Ascension (32 page)

“
Well, sir,
I
’
m sure it
would take some royal effort, but it can be done, I assure
you.
”

Chapter
28

My parents
whipped around, and before anyone else could respond, my father
lunged and grabbed Erik in a chokehold. Erik
’
s face began to turn red as my
father threatened,
“
I
don’
t know what you heard, you filthy
guard, but I
’
m
not letting you leave this room so that you can go squeal to your
friends. I have no choice but to-
“

“
Father,
no!
”
I ran up to him, beating him on the
arms until he released Erik, who sunk to the floor, coughing and
gasping for air.

My father looked
at me, adrenaline pumping, and protested,
“
Faradene, he is just going to report us and put our entire
family at risk of being executed. We can
’
t trust him to keep his mouth
shut!
”
This side of my father frightened
me, the side that was willing to do anything to protect his
people.

“
Father, how many
guards have you had to
…take care of?”
I
looked at him in a whole new light. The thick, muscular frame that
has been used to support my family by working the mines every day
now looked like a finely-honed weapon, the large hands transformed
from gentle, loving hands to strong, powerful
tools.

“
I
’
ve only done what I had to do to
protect my family and my people,
”
he
stated, and this was the only answer I needed. At first, I stared
at him in fear, but when he looked into my eyes, I saw the
memories. I saw the faces of all the guards he had to kill, and I
knew that they must haunt him every time he closes his eyes. My
father wasn
’
t a
cold-blooded killer. He was a man fighting for those he loved, and
I knew at that moment that I could depend on him for anything. My
mother too, I realized, would fight for me till her dying breath.
And now, that was exactly what I was asking them to
do.

“
Father, you
don
’
t have to
protect us from him. He is a friend.
”
I
helped Erik stand up, who had stopped coughing but was still
rubbing his neck.

“
Pleased to make
your acquaintance,
”
he said, but
didn
’
t extend
his hand for a handshake. I didn
’
t
blame him.

“
Faradene, who is
he? Is he from one of the other colonies?
”
My mother asked, taking in his auburn hair and rich green
eyes.

“
No, he
’
s um,
”
I looked at Erik, not sure if he wanted me to reveal his
rank. He met my eyes and nodded, taking over.

“
Actually, I am
from Ahrenia. My name is Erik. Most know me as Prince
Erik.
”

“
Prince?
Faradene, how did you manage to bring a Prince down here?
”
My mother looked at me, bewildered, while my
father seemed unimpressed.

“
Fara can be very
convincing when she puts her mind to it,
”
Erik said, a smile tugging on the corner of his mouth but
otherwise keeping eye contact with my parents, who raised their
eyebrows at the nickname.
“She
’
s opened my eyes to the
suffering of your people, and I am eager to help you get the
freedom you deserve.
”

My father spoke
up.
“
Prince Erik. I
’
ve heard of you.
You
’
re the boy
who is always up to no good, spending the palace
’
s money on the grandest parties,
shirking your duties to go on adventures whenever the desire hits
you. I appreciate your offer, but with your reputation, I
don
’
t think you
will be able to help us very much. I especially
don
’
t think you
can help my daughter. And if I am correct, are you not engaged to
be married soon? I would appreciate it if you would leave my family
alone and let my colony rest in the little peace I am able to
manage.
”

“
Father!
”
I exclaimed, bewildered at his behavior. Was he
really willing to let all chances of freedom go because of his
overprotection?

“
No, Faradene.
This young man has no sense of responsibility. He says he will help
you now, but at the first sign of adversity, you can be sure he
would leave you to struggle on your own.
”

“
With all
respect, sir,
” Erik cut in. “
I will be
the first to admit that I have been reckless and selfish. I took
everything I had for granted, and worried about nothing but my own
happiness. But because of your daughter
…”
he looked at me long enough for my cheeks to warm, and then
back to my father.
“
Because of your
daughter, I saw that everything I knew about the colonies, about
how unintelligent, lazy, and criminal you are, is completely wrong.
And I know of others who feel the same way. So, I pledge to you my
help against the injustice that you have been subject to for
centuries. I can only hope that you accept it.
”

My father looked
at him skeptically, then to my mother, then to me, then back to
him. Finally, he groaned and said,
“
I
don’
t want to accept it, but it
isn
’
t up to me.
We must let the rest of the councilmen. I can organize a meeting
with them later tonight, but until then, you and Faradene need to
wait here. I don
’
t know how you got back here, but I
’
m sure the guards are already
suspicious.
”
I looked at Erik, who looked
back at me and shrugged, as if saying, He
’
ll find out eventually. My
father sighed and turned around, heading towards the
exit.
“
That means that the guards are
going to be extra critical today, making things even more
difficult.
”
Pulling the cloak aside, he
turned his head before he left, saying,
“
Faradene, I am very glad to see you home,
”
and then let the cloak fall behind
him.

