Rhen snorted. “Oh, now we’re up to forty women? There were seven women sitting on the ground.”
“Forty,” Ceceta growled, her eyes narrowing.
Rhen tried not to laugh. Ceceta looked adorable. He loved the sparkle in her eyes. “Right. I must have forgotten. Forty women, sitting at my feet.” He dropped his gaze to the guitar as he continued to play.
Ceceta nodded. “Rhen had put a spell on them with his music. They all wanted to marry him.”
This time Rhen laughed. He couldn’t help it. “With what powers?”
“Be quiet and let me finish the story,” Ceceta barked. Rhen dropped his head again and Ceceta sighed. “Where were we?”
“Five hundred love-struck women were under my spell,” Rhen said. He peeked over at Ceceta to find her glaring at him then winked and lowered his head again.
Ceceta turned back to her audience. “My siblings and I sat down to listen to him play. It wasn’t long before we fell under his spell too.” Rhen laughed and Ceceta, without even looking, swung her hand back to hit him across the chest. He quieted down, so she continued. “He played for a couple of hours. By the end, there must have been about a hundred women sitting there listening to him. It was during his last song that I realized there might be a connection between us. He’d been keeping his eyes on the floor the whole time, but when he started his last song, he looked right at me. We stared at each other for a few seconds and I knew then that I was in love with him.” Rhen leaned over to kiss her and Ceceta patted his thigh.
“As soon as Rhen finished his last song, all of the women swooped down on him like bees on a flower. I wanted to go to him too, but my Mom and Dad appeared at the door. They took me to a separate room and told me the Neptian royals weren’t going to do anything for us. We were ruined, because Yfetb had refused to marry me. Their only option was to emancipate me. After I was disinherited, they could then plead for their lands back. If the royals returned our home to us, they promised they would take me back in. Before I could say anything, we heard someone in the doorway say, ‘I’ll marry her.’” Ceceta chuckled at the memory. “My Dad stared at Rhen. There he was, this skinny, tiny, Thestran elf standing in the doorway watching us. He had on a faded t-shirt and blue pants with holes in the knees. His eyes were black as night and his hair had blond streaks in it from all of the time he used to spend outside drawing dragons. We didn’t know who he was. He looked like a poor, traveling minstrel with his flute strapped across his chest. The only reason why we didn’t think he was a vagabond was because he had elfin ears. As you know, elves never leave their people. They stick together.”
“True,” Jack agreed. “We stay together. It’s one of the nice things about our people. An elf will always help an elf.”
“Not always,” Latsoh said under her breath, her mind on the EFT.
“Go on,” Sarah urged. She loved hearing about Rhen’s childhood, since so little was known of it. For someone as important as Rhen to have slipped through everyone’s fingers for so long was mind-boggling. Hearing about and seeing pictures of Rhen’s childhood helped fill in the blanks, so they could all understand him a little better.
“Well, my Dad got mad at Rhen. He was thinking, ‘Who is this dirty kid?’ So, he pointed at him and yelled, ‘This isn’t any of your business, boy. We’re having a private conversation. You need to leave at once.’ But Rhen didn’t leave. He walked into the room, took my hand and said, ‘I’ll marry her.’ He looked at me with his dark eyes and asked, ‘Will you marry me?’”
Ceceta sighed and leaned over to kiss Rhen. When they pulled apart, she continued, “My Dad lost his temper. He yelled, ‘We don’t need another mouth to feed. What are you, some sort of beggar? This isn’t a game. Leave this instant!’ He grabbed Rhen’s shoulder, dragged him out of the room then slammed the door in his face.”
