seen her really take offence. Considering her position, it's quite strange. I would expect her to be petty and even conceited. Maybe she's too old to be offended? She knows she wouldn't get anywhere with it or something. Or she's just smarter than me and everyone around. "I can do it because I studied it at the Academy, or rather I conducted research… it doesn't matter… my mother and I take a completely different approach to the problem. If I take your injury," she pointed at me. "she would try to speed up the healing process. Herbs or magic, it doesn't really matter, but your body would still have to do all the work on its own. It's pretty traditional and it kind of relies on you having the strength and not bleeding out." she's seriously talking about her. It's weird and very interesting. "I take a different approach, I force your body to go back to where it was before the injury. So I do all the work, it's safer for you. The downside is it usually leaves a scar and I have to know exactly what I want to fix. It wouldn't work if I didn't know the extent of the injury or the procedure to fix it. Similarly minor injuries can be easily fixed, but for example if someone rips off your arm, I don't know what could be done about it because the muscles, tendons, veins, nerves and bones are all damaged." she explained. "Do you understand me?" I nodded. Most of it makes sense to me, in theory. I have virtually no idea how such a thing could be accomplished.
"But there is a better chance of two mages having a gifted child. That's what everything here is about." I slowly returned to what we were talking about originally. Political alliances are made strictly between mages for this very reason.
She thought, dark eyes sweeping over me before she finally answered. "But that doesn't outrule the fact it's just a gamble. Look at your brothers. Genetics can't dictate magic in most cases, and when it does, it takes someone really determined or experienced. And as far as I know, my family members are the only ones who can control the odds." she bit her lip. Her family are the only literal heirs, we all know that. People usually don’t try, because such attempts usually end tragically. “I know what you're trying to tell me, but the truth is powerful mages like you and I are the exception to the rule, not the other way around. It's not a natural result. We are not a result of a political alliance, but a carefully constructed plan.” she looked into my eyes. I feel like each of us is talking about something completely different. "But you know that as well as I do," she added quietly.
"It almost sounds like you're taking me as an equal." I laughed, untangling her brown hair from my finger - not about to give up my own fun - and watched the strand slide down the pillow. I am no exception to the rules. I'm not average -sure, but I'm nowhere near beyond everything like her. I am simply my father's son. Powerful enough to handle everything around, but still only a mage within limits.
"Sorry, I can't hear you through the sounds of you getting older, Steeles," she laughed. I pulled her to me and started tickling her mercilessly. She has to beg me to stop. Plus I love that laugh of hers, genuinely happy.
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