My mother cleared
her throat and clasped her hands together.
“
Well, since you
’
re here, you may as well help me
prepare supper. Faradene, you know where to find everything. And
your highness, welcome to Cethin. I expect you to get your hands
dirty.
”

Ξ

Conor ended up meeting us for
dinner, as his mother was on the council as well, which meant that
he would spend the night helping my mother with chores, most likely
taking stock of the storage rooms or weaving blankets. By the look
on his face when Erik and I left for the meeting, he knew what he
was in for.

When he first saw
me, he had been telling my mother about how the missing turnips
from the storage room weren
’
t his fault. He stopped in his
tracks, his dialogue trailing off, and just stared at me, as if he
couldn
’
t
believe I was in the room. It only took a small wave on my part,
and he came running into my arms. I held on a bit too long, and he
soon squirmed out of my grip. I couldn
’
t help but grab his cheeks and
marvel at how much he had grown in the months I had been away. He
looked as though he was still getting taller, although he still had
yet to put an ounce of muscle on his bones.

“
Faradene! Why
are you back here? Are you here to save us? Did you do what you
wanted to do? How is the surface? Why is your skin
darker?
”

His long stream
of questions had me laughing, while Erik looked at me with a sense
of bewilderment. I introduced them to each other, and when Conor
heard the word
“Prince,”
his mouth gaped
open and he looked at Erik in awe. After a few seconds of silent
appreciation, he delved into questions asking about princely life,
and Erik looked flustered. Luckily, my mother interrupted his
string of questions by placing a plate of food in front of his
face, and he decided to sacrifice his curiosity in order to satisfy
his stomach.

Ξ

“
Do you always
eat that?
”
Erik asked, presumably
referring to the dinner we had, the usual gruel made with potatoes
and carrots, with a loaf of stale bread to soak it
up.

“
What else would
we eat? In case you haven
’
t noticed, we
don
’
t have a
wide variety of choices here.
”
I knew it
tasted bad, but I couldn
’
t help but give him a hard
time.
“
It might not be up to your
standards, but it
’
s better than nothing. And trust me, I
’
ve had plenty of nights with
nothing. I
’
d
take gruel any day.
”
I stopped walking
and looked back at Erik, who had fallen behind.
“
What?
”
He was staring at the wall
in front of him, chewing on his lip. After a while, he looked at
me, concern on his face.

“
What am I
supposed to say to the parliament? How am I supposed to win their
support if I don
’
t know anything about them except for the stereotypes
I
’
ve been
raised with? They
’
ll look right through my appeals and see me for exactly
what I am, an immature Prince looking for a way to prove himself a
hero.
”

“
Give yourself
some credit. You
’
re much more than that,
”
I
encouraged.
“
Besides, this
isn
’t a contest, Erik. You
can’
t win them over. What you can do is
be honest, be humble, and be respectful. If you show them that you
truly care for their well being, are truly concerned with their
freedom, then they will support you. Don
’
t worry, you can do it,
”
I walked closer to him and brushed his hair
aside, my hand lingering on his cheek.
“
Erik, you can do this. And believe me when I tell you that
you don
’
t have
to prove yourself a hero.
”
He gently took
my hand off his cheek, kissing it before interlocking his fingers
with mine.

“
If you are with
me, then I can do it.
”
Keeping a grip on
my hand, he started walking down the tunnel.
“Let
’
s go to the
meeting.
”

“
Alright. But
Erik?
”

“
Yes?”

“
You
’
re walking the wrong way. The
council room is in the other direction.
”

“
Oh, right. Um,
maybe you should lead.
”

“
Good
idea.
”
And with that, I walked to the
council room, Prince in tow.

Chapter
29

We released our
grip on one another
’
s hands before entering the council room. You could hear
the buzz of discussion, some voices imbued with passion, others
with anger. Prince Erik readjusted his shirt, then his hair, then
his shirt again, and I smiled at his nervous gestures.
“You
’
ve given plenty
of speeches before. Why are you so nervous?
”

“
Because this
time I
’
m
actually working towards something I care about.
”
He looked at me and I felt my cheeks warm.
Taking a deep breath together, we entered, the
room.

“
We
’
ve suffered too long, Anso. We
can
’
t afford to
lose more food to the guard
’
s greedy mouths.
”
A heavily bearded man was speaking. I think his
name was Serrus. My father used to complain about him while we ate
supper.
“
My family is growing too thin.
Just look around. None of us can fill out our clothes. They drape
across our shoulders, speaking of a time where things were better.
Well, things are only going to get worse.
”

“
That
doesn
’
t mean
that we should put everything and everyone at risk,
”
another man retorted from the other end of the
circular room. This one I recognized better, as he had often come
to visit us. His name was Broderick, and he was a kind soul with a
gentle heart.
”
There has to be a
diplomatic way to solve this. Perhaps we can call for a hearing
summons with the general or even work our way towards Stonewall to
speak to an audience. I say, if the Prince can help us get there,
who are we to deny his offer?
”