“When Dad came back over to us, I told him I didn’t want to be set free. I wanted to marry the boy he’d just thrown out of the room. Dad almost blew up he was so angry, but Mom told him to stop. She said it was fine and I should bring him back into the room. I ran to the door and opened it. Rhen was standing right outside, smiling at me. He hadn’t left. I brought him back into the room and my Dad told him he could marry me, but we couldn’t live with them. Rhen told my Dad that was fine. He said we could live with his family instead. My Dad asked him where his family lived and he told us they lived on Thestran. My Mom was happy to hear that. She thought Thestran was a wonderful planet with a smashing royal family. Mom had always been a little bit in love with the Thestran royals.” Ceceta became quiet for a moment, as she thought about her Mom. She missed her family. Rhen reached over to hug her. She smiled up at him, then continued.
“So, my Dad asked Rhen what he was doing on Neptian and Rhen told him he was there visiting with his parents. ‘Oh, so you’re here on vacation?’ my Dad asked. Rhen said, ‘No, my Mom and Dad are here on business,’ then Dad asked, ‘What hotel are you staying in?’ and Rhen said…” Ceceta smiled. “Rhen said… ‘we’re staying in the palace.’ No one stays in the Neptian palace, unless they’re a relative of the Neptian royal family or fabulously rich, so Dad suddenly got excited, and asked…” In deep voices, Ceceta and Rhen both said, “‘Well, who the hell are you child?’”
Ceceta turned to Rhen. “And you said… ” She faltered, because she wasn’t sure what to say. Rhen still didn’t like it when people used his first name, the one he’d been born with.
Rhen thought she had stopped speaking because she wanted him to finish the story. “I said, my name is Max and I’m Kate and Henry’s child. We live on Thestran. Maybe you’ve heard of my parents?”
Ceceta laughed. “Maybe you’ve heard of my parents,” she repeated. “As if my Dad hadn’t heard of Kate and Henry from Thestran. That was it. Right after that my Dad had shaken Rhen’s hand and welcomed him into the family.” Her parents had been overjoyed.
Crystam seemed enamored by their story, but Tgfhi was still confused. “Why did you ask Ceceta to marry you when you were eight? That’s not an elfin custom.”
“True,” Rhen said, “but when you have foresight you get a certain feeling when you meet your mate. When I first saw Ceceta, I knew we were supposed to be together.” He gestured around the room. “I’m sure it was the same for you, Lilly, and Erfce?” They both nodded. They’d known their mates the moment they’d seen them. “It was probably the same for you too, Charlie, right?”
Ceceta and others laughed, thinking Rhen was joking, as Charlie shook his head. He really wished Rhen would stop alluding to the fact that he was a Genister. He knew Themrock was teasing him, but enough was enough. He liked the fact that everyone thought he was an idiot.
Chapter 29
Great Lawn – Elfin University
“Who keeps calling you?” Latsoh pointed towards Ceceta’s bag, where she’d just tossed her communicator.
Ceceta waited for a spacejet to pass overhead before saying, “It was Te.”
“Excuse me?” Latsoh stopped short and reached for Ceceta’s elbow. They’d been studying on the Great Lawn and were now heading in to join the others for lunch. “Explain.”
Ceceta sighed and shifted her bag to the other shoulder. “He’s been calling me to see if I will swing by Neptian. They’re dedicating a statue to Yfetb for his part in trying to stop the EFT and Te wants me to be there for it.”
Latsoh was appalled. “You aren’t going, are you?”
“No. But I do feel bad for him. Yfetb’s death must have been really hard on him. I can’t imagine what it would be like to lose my only child. He’s got no one left.”
Latsoh couldn’t believe her friend was feeling sorry for someone like Te. “Don’t you dare feel sorry for him, not after everything he did to you. You should never feel guilty for any of it. He’s a mean, vindictive man. He deserves what he got.”
“But it was his only–”
Latsoh cut her off. “Stop. Nothing you say will change my mind. Nor should it change
yours.” She held her hand out. “Give me your communicator. I’m blocking his calls.”
Ceceta hesitated, considering Latsoh’s words. Maybe she was right. Searching through her book bag, she grabbed her communicator and handed it over.
Latsoh blocