"Do you really have to go?" he grumbled from the bed, a blanket thrown over his face. The hot rays of the sun fall through the open window into the bed. I like to be woken up by their gentle warmth. He probably won't be such a fan. He prefers dark clouds and raindrops, ideally accompanied by thunder. That's why, ever since I opened the curtains, he refuses to remove the blanket from his face. As if there was a whole new person lying here. A complete stranger.
"I really have to go there. I need complete Council," I replied with a smile. I'm looking forward to the Seven being complete, and for once I'll have amongst them someone I can trust and who I won't have to argue with all the time. And on top of that, the entire Council will take care of the mail, which I don't want to deal with. And everything will work as it should again. "I can't make any good decisions without them, you know? There are so many problems with absolute power."
He pulled back the blanket, his green eyes watching me with interest as I untangle my hair. Steven likes them way too much, whether it's because of their length or subtlety. "You have had absolute power for a pretty long time now. And you don't need anyone's counselling to make any decisions, but I think you lack the motivation to stay in bed all morning. Maybe if you had a husband to be here with," I stopped mid motion and put down my brush. Half sitting on a pile of pillows, he looks completely relaxed and content. The sun falls on his slightly tanned skin. Strange he only needs to spend a few hours in the South and his skin already has that beautiful shade. The last five hundred years have not been enough for me.
"How much time did you spend with Jonathan while I was gone?" he wouldn't have figured it out on his own. Jonathan, on the other hand, has been obsessed with finding the perfect man for his daughter for centuries. And he likes to put his ideas in others' heads.
I usually laugh at the idea of marriage, but this time it scares me. Steven takes everything too seriously and will think twice before saying it out loud. And I vowed that if I ever really wanted to do that, the chosen person would have to give up their mortality, and I would never ask Steven to do that. Although he has every right to do so. I'm not sure he would want to give up mortality.
I can easily imagine the rest of eternity by his side. I would wake up day after day next to green eyes and lay down night after night in warm arms. I wouldn't be woken up by nightmares, but by his calm heartbeat. And even if I had to save the world from time to time, I would have someone to return to and something to fight for.
And if he became part of my family, I wouldn't have to bother thinking about which secrets I could and couldn't tell him. Because then there would be no danger to him.
But I would dread losing him for the rest of eternity.
I pulled on a long, red dress with a bare back, woven with gold chains. Lightweight material covers the body without suffocating me. I kept my hair loose, just pulled it to one side. Steven appeared behind me, kissing my exposed neck lightly. "You don't listen to the Council anyway, and I thought you made a promise to Jonathan."
"Why are you suddenly interested in the promises I made to Jonathan?" he must have spent a lot of time with him, maybe too much.
"I just am and I right," he insists, holding. He's so endearingly stubborn.
"That's not the point," I turned to examine the green eyes. They're smiling. His hair falls to his face. "it's been almost five hundred years since I made that promise. Why should I change anything right now?"
"Because now you have me," he replied confidently. He's always so sure of everything.
I rolled my eyes and kissed him quickly. I don't want to deal with it now. "Didn't you want to talk about something yesterday?"
"Mhm... I need to take the rest of the troops to Athran, but you have to be notified." wrapped in a light blanket, he disappeared into the living room. He returned with blue plates with a discarded wolf's head on it. That's new. Since when does he put his wolf on contracts? Well, probably from now on. Great.
"Notified? Justake them. Contractually, they're your troops, aren't they?" what kind of crap is this?
"Contractually, yes, but according to this, only from the time they cross the border. Which they haven't done yet. Hence the signature," he explained clearly annoyed. When I asked Riley for more control, I didn't expect bureaucracy, it suits him, though. I don't want to sign every single handover. Apparently this new procedure requires consent of the both of us, supervision by authorised persons and another signature. That's the stupidest insurance I've ever seen.
"You're kidding, right?" I looked up from the contract. Steven shook his head. I sighed in disgust and signed it. "I'll send Hamilton and Riley with you, you can pick them up today."
"Or I'll send this to Athran so Basil can arrange it." he threw away the contract, it didn't hit the ground, it just disappeared halfway through the flight. "And I'll wait for you in bed until you get back," he took my face in his warm hands and kissed me. Then, still wrapped in the blanket, he went back to bed.
"Sounds very nice, but don't you have to go back to Dithune, Your Majesty?"
"Not today."
"How so?" I asked, hands on my hips. He's been king for a couple of weeks and spends a lot of time here with me. Besides, he has now killed of two days with my search. He can't take another day off.
"Because I'm smart and I handled all my meetings yesterday," he squirmed on the pillows. "And my desk doesn't sag under a mountain of pending requests."
