She simply stood there, staring into his eyes, and he had the sense that she was waiting for him to make some kind of move. All of a sudden, Aya’s black hair turned a golden brown, and then he found himself staring at Faith. A blink later, the green-eyed girl had disappeared, replaced by Aya’s almond eyes.
The peace that had bubbled within him seconds ago had now washed away and had now been replaced by agitation and guilt. He cared for Aya, of that he had no doubt, but he also cared for Faith. The words of Father Lucien, the man he’d met in K’vitch, came back to him.
Sooner or later, we must all choose what we really want in our life. Or who we want. The heart cannot wholly belong to more than one.
How could he possibly choose?
The door to the inn flew open. Sheridan stared at both of them with wild eyes. “About time you two got back. We have trouble. Kaidoz is here in Missea!”
Chapter 20
Falcon, Aya, and Faith traversed the street, deep in thought. The imposing front of the majestic castle rose behind hundreds of cabins, shops, and stalls that paled before it. The closer they walked, the larger it seemed to get. When they reached the golden picket fence, the guards stood aside and let them in without bothering to question them.
They passed the garden in silence and Falcon made a mental note of the cactuses that were spread about the garden. He wasn’t sure why such a trivial fact would implant itself in his mind; it must have been the nerves.
According to Sheridan, he and Hiromy had gone to see the Empress late last night. But they were not the only ones there; the general of the Suteckh was there as well. Seeing that he was sent by the ruler of the Suteckh, he had been granted an audience first thing in the morning. Hiromy, being a royal, was also given priority.
He had never met the man, but he did know that it was he who had brought Dokua to attack Aya back in Ladria. That alone insured that he hated him and everything he stood for.
Two guards that stoically stood outside the ornate door pushed it open, showing them in. The trio walked through a grand hallway and down toward two more doors that were open, leading into a grand room. At any other time, Falcon would have been admiring every detail. From the golden vases spread feet apart, to the pristinely clear arched windows. It was in this castle, after all, where Aadi had lived after escaping the hellish prison, Kilead Keep. He could imagine the secrets and stories this walls held. If they could speak, what would they tell him of the Golden Wielder?
Thoughts of his hero had to be set aside as he entered the grand hall. Their footsteps echoed loudly on the marble floor. The entire room was surrounded by soldiers that wore the usual golden armor, helmet, and faulds. Golden-hilted swords hung on all their waists. A few of them carried pole arms and spears as well. A grand throne rested at the center of the oval hall. Within it, an older woman who wore a long yellow robe stood, her eyes missing nothing. A golden tiara rested on her head, and as Falcon moved, she followed him. At each side of the empress, there were four more guards. Falcon eyes widened as he realized that he recognized some of them. Lenka, a skinny, bony-cheeked girl, and Relis, two void wielders who he’d known from Rohad academy stood at the Empress’ left side. To her right, stood Laars, the boy who had made his life miserable at school. He didn’t recognize the other wielders that stood at attention, but judging from the tiger insignia on their chests, he was sure they were the Rohads sent from Belwebb.
Lenka smiled at him and gave him a quick greeting in the form of a wave. Falcon wasn’t sure whether he should wave back or not. Was that proper in the presence of an empress? The girl had always been friendly toward him, so he returned the gesture.
The empress looked down at them with a gleam in her eye. Despite her age, an aura of authority and grace clung around her. “Greetings Rohads and friend.” At the mention of friend she turned to Faith. “I am Empress Latiha. I’ve been informed that you come to me with dire news.”
“That is correct.” Falcon introduced himself and eagerly told her everything in great detail. From the initial attacks on the village of Asturia for its food source, to the uncalled attack on Sandoria, to the sacking of Ladria.
“These are all lies!” boomed a voice from behind. A man with deep brown skin and red scars walked into the hall. He wore a loose tunic and baggy dark pants. “This Rohad’s claims are preposterous. If the Suteckh were indeed carrying out such attacks, surely your grace would have heard of it by now.” He stood a few feet beside Falcon and gave the queen a slight, respectful bow. “Are we to believe that the Suteckh are carrying out mass attacks and”—he chuckled to no one in particular—“sacking capital cities without the knowledge of the people of Va’siel? How? This Rohad insults your intelligence with such claims!”
