Just like every time Arken saw her, Silven stole his breath away. She was a very large beast, but not in the same way as the thunderous Kresdil. Silven might equal such a giant horse in height, but her body was slender and lean, her legs long and wiry, always bending or moving in the most elegant of arcs. To describe her color, some might call her gray, but that was why Arken did not even attempt using words to portray her magnificence. The grayness of her short velvety fur was so deep and creamy it resembled blue, like the purest of water. The sloping shape of her body reminded Arken less of a horse than the skinny but lightning-fast hounds used in dog races. And surely enough, she could run faster than any creature in the world, he suspected—faster, even, than the cheetahs that roamed the savanna.
“Come on, Silven,” he said softly, watching the beast’s pale white eyes fixate on Vivian. “It’s all right. She won’t hurt you.”
“I don’t think she’s worried I’ll try to ‘hurt’ her,” whispered Vivian. But a wry smile pulled at her lips, and a strange look had entered her bright blue eyes. Then she lifted a hand and took a step forward.
“Don’t—!” hissed Arken.
But Vivian ignored him completely. And to Arken’s surprise, Silven did not flee. The wilderhorse watched Vivian approach with a bearing Arken had never seen before. The beast’s slender face, much like a deer’s, wore an expression almost like shock. Her long, tufted ears stood straight up, twisted towards Vivian, and did not flick or turn towards any other sound in the jungle. A breeze blew, pulling at the wilderhorse’s silky mane and tail until they flapped like banners. But the creature’s body remained as still as stone.
“Chas frem, ziri’lee,” said Vivian. “Fenturan ugal devoro.”
And then something amazing happened. Silven bowed her head, and stepped closer.
Arken blinked several times, but the sight before him did not change. In fact, it only became more unbelievable. Now Vivian reached out and stroked Silven’s head. The wilderhorse moved even closer, as if relishing Vivian’s touch.
“What... how did you...” Arken’s surprise turned suddenly to anger. Vivian made it look so easy. In a matter of minutes, Vivian had made his weeks of endurance and patience seem wasteful and pointless. “What did you say to her?”
Silven snorted and lifted her head, responding to the fury in Arken’s voice.
Vivian drew back and looked equally disturbed, as if for a moment, she had forgotten Arken’s presence. “Oh, that? It’s just... an old saying I picked up on my travels.”
“Sure as shit that’s an old saying.” Arken clenched his fists at his sides, but could not hide the fact he was trembling with anger. “What language was that?”
Suddenly, Silven snorted and stomped her hooves. She turned towards Arken as if towards an enemy. She had the same look in her eyes the first day she chased Arken out of the jungle and nearly got him killed.
Any sensible man might have run as soon as a wilderhorse got into that stance. But Arken could only stare at her in shock. He couldn’t believe it. After all their years of friendship, Silven would choose to attack him for the sake of some silly young woman?
Quickly, Vivian stroked Silven’s neck and calmed the horse down again. But Arken didn’t care anymore. The damage had been done.
A sorrow he thought he’d never feel again wrenched at his guts. He blinked back the tears that threatened to prick his eyes. He clung to his fury, so it might distract him from feeling anything else. His hand moved instinctively to his short-sword. “Who are you?” he yelled at Vivian. “Why have you come here? What is this... game that you’re playing?”
“Arken...” Vivian blinked her big eyes, looking hurt. But Arken refused to be fooled by her innocent demeanor. “I think it’s amazing that you have a wilderhorse. I still want to ride her with you.”
“Ride her alone,” he snarled. “Clearly, you don’t need my assistance!” He turned and started back towards the Kresdil.
“Arken, wait!” cried Vivian. But he ignored her completely.
He had been wrong to return to Krondolee, he realized. Wrong to think that he could redeem himself, or even bother trying. Wrong to believe that he could trust anyone or anything in this world, especially a gods-damned wilderhorse.
He climbed onto the Kresdil and rode for the castle without looking back. He no longer cared if he ever saw Vivian or Silven ever again. In fact, he hoped that he wouldn’t.
CHAPTER 5
The Righteous One
Nadia was in the middle of signing charters when she heard a strange sound.
“Hello? Someone there?”
Her small scriptorium was empty, save for the guards near the entrance. She liked to be alone while reading and sorting papers. The room answered her with the soft, hollow sound of a stone room full of parchment.
Snap! Crack!
She realized that the sound came from her window, which was several floors high. Suspecting a pesky animal of some sort, she approached carefully, drawing a knife from her belt.
“Queeeen! Queen Queen Queeeen!”
The little voice resonating from the ground below, distant and shrill, sounding vaguely familiar. And just as Nadia leaned her head out to look, another pebble nearly struck her in the face. She barely managed to dodge considering that the girth of her pregnancy made it difficult to lean over in the first place.
“Nikolaos! Stop that right now!”
Nadia recognized both voices now. The second was Selene Perin, and the first had been her little son Nikolaos, whom she soundly scolded.
When Nadia thought it was safe, she looked back out the window. She saw mother and child wrestling playfully in the grass.
When Selene saw the queen’s face frowning down at her, however, she quickly scooped the toddler in her arms and held his squirming body tight. “I’m so sorry, Majesty. Ever since he turned three, he has just been a little monster.”
“Then perhaps you should bring him up here so the queen can teach him a lesson.”
Nikolaos’s little face stretched wide with shock and fear. Sensing Nadia’s ploy, Selene responded in a deep, grave voice. “Yes. I think that he needs the queen’s justice.”
Soon enough, Nadia met Nikolaos and Selene in the hallway, where little Nikolaos was somewhat subdued by the rows of armed soldiers. Selene took a breath of relief when the toddler finally grew still and looked around him in a state of quiet awe.
“I’m sorry we disturbed you, Nadia. I just don’t know what to do with him lately. He’s a little demon.”
“No matter. The scriptorium was giving me a headache. And I suspect it’s only a matter of time before I’ll have a little demon of my own to contend with!” She put a hand on her belly as she looked down at the three-year-old. Selene put him on the ground, where he remained clutching her skirts.
“Very soon, I suspect,” said Selene. “You look like you’ll burst any day now!”
Nadia’s smile wilted. “I hope not that soon. I need all of my wits about me until I’ve dealt with this Vivian Trell.”
Selene bowed her head. “The timing is terrible. But perhaps you should forget about this key altogether. Let the other nobles fight for it. Stay out of the dog pit and you won’t get bitten.”
“I wish it were so simple,” Nadia sighed. “I have considered ignoring the key many times. But I can’t afford to take that risk without knowing what the Grand Keep holds. What if it is a divine substance? Like the safra in Dearen? Or the pulch of Demetral? Or something that could be used as a weapon, like Belazar’s vega powder?” She shook her head. “I can’t let something like that fall into someone else’s hands. I just can’t. I have to get to it first.”
Selene nodded grimly. “I suppose you’re right. So what is your plan?”
Nadia took a deep breath. “I have invited Vivian to dine with me tonight. And I think the only thing I can do is simply be myself. I will do my best to exemplify honesty, compassion, and pure intentions. If such traits do not w
in her respect, then she does not deserve mine.”
Selene smiled warmly. “A plan worthy of your name, Nadia Elborn.”
A soldier yelped suddenly. Nadia turned to see that little Nikolaos had crept away while Selene was talking and kicked a man’s leg from behind. The soldier grabbed his sword, but found himself helpless against the tiny grinning child.
“I am Lokke, master of mischief!” cried Nikolaos.
“Not that again!” groaned Selene. “Ever since his father told him some old stories of Lokke, Nikolaos wants to be the god of guile.”
“Oh dear. I’ll make sure not to tell Serafina any of those stories.”
“And that is what makes you so wise, my queen. Now if you’ll excuse me...”
Nadia could only shake her head piteously as she watched Selene chase her son down the hallway.
*
Nadia found herself unexpectedly nervous about her upcoming dinner. She wanted to be calm and collected, completely assured of her own right to possess the key. She hoped that if she remained secure enough in her position, her confidence would grow contagious. But how could that plan work if she kept worrying that it would not?
