“We will continue on our journey then. Good afternoon.”
Completely befuddled as to what was going on, Amy allowed him to complete the circuit through every shop in the village. She smiled at each nervous proprietor and admired their goods, whether it was baking, pens or leather work.
She was tired from the minute steps that the clothing forced her to take, her legs ached with strain and she was relieved when a boy was sent to bring Vedu to them.
Akutan hoisted her onto the effu’s back, and he mounted in front of her. She wearily put her arms around him and leaned her head against his back as they climbed back up to the palace.
She dropped a little heavily into his arms when he lifted her off Vedu. “That was both confusing and tiring.”
He smiled and pressed a soft kiss to her lips. “It will all be explained shortly. Take a bath and a nap. You will be woken when it is time.”
Chapter Ten
Amy didn’t have a choice. Teriki took charge of her and ushered her to the back of the palace, scrubbing and nudging her into the tub without brooking complaint.
Her muscles eased in the hot water, and she sighed.
Teriki sat next to her and poured a cup of tea. “Here you are, lady. You look exhausted.”
Amy chuckled. “Thank you very much. It was a confusing morning on top of a fairly sleepless night.”
“All will be made clear in a few hours. Drink your tea.”
A pot of tea, some light snacks and a thorough massage later, Amy wanted nothing more than to nap where she was on the raised massage platform, so they let her.
The sun was reddening the sky when the four maids shook her awake. She was coaxed into a dressing chamber and offered one last chance to relieve herself before they started.
After all necessities were taken care of, they surrounded her and began the laborious process of layering her in nine different robes, each as light as a feather. Watching in the mirror, Amy could see the care they took so that each layer was slightly exposed under the next. When they had her extend her arms out to her sides and they flipped the sleeves up and out of the way, the wrap that held everything in place and doubled as a corset was wrapped around and around, an elaborate embroidered icon centred across her torso, and Amy knew that it was carefully calculated to sit just so. If they had started it in the wrong place, they would be undoing it now.
All the maids in the room exhaled in relief. Even Teriki cracked a smile. “One more.”
The wrapped parcel from Mistress Keeku’s shop was put in front of her, and Teriki opened it carefully. She lifted out the robe that was embroidered with the symbol of Lord Akutan’s household. The maids gasped and everyone handled it as if it was made of crystal.
They took the greatest care to adjust the robe just so. When the robe was in place, Porali took down her hair and brushed it flat so that it hung straight down her back.
Teriki smiled, “Lovely, mistress. You are lovely.”
That one word gave her a clue. “I am getting married?”
The maids laughed softly, and Teriki shook her head as she took Amy’s hand to lead her out of the changing room. “The people of Rai do not engage in premarital relations, so as Lord Akutan is insistent upon having you in his bed, he had to marry you. It is that simple.”
“So today was…” she spoke softly. She could hear masculine voices ahead in an area she had not been allowed inside—the audience chamber.
“Arranging the bride gifts and introducing you to your people. They all know you now, so they can ask you for assistance and you can ask them for their craft.”
The doors to the audience chamber were open and the magistrate was inside speaking to Akutan.
Teriki released her hand and rushed forward. Bowing low to the magistrate and drawing Akutan’s attention to the woman behind her.
He gestured slightly, so Amy walked forward slowly, the outer robe dragging ten feet behind her and every inch covered in gold and black embroidery.
The magistrate jerked in surprise at her entrance and backed up slowly so that she only needed to draw next to the Lord of Rai before he began to speak.
His words were said in an ancient language that Amy didn’t know. Apparently, she didn’t need to know, because all the question and answer portions were addressed to Lord Akutan.
He answered in low tones, and each time he did, he was required to sign a long document that the magistrate’s assistant held toward him.
Finally, the magistrate asked Amy a question and Akutan translated it.
“Say your full name, and then, say that I take Lord Akutan, Ruler of Rai, as my husband. I will stand at his side and defend our people.”
Amy inhaled. It was now or never. “I, Amethyst Lenore Decker, take Lord Akutan, Ruler of Rai, as my husband. I will stand at his side and defend our people.”
The assistant held out the document, and she signed her name with a flourish. It was the one piece of calligraphy she could manage.
The magistrate inclined his head and spoke in that ancient language again. Akutan got angry and snapped at him, but the magistrate held his ground.
“He wants to know what you offer as dowry.” Akutan gritted his teeth.
Amy twitched her lips while she weighed her options. “I bring power to walk through objects. I bring skill to assemble machines made of any substance allowed by Rai. I bring Guardian registry to Rai, providing it more protection from those who would take advantage of the planet or people.”
The magistrate’s assistant scribbled all of it down, and she signed it again.
Akutan was smiling. His seal was put on the bottom of the agreement, and the magistrate and his assistant smiled in relief.
She was taken in her husband’s arms and kissed carefully.
“You look lovely, Amethyst.”
She took in the extra care that had been taken with his appearance and the nine under wraps that he was wearing. His outer robe only hung to the ground but otherwise they were perfectly matched.
“You look wonderful as well, Akutan.”
“Call me Jivo. It is my given name, and now, you are able to use it.” He kissed her again. “Come now, we have a celebration to attend. All of our people are waiting.”
He had not been kidding. All of their people, his aunt and several folk from the village were seated around a table laden with food. They took the spots at the head of the table, side by side.
After the folk nearest her got used to her accent, they began to loosen up. Wine flowed and laughter climbed as the lord’s wedding was celebrated in style.
Amy finally realised that the visits in the village were a sneaky way of gaining guests to their union without spoiling the surprise.
Everyone had brought something and that was all that was needed to secure an invitation no matter their social standing.
She was listening to the bookbinder telling a tale when she saw a flicker out of the corner of her eye. A second later, there was a gun at her temple.
“Everyone hold still or I will splatter your new lady’s brains all over his lordship. That goes for you, too, Lord Akutan.”
She looked at the guests, and they were frozen in shock. Sacred Flame had a gun to her temple as well. “What do you want?”
“My dear woman, we still want you. Get up.” He hissed it into her ear.
“I can’t, you are on my robes.”
He looked down, and she moved as quickly as she could. She pitched her body back into the shadow with the gun, leaving her robes behind. Once she overlapped him, she took control, shooting the man with his hand to Sacred Flame’s head and turning to fire at the others who had crashed the party. The older woman immediately used her fire to grab three attackers next to her.
Akutan was on his feet, slicing through the invaders.
One of her body’s friends shot him, and she felt him dying. She could still jerk a dead body around, but it got creepy fast.
“Teriki, could you please lift the robes up by the neckline and hold them as if you were touching my shoulders?” Saying it through a body that was no longer breathing was difficult.
Teriki seemed to catch on, and she lifted the robes as high as she could. Porali held the wrap in place.
Amy streaked through the few feet separating her from her clothing and she resumed her position within the robes. A few adjustments to keep her body from forming around fabric and she started to solidify from the inside out.
Akutan smiled at her. “Are you all right?”
She wrinkled her nose. “They interrupted our wedding dinner.”
“At least they did not disturb our wedding night. That I would not enjoy.” He sighed. “Where shall we put them so they don’t escape?”
“Lock them in the dead shuttle. I believe that they have enough rations to last until there is a pickup.” She shrugged. “And since three Guardians have just engaged in active duty defending local citizens, we can get the express service.”
He grinned, wrapped her in his arms and kissed her in front of all their guests.
Sacred Flame lifted a small object, and there was a bright flash. “This moment has to be preserved in art for future generations to see. Good or bad, something new started here tonight.”
Keeku spoke with her after she returned from locking the invaders in the shuttle with the help of Sacred Flame.
“You are going to be a lovely addition to the local population, Lady Amethyst.” She gestured, and her assistant brought forward a small bundle. “I had a blank on hand, so I did the embroidery in our ancient tongue. Your name does not translate well, so I had to settle for
the one who is not there.
”
Amy smiled and looked to Akutan, where he was speaking with the men of the village. “You know, Mistress Keeku, I had a feeling you were going to say that.”
Lying with her husband, her hair cascading over his chest as they were twined together, Amy smiled. “I have my Guardian uniform.”
“That is surprising.” Jivo wove his fingers with hers.
“I know, but she said she had a blank on hand. I am guessing that the second Blade gave her more than just directions for a wedding robe.”
He pressed her fingers to his lips. “It was a lovely robe. I am impressed at the details in the workmanship.”
Amy smiled and trailed her hand over his chest. On the long hem of the robe, mixed in with the Nyal script and whatever language was used on Rai, had been tiny words in English.
To have and to hold, from this day forward, as long as you both shall live.
“Yes, the detail was truly amazing, I look forward to discussing her workmanship another time.” She squeezed him tight and settled in for her first night as
Lady Akutan, Lady of Rai.
Author’s Note
Fade
was an example of a talent who didn’t want to use it and certainly didn’t want to use it in the way that other people thought. I liked Amy, she expressed what few of us could articulate, the wanting to fit in. Sometimes, you stand out and you have to embrace it.
In
Factor,
we meet an analyst who specializes in determining what is needed to deal with a situation. When her Guardian base comes under attack,
Factor
has to go from providing guidance to needing it. Armour, aliens and seduction via pheromone. See you in two weeks!
Thanks for reading,
Viola Grace
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About the Author
Viola Grace was born in Manitoba, Canada where she still resides today. She really likes it there. She has no pets and can barely keep sea monkeys alive for a reasonable amount of time. Her line of day job tends to be analytical which leaves her mind hopping to weave stories. No co-worker is safe from her character analysis. In keeping with busy hands are happy hands, her hobbies have included cross-stitch, needlepoint, quilting, costuming, cake decorating, baking, cooking, metal work, beading, sculpting, painting, doll making, henna tattoos, chain mail, and a few others that have been forgotten. It is quite often that these hobbies make their way into her tales.
Viola’s fetishes include boots and corsetry, and her greatest weakness is her uncontrollable blush. Her writing actively pursues the Happily Ever After that so rarely occurs in nature. It is an admirable thing and something that we should all strive for. To find one that we truly like, as well as love.
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