Falcon’s insides burned. He had witnessed his fellow villagers die in an ambush back at Ciompi, had seen firsthand the cruelty toward the children at Ladria, had smelled the stench as hundreds of civilians burned in Sandoria. And now this man was going to stand here and actually claim that it was nothing but lies? “He lies! I was there. I was there when—”
“More myth,” said Kaidoz. Even though his voice was loud, he did not scream. Instead, it echoed with confidence. “Can we really believe a simple Roha—?”
Latiha looked down from her throne calmly and held up her hand, signaling for a stop to their bickering. “Careful with your words, General. The grandmaster of the Ladria branch of Rohad is a good friend of mine.”
“Of course.” Kaidoz bowed again. “Grandmaster Zoen is a respected wielder, but these…” He rolled his eyes as he cast a sidelong glance over at Falcon’s group. “These children do not represent him. They no doubt claim they do, but they are here on their own accord with no knowledge of the grandmaster.”
Empress Latiha acknowledged Kaidoz’s information with a slight blink of the eyes. “I don’t know how you do things over in Suteckh, and honestly do not care to know. In my throne room, however, you wait until I call on you.”
Despite his calm demeanor, Falcon noticed the slight tremor on Kaidoz’ cruel lips. Obviously he wasn’t much too pleased with Latiha’s choice of words. Nonetheless, he remained silent as the empress spoke.
She turned to Falcon. “I have a deep respect and admiration for Rohads, as you can see.” She motioned to the Rohads besides her, protecting her. “However, I cannot overlook the points that the general has brought up. You come to me seeking my aid, Falcon Hyatt, but I’m afraid you have no proof to your claims.”
Falcon countered. “Send a messenger to Ladria or Sandoria. I’m certain that they will verify what I’ve told you.”
“We have tried that already. Every messenger we’ve sent has failed to return.”
“No doubt you’re behind it!” said Falcon, pointing an accusing finger at Kaidoz. “You didn’t have your fill attacking innocent villages, huh? You have to go for messengers as well?”
Kaidoz flashed a confident grin. “Your highness, unlike these
children
, I have a witness that can corroborate what I have already told you. I present to you…” There was a long pause. “Councilman Nakatomi, the leader of the Ladrian council.”
Quiet footsteps reverberated through the grand hall. Falcon did not have to turn around to see who it was. Aya’s sudden heavy breaths and trembling frame were enough to tell him that indeed, her father had entered the room.
He stood beside the general. “Your most serene highness. I come from afar to end these blasphemous lies. These people would have you take military action against the Suteckh, but the truth of the matter is that Ladria is as safe as ever. There has been no attack.”
“Why would you, a councilman, travel all the way here to tell me this?” asked Latiha. “A man of your status surely has dozens of messengers at your disposal.”
“That is true. However, being that my own daughter is involved in these blasphemies, I felt that I had to personally shed light in this situation. I cannot stand idly by as my own family disrupts the honor of my name.”
Now it was Aya’s turn to shout. “Honor! How dare you speak about honor?”
Latiha held her hand up at Aya, and she stopped screaming.
The councilman continued. “I have served as a leader of Ladria for many years. Trust me when I say that life in my city flows with the same normalcy it has grown accustomed to after many years of peace and prosperity.”
In his anger, Falcon would have made some type of reply, but Aya had already done so for him.
“He lies!” she snapped. She took a step forward, and Latiha’s guards, including Laars and Relis, grew rigid. “Empress, I know you don’t know me, but I speak the truth. This man is a Suteckh spy. He was planted there many years ago to gain the confidence of the Ladrian people. His daughter is the Blood Empress.” She staggered for a second as her voice threatened to crack. “If he sold out his own daughter, imagine what he will do to the people of Missea once the Suteckh invade?”
Kaidoz chuckled, which only made Falcon want to tackle him to the ground and beat him until that sick smirk came off his face. “Spies? Abductions? These are the product of a troubled teenage mind. Are we to believe her claims that the Blood Empress is her sister?”
“Don’t speak of my sister!” Falcon didn’t think he had ever seen Aya so enraged. Her cheeks huffed loudly. Her chest rose and fell at an accelerated rate. She faced Kaidoz as her voice drowned to a hush whisper. “I killed one Suteckh general, trust me. I have no problem killing you too.”