"If it isn't because people haven't figured out yet to write to you and not to Ed," I laughed on my way to the door. "Try to have some fun here before I get back. There's an old-language dictionary in the library."
After a long time, I am the first in a small hall with a large map. The lights in the room do not shine with a bright white light as usual, but with a dim gold. The whole room suddenly had a completely different atmosphere. Ceremonial and a little more mysterious. The golden symbol of the sun glitters on the floor, the map has almost disappeared, and bright red banners with a golden lion's head are waiting for the announcement of a new name.
I wait patiently with them for the others to gather. And the vote to start.
The whole event used to take place in the Hall of Seven in the Council Tower, right in Nerkam, but decades ago the voting moved here. Jonathan was adamant, claiming it's because it's safer here, but I don't think he likes the tower. It is several floors of perfect suffering. The people inside never speak to the point, and every single one of them expects to impress their ruler, so that their chances of getting to one of the seven seats increases. Their tower is far from the Palace, behind all the new buildings overlooking the less attractive part of the city. And because Council members are supposed to be equal, no one can jump directly into the building. Which is probably the most annoying part of the whole visit. Everyone including the Heirs has to walk there on foot.
The double doors opened, and all the members of the Council entered at the same time. According to tradition, they must wear a hood that covers their faces when voting. Once these cloaks were complemented by golden geometric patterns that broke the silhouette a little, but just like now, it was easy to guess who was under which cloak. At one point, Damien used a simple spell that guaranteed complete anonymity to voters. But there were complaints about the use of magic in such an important decision and possible manipulation of voices, and so it was abandoned. Even though it makes no sense. There is still magic involved.
Interestingly, all the votes are taking place in complete silence. No one is arguing why I should vote for his or her candidate. A few days ago, I received the same files as the other members of the Council, and what we do not find among this information should not be taken into account.
I read the names of all six proposed candidates and sat down again. I know all the names well, but I am interested in only one of them. A square of white paper with golden edges appeared in front of each of us, it is enough to write a name on the paper in red ink from a golden inkwell. We all have the same tools at hand, and as soon as we are done with them, they disappear. The names will appear on a single square. And all it remains is to count the votes.
I picked up the paper with the names and read them aloud one by one. I'm sure Gallien will win, he only needs two votes, but something tells me he'll get three. I cannot explain it, I am simply convinced of it.
The fact it really happened a short time later baffled me more than I would have ever expected. I knew Terrick would vote the same way as Iohanna and I did before I saw his handwriting on the paper. He had no reason to do so, he proposed his own candidate, and it is an unwritten rule, the members of the Council vote for the candidate they have nominated. That is why I have the final say in decision-making and that is why I am not proposing anyone myself. Although, even that could be circumvented from both sides.
I wanted to ask Terrick why he voted the way he did. But he managed to disappear before I got to it. I accepted that it didn't matter anyway, because everything turned out exactly the way I wanted it to, and I just left. Gallien will be at the next meeting and that's all I'm interested in.
Steven hadn't gotten out of bed in all the time I'd been away—more than an hour. I have to laugh at the sight of him on the mountain of pillows watching the action outside the window. Half of his view is blocked by the building opposite, but he doesn't seem to mind. I should stop putting it off and move to the right apartment, overlooking the gardens and the front courtyard.
"Let me guess, it turned out exactly as you wanted and Tavin won."
"Well, sort of," I took a breath to tell him that he got three votes, his tone stopped me. "You say it like it's a wrong thing Gallien won."
"I don't care he won. I don't want to talk about work." he is always so anxious, dividing his time between work and free time. I don't, I look for distractions during work and in my free time I'm doing useful things. "I'd just appreciate it if you could leave my people out of this."
Gallien is not his man. He moved to the South so long ago, he enjoys time with his family here and works here... this argument annoys me so much. "So you're going to spend all day in bed?"
"I haven't thought of a better program yet."
"Lucky for you, I have. Get dressed," he frowned at my request. "pretty please," I added with a sweet smile.
"As you wish, love." smiling, he crawled out of the mountain of pillows and stretched ostentatiously until he found his clothes. I wonder what improved his mood so much.
I moved to the desk with a new batch of letters. I was only gone for two days -well, three- but still. "Aren't you going to bake in the sun?" I gave his very Athran jacket a long look. I think he would look much better in the light colours of the south, and felt a lot better in soft materials suitable for hot climate. Not to mention his eyes would stand out perfectly.
"No, I won't. Our clothes regulate temperature." he laughed with that deep laugh of his, which I love so much, as he took the pen from my hand. "So what's the plan?"
"We'll head for Nerkam," I announced proudly, taking back my pen and finishing my sentence. This letter is exactly why I hate to open them in the first place. Another petty dispute that I have to solve... not really. I quickly declined the request and threw away my pen.
Correspondence has no chance compared to visiting the city accompanied by him.
Getting to the city is easy to say, but it involves several steps. After talking to Riley, we had to walk through the Palace through the main gate to the outside gate, where Dex and Jonah were already waiting for us. They both tried to suggest someone else to join us, but I turned them down with a simple explanation - Nerkam is a safe city. Giant, perfectly white and wonderfully crowded with people, but safe. And the two of them are more than enough security. Jonah is tall, slim and incredibly fast for that matter. And Dex is the biggest and scariest of all the Guardsmen. We are in no danger whatsoever.
One way to get to Nerkam is to go down the hill on foot. A wide road paved with white stones stretches from the harbour, across the city to the Palace. The salvaged stones from the original building were used for part of the new road during repairs. According to Jonathan, some of them show traces of fire, but to me they all seem equally clean and shiny. Anyway, it's a pretty long journey, it's just over a hundred kilometres, and although the distance between the city and the Palace is considerably shorter, almost no one walks it. Getting anywhere via portals is not only faster, but also more convenient and effective.
The portal from the Palace ends about two hundred metres in front of the main gate of the city itself. And even long before we entered a city of a good seven million people, we heard a small taste of all that life. Just as we could smell roasted nuts and freshly cut lilies from afar.
The outer walls of the white-stone city are decorated with red banners. In front of them stand tall statues of my grandfather and his daughter, inviting us inside. I nodded to both of them in greeting with a great portion of sarcasm. It's the least I can do, since they've decided to protect my city, only they both left after promising so much more.
The buildings around the main street follow a traditional, old template. They are richly decorated with statues, gold decorations, the finest materials and ornaments from all over the empire. And everything exorbitant and too pompous cleverly hides an illusion that holds the whole city together, thanks to which the white stones shine with purity and the pavement below us will never be polluted by all those people. So basically it's just another of Damien's lies to make us seem more perfect.
"So, where are you going to take us?" I stopped at the first fork in the road and let go of his hand. The main road leads directly to the centre and to the Great Cathedral, one turn leads to the Academy, and another one to the larger bazaars and the newer arts district.
"Me? I don't know this place."
"I know, that's the point," I explained with a smile. "Jonathan always says it's best to let the city guide you. Nerkam is a city permeated with magic and leads everyone down a different path, but it welcomes us all with open arms and leads us where we need to go, so..."
"Is that what someone who moved out of here at the first opportunity says?" he asked incredulously, slowly starting to move. He turned into the more narrow of the alleys with smaller, cosier buildings, no less perfect than the ones we had left behind.
"You'd be surprised by how much time he spends in the city… he has an apartment across the square of A Dal'Vael and," Steven's gaze immediately returned to me. I just realised the same thing he did, I never spoke the old language in front of him. "I mean the Shining Cathedral, it probably doesn't matter. He says he visits the place to get some rest, but I've never seen him in that apartment sober, rested, or alone."
"Totally spoiled my ideas of the man." I knew he was going to turn left before he did. Around another statue, for a change a member of the Council, who lived here about two centuries ago. The sculptor misrepresented his appearance, and no one ever tried to fix it.
"Our little book portrays him very nicely. But I don't plan on spoiling your view of him entirely. He spends a lot of time in the cathedral," I overtook him and ran down the stairs to the street below. As a result, I met a group of mages from the Academy, probably on their way to a nearby library. With broad smiles, they bowed. I couldn't figure out if they were all from Zessia before Steven caught up with me. "Jonathan likes to think all of this has some meaning and leads to the end his father wanted. That's probably why he's so attracted to the cathedral... but that's just Jon," I smiled sadly at my feeble explanation. Even Stephan isn't sure where all this is supposed to lead.
"Why do you always call him Jonathan? He's your father."
"Not always," I corrected him. Steven rolled his eyes and pulled me closer. "He's my father and I really love him, but that doesn't give him the right to treat me like a child. He always sees me as a little girl, and I need him to listen to me, at least sometimes. And it's much easier to argue with Jonathan, not the Duke, Fourth Heir or my father...".
"Somehow I can't imagine. You both seem awfully calm," he frowned, probably to back up his words. He looked at another of the city's ornaments, a statue of a weeping woman in front of the courthouse. I have never understood what exactly it is supposed to represent, in front of the vast majority of such buildings are usually our statues or, worse, representations of Aeli'neth. "Does it happen often?"