To make matters worse, Vivian arrived late. The food on the table was cold, the candles of the room burning low on their wicks, by the time the young woman walked in with the Wolven. She sat down at the table with little ado and stared in a daze at the grand preparations laid out before her, while Xavier began stuffing his mouth without ceremony.
Already, this dinner was not going as Nadia had hoped. “Welcome to my table, Vivian,” she said belatedly. “I trust this food is to your liking?”
“It looks fine,” grumbled Vivian. But she didn’t start eating, and continued staring into space, as if her true mind dwelt in another time and place altogether.
All the while Xavier grabbed food and gulped it down like a pig at a feeding trough. Apparently, his grace of movement did not extend to table manners.
“I, uh...” Nadia cleared her throat. “I trust you’ve been enjoying the Castle of Krondolee so far?”
Vivian released a big sigh. “Oh, it’s about what I expected. Lots of slippery nobles all competing with each other, sliding around like snakes in a basket.”
Nadia shifted uncomfortably in her seat. The analogy was terrible. But perhaps she could use such an admission to her advantage. “I am sorry you see it that way. But sometimes, I admit, I feel the same way about our political system. It is unfortunate that the lords are constantly distracted by their own advancement, rather than the welfare of the entire kingdom. Sometimes I wonder if we became a strict monarchy—”
“No, don’t do that, it wouldn’t be any fun at all.” Vivian lifted a knife suddenly and stabbed a nearby piece of meat with it. Nadia jolted with surprise. But Vivian just brought it to her mouth and ripped off a large bite as if she had done nothing amiss. As she chewed, she said in a whimsical voice, “I am very surprised by Arken Jeridar, though. Not at all what I expected. What can you tell me about him?”
Nadia blinked rapidly, but that did not help her regain composure. How had everything spiraled so quickly out of her control? “He... he...” She gulped so loudly, the sound echoed against the walls. “He is a very charming man, I know.”
“Do you?” Vivian studied her closely. “So why didn’t you marry him?”
Nadia felt her cheeks burning. But she knew better than to dodge the question. Doing that, she suspected, would only ignite Vivian’s interest. “Because charm is not everything. Charm does not mean a man is fit to wear the crown. I cared for Arken. I still do. But... he is a Jeridar. The great grandson of the god of greed. I feared for the kingdom under his rule. I also worried who might take the throne in my stead if I abandoned it. I don’t feel the need to explain myself further.”
Vivian just stared at her, quietly, from across the table. Nadia had no idea what the young woman must be thinking. So she found her own thoughts, her own judgments, railing upon her from within. And she found those much harder to contend with than any insults Vivian might have spoken aloud.
“I’d like to show you something,” burst Nadia, suddenly, desperately. Most of the food on the table remained uneaten. But she couldn’t keep talking about Arken anymore. She refused to. She felt herself unraveling. “You may return here later and eat more if you wish, but I want to show you something first. Something that will help you get to know me.”
Vivian hesitated, but her eyes sparkled with curiosity. “All right then. Let’s go!”
Xavier frowned across the table at his master.
“Oh, you can do as you please, Xavier.” Vivian winked at him. “I’ll call if I need you!”
Shaking her head at the oddness of the pair, Nadia led Vivian from the room.
Together they walked through hallways, across bridges, and down staircases, until at last they entered the Elborn courtyard. A few times, Nadia had to stop and rest, placing a hand upon her burdensome belly, but at least they reached their destination. And when they did, even Vivian gave a gasp of surprise.
“It’s beautiful!” she breathed.
“It is with great pride that I present to you,” said Nadia, “the Elborn Gardens.”
Lush green vines and thick bushels of flowers crawled around the pillars and platforms of the courtyard, sprinkling a hundred hues of color over the gray stones of the room. The plants’ aromas flowed thickly through the air, so that as one stepped forward, she might catch the scent of a dozen different flowers with one breath. The scent of so much life and greenery in the middle of a rocky fortress was intoxicating, even to Nadia, who visited almost every day. The beauty of the creamy petals, spiraling vines, and colorful blossoms could dizzy a person with radiance. Vivian seemed on the verge of such exhilaration, herself, as she stumbled deeper into the chamber.