For the first time, Kaidoz’ eyes gave away the slightest hint of fear.
“Stop this at once!”
At Latiha’s command, Aya stepped back, trying to collect her breath.
Faith reached out and took her hand. “Calm down, Aya. This won’t help our cause.” His words seemed to take effect. Aya’s rapid breaths slowed, and her eyes returned to her regular sharp blue.
“That is quite a story,” said Empress Latiha in a monotone voice that didn’t betray her feelings. “I will need some time to ponder on what I heard here today. Come to me tomorrow. I will have an answer.”
Without saying another word, the Empress waved her hand, and the guards escorted her visitors out.
~~~
“What be the meaning of this?” demanded Melousa. The tall woman stood, the top of her head almost slamming into the roof of the cave. “Yer assured me that yer would get Latiha’s confidence. Did yer not? Yer were supposed to draw her out of the castle so I be killing her!”
Kaidoz glanced around. He and Councilman Nakatomi stood inside a cold cave on the outskirts of the Missea prairie lands, surrounded by enraged Orian warriors. The councilman played with his fingers, fear etched in his trembling face.
“Why should I not be killing yer here where yer stand for yer failure?”
“Great queen,” said Kaidoz as the warriors continued hissing and mumbling threats. “There is no need to fret. The empress requires a day to make her choice. Believe me, she will side with us. And once she does, I will draw her out, and you shall have the revenge you’ve been seeking.”
“Yer best be right. If yer not I will find yer and cut yer down.” She stomped her foot before the councilman, raising a mushroom of dust and sending him to the ground. “And my warriors shall tear this city dweller limb by limb.”
“Get up!” ordered Kaidoz to the flinching man on the ground. He was a Suteckh citizen. How dare he cower before a wild creature?
Kaidoz waited until they had left the cave and were clear across the prairie before he spoke. “You should really develop more of a backbone, councilman. If you possessed half the nerve your daughters carry, you wouldn’t allow yourself to be intimidated by such trivial threats.”
“Do not speak to me that way, Kaidoz!” With the peace of mind that Kaidoz would not harm him, the councilman had apparently found his courage. “I was a decorated fighter many years ago. You would do well to remember that I outrank you in every way. You answer to me, and I demand to know what you’re doing with those women.”
“In times of war I outrank you. As for the Orian warriors, it was the Blood Empress who thought of enlisting them. Are you suggesting I follow your orders instead of hers?”
The councilman said nothing, which Kaidoz took as an opening to continue questioning him. “Is there a reason you didn’t tell me your other daughter was as strong as she claims to be? She killed Draknorr. A wielder of her caliber can cause a lot of problems for us.”
“I told you she was strong did—”
“What is the meaning of this?” The loud hiss silenced even the nearby birds.
The pit in Kaidoz’ stomach settled as he took notice of the cloud of smoke that had formed beside them. He hated when the Blood Empress appeared to him unannounced.
“Tell me what happened,” demanded the empress.
Kaidoz relayed the information. Behind her mask, he found it impossible to gauge how his superior was taking the news.
“Keep me updated on tomorrow’s hearing,” said the Blood Empress once the General had informed her how the meeting went. “I’d much rather have Missea unprepared when we launch an attack, but if they do not fall for our ploy, so be it. They shall still fall. As for this water wielder…” She stopped, waiting for someone to forfeit a name.
“Aya Nakatomi, your grace,” said the councilman.
The Empresses’ head jerked from side to side, and for a moment Kaidoz thought she was having a seizure.
“Empress?” called the General, unsure of how to react to the strange reaction.
“I…I…” She clutched her head. A soft moan echoed from behind her mask. “I shall kill this Aya myself!” The dark smoke dissolved, taking away the image of the empress.
Kaidoz waved away the burning stench that had been left behind as he cast a questioning glance at the councilman. “Is it possible that she remembers?”
“No,” answered Nakatomi, too quick for Kaidoz’ liking. His answer sounded fake, as if it had been rehearsed a thousand times. “I was there when she was brainwashed. There is nothing left of Selene.”
“For all our sakes, I hope you’re right, councilman.”
~~~
Falcon entered the room of the inn with the bag of vegetables in hand. He handed them to Faith, who quickly cut them into pieces and added them to the steaming pot that boiled on the iron stove.