"What, us arguing? All the time... we just don't yell at each other. Hales never yell, it doesn't suit us, because we're so much better..." I smirked. It's a terrible stupidity that was created who knows how, but everyone sticks to it without exception. So we have to as well. "He likes to meddle in my affairs. He's overprotective and terribly annoying given the chance. There are things, like spells for example even Jonathan can't cast on his own. Battles he could never win. And he's well aware of all that, he'd just never admit it. And arguing with someone like Jon is difficult. It just wears you out for a few years, and apologising to him is even worse because he never apologises." I took a breath, green eyes hanging on me. "Plus, after a few decades, it's annoying to call him Dad. But you'll probably know for yourself when you finally decide to stop ageing."
"And if I don't?" he asked in all seriousness. I stopped on the spot and froze, as if someone had poured ice cold water over me. He isn't going to? Does he want to live a few short decades and die? Just like that? "An?" he stopped too, hugged me tightly as he added. "That was a joke."
I punched him in the back with my clenched fist. "That's not funny, Steven," I muttered into his shirt as he laughed.
"No, of course not," he let go of me, still giggling. On his way past the very first Academy building, he slowed down. A long alley with lush trees with dark red leaves leads to the entrance to the building. The Via'Ther trees fit perfectly here, and golden flowers open every day and fill this place with their sweet scent. The golden sun front door is obscured by a statue of the man who first appropriated this amazing place. Not many monuments to his reign remain, in large part because most of his images did not survive the savage upheavals during his reign. According to records, he was not a very popular ruler.
The building, thanks to its enormous height and more than fifty floors, resembles a tower. This makes it unique, the other Academies are built for the purpose of education as large complexes of connected buildings. The white walls of the tower are intersected in several places by veins of bright blue substance. Fortunately, the First Academy is hardly used anymore, there are no students in it, and the research has moved. Only selected magicians with Niochalsen at the head remain, conduct initiation rituals inside the building and hold similarly special events a few times a year.
This whole place has a special meaning to me, only not for the buildings.
"Maybe I should become Immortal and sort it all out for once," he continued our conversation. He looks as serious as he did before. He must have thought about it already. I have thought about it myself, and more than once. It's a pretty scary idea. He should have added that it's just a joke too, but he didn't.
My thoughts went back to the time when I had a similar conversation with a completely different man. But it was different then, he had no desire to become Immortal. Everyone saw it as a last resort, he didn't. He believed that after death there should be something more, that there should be something waiting. "You don't understand what you're talking about. You can't just choose something like that, whether you have the right to do it or not."
We got to the upper market, and suddenly we had to squeeze through a dense crowd of locals, visitors from other parts of the empire, people busy transporting goods or selling them, and everyone in between. Even my reputation and guard can't give me enough space. There's no point in talking, I can't hear my own thoughts over the shouting merchants. And as tempting as their offers sound, I don't want to stay here longer than necessary. I don't like crowded places like that. A number of things can happen here.
Sellers in their colourful stalls offer perhaps everything one could need to live, from vibrant spices with a pungent aroma and taste to selected delicacies from all over the world. From small accessories and seemingly worthless trinkets to clothes and furniture. From healing elixirs and bandages to weapons and poisons. Whether you are planning a quiet evening, a family celebration, an addition in the form of a pet or something that might be against the law, here you can get all the necessary equipment plus some extra. At least that's what traders promise.
A sharp pain in my temples stopped me in place. Without thinking about it or knowing what I was doing, I turned around just as one of the stalls caught fire. I can't explain how, but I know the fire will spread and the whole stand will explode. Fragments of glass from dozens of colored bottles of various shapes fly around. Injuring the people around him and hurting Steven in the face. Unless I do something.
Before anyone could see what was happening and intervene, I threw the vendor to the side and raised a shield around the stall with small flames already licking the wood. Someone should have noticed them a long time ago. I can't be the only one attracted to their colour. The only one trying to stop the shards of exploding vials before someone gets hurt.
A few people shouted, others tried to get as far away from the stand as possible, through the crowds of onlookers. The white ball was engulfed in colourful fireworks with fumes and dangerous contents. The only thing that got out were the sounds of crackling and banging.
The city guard ran to the place and began their search for what had happened. "You have some pretty good reflexes," Steven blurted out in amazement. He put his arm around my shoulders as he pulled me closer. Probably to protect me from danger that will no longer come.
"I really don't," I replied quietly. All the screaming gives me a terrible headache.
"What?" I didn't even have time to answer, Jonah and Dex had already broken through the path and were pushing us out of the market. Not that it's needed. Things like this happen all the time, and the panic will die down just as quickly. But I wasn't given the space to protest. Instead, we ended up at one of the lookouts of the city, where the sea lazily spills over behind thousands of colourful roofs.
Dex leaned broad-shouldered against the wall of a nearby building and lit a cigarette. The commander of the Guard would definitely not approve of it. He can go crazy when Dex or another guard smokes on duty. It seems way too unprofessional to him. It doesn't matter so much to me, if the Guards are to be the best my country has to offer, they should be able to fight with a lit cigarette. Jonah slipped through the crowd, the red cloak disappeared out of my sight. I guess he went to discuss the situation with the city guard so he could report back to Hamilton.
"Sometimes I forget how close it is to the sea." Steven braced his hands on the stone wall, staring at the horizon. It's hard to say if he's watching anything in particular. Among the people below us, the monuments and important buildings, the hundreds of ship masts and the sea in the distance… anything could interest him. Even a perfectly blue sky without clouds. Or none of it at all.
Why do I have such a headache today? The sun reflecting off the water stung my eyes and only made the pain worse. I turned my back to the water. Did I get any sleep? I must have. I was woken up by memories of that icy blue circle and velvety voice. And a couple hours should be just fine. Maybe the library is to blame for the headache?
"I was thinking about this year's Boundless Blossom festival."
"And what did you come up with? You need more flowers?" I asked without a shred of interest, it's an unnecessarily exorbitant celebration hosted every year during which Edgar expects us to bow to him. Or he used to. I'm not even sure if he plans to attend, might collide with his craziness. It takes all his time. And almost a week of celebrations awaits us at the baton of the new king, bigger than ever.
My thoughts return to the events in the marketplace. The fuss hadn't completely died down yet. Dex doesn't worry about it, and I probably shouldn't either. But what actually happened? And why, like with Terrick, I have this strange, inexplicable feeling. How can I be so sure of what's going to happen? And why should I know before it happens? Is it like a glimpse of the future that can still be changed?
"I want you to be there with me," he turned too. I stopped frowning at the crowd and looked into the green eyes. I will be able to return to the marketplace issue with Hamilton's report in hand. Steven just got my attention.
"Do you want me to be there for an official matter, or do you just want me?" with folded arms, he watches the tree, in the shade of which we hide from the hot rays of the scorching sun. I definitely should've left the coat back at the Palace. "Because in the latter case, I could get rid of the crown."
"I'm afraid I want you to officially stand by my side," he reached for my hand and pulled me to him.
"So I'm not going to get rid of the crown?" there's no way I'd avoid those celebrations. I just didn't expect to be part of the program. Quite substantial. Is it one thing to walk with him around the city, but openly stand next to him in Athran? People will notice.
"Afraid not," he laughed. "so, will you join me?"
"It's rude that I'm keeping you to myself anyway and people just have to guess what my intentions are. This should make it pretty obvious," he excitedly lifted me off the ground and spun me around.
"I really love you, you know that?"
"I really know," warm palms took my face so that his lips could join mine in a long kiss. "I think I've tormented you for long enough. Will you let me guide you through my city?"
"And I just started to like my view."
"If you knew how many times I've heard that," laughing, I grabbed his hand and dragged him back to the marketplace and through the portal leading to the very centre of the city.
Victory Square is much larger than the marketplace, and on either side of the septagon stands a golden statue of one of the original members of the Hallies family. Branching streets lure us to monuments, the Great Cathedral, the Millennial Library, the main market, a park and similar nonsense. All of them are of course very important, but desperately boring. I know much more interesting parts of the city.
We should take time off more often. Just enjoy the city and everything it has to offer. Far from the Palace, the treaties and all the terribly important things.
Walking with him through the tangled streets is indescribably better. To weave through parts of the city where we fit perfectly filled with the scent of magic and surrounded by the illusions of distant places. Try with intoxicating drinks and perfectly balanced tastes of local specialties. Enjoy music and dance with him.
Time in the city flows differently, much faster when I'm not alone. In fact, that's how time works everywhere in his presence. As if even my Immortality wasn't suddenly enough. My whole life is nothing against time with him. And I can only guess where it will lead. I couldn't go back to the way it was. And that's a problem.
"We should go back," I whispered close to him. Loud music and coloured lights try to disguise my words, but the watch on his hand doesn't lie. They never lie.
"Or we can stay here and dance all night." he holds me again, so close to him. Irresistibly close.
"And you didn't even want to get out of bed." I don't need his permission to go back to my own bedroom. My dress landed next to his shirt.
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