“Incredible. Amazing. I’ve only seen one man-made garden nearly this beautiful, and that was in Dearen.”
“Dearen?” Nadia blinked with surprise. “You have been to the Three Kingdoms? You have been to the City of Bliss?”
“Oh...” Vivian laughed nervously, as if she had let something slip on accident. “Never mind that. I just meant to say: this is quite a garden you have here.”
“Yes. It is even more beautiful in daylight, when the sun’s rays pour through the windows and skylight. Unfortunately... you weren’t available for lunch.” The queen smiled reverently as she brushed her fingers over a thorny rosebush. “Gardens like this are the pride of the Elborns. They are why I believe in my family and our ability to nurture this country. All over Darzia, wherever an Elborn lord or lady supervises the land, it flourishes. Crops grow in abundance. Harvests are plentiful. The people do not starve or lack resources. But there are not many of us; less than a dozen in seats of power. And we can only do so much to heal this land from the atrocities constantly striking it.”
“Atrocities?” asked Vivian, scratching one of her thick blonde curls.
“Yes. You may not know this, but Darzia was not always covered with so much savanna. Long ago, teeming jungles, green pastures, and lush forests spread nearly everywhere. The savannas only formed when too many men settled on the land and began stripping it of trees and resources, to build cities, or simply to export the unique plants and flowers to other corners of the world. It was human greed that began to reduce the kingdom to large, lifeless swathes of yellow grass.”
Vivian made a face. “Not entirely. Nature is as much to blame as man. When an elephant goes on a trek across a field it helps make the savanna, as well.”
“Perhaps. Nevertheless, selfish humans tipped the balance. And where nature once flourished, now it flounders. Groups of people throughout Darzia struggle to feed themselves while their lords fail to cultivate the land, or export too many resources without returning some of their profits to the cycle of life. It is not always from lack of trying. Many great families, like the Feldrens or Grandils, tend their lands with fairness and diligence. But even that is not
always enough. Drought, disease, and pestilence can easily overturn their most sincere efforts. Again and again, people fail to maintain balance on this tumultuous kingdom.
“I believe that this happens because the land and the wildlife are angry with us. They have not forgiven us for our greed and gluttony. So a constant battle rages across Darzia between humans and nature. And so far, only the Elborn family has managed to keep the land happy—to give back to the soil, and help the land flourish. I believe it might be because we descend from Demetral; but we have no proof of that, except our ability to nurture this kingdom.
“And that, Vivian Trell, is why I wish to obtain the key to the Grand Keep. I have no ulterior motive, except to ensure that the balance of this kingdom is maintained; that my family members and I can continue to cultivate resources across Darzia, so that we can protect the kingdom from those would abuse it, and put food in the hands of the hungry.”
Vivian just stared at the queen with wide eyes for a long while, saying nothing. Then she lifted her hands and clapped.
Nadia blinked back with surprise. She didn’t know whether to be offended, or honored. But concerning a woman like Vivian, she feared the former response was most appropriate.
Soon enough, Vivian confirmed her suspicions. “Great speech. So noble. So righteous. So... humble.” The last word dripped with sarcasm, and with it Vivian abruptly stopped clapping.
Nadia refused to be daunted. “I cannot afford humility. To remain in power, I must believe in my cause. To doubt it would make me vulnerable to my enemies.”
Vivian tilted her head sideways, squinting closely at the queen, plump lips pursing with concentration. “No,” she said at last. “I see very little resemblance to Demetral.”
“Excuse me?” gasped Nadia.
“You said you might descend from the goddess Demetral. I’m telling you I don’t think that’s true. Or if it is, you are very far removed from her.”
“But... the plants. And... the...” Nadia found her mouth flapping helplessly. “How could you possibly know such a thing, anyway?”
“Well it seems pretty obvious to me. Demetral is the goddess of love, right? And that’s how she is: loving. To a fault, really, but that’s what makes her who she is. She can find goodness in almost anyone and anything. Sometimes her heart gets stretched out in a dozen directions. But she finds a way to keep the love growing, one might say.” Vivian grinned so wide, her teeth seemed to flash in the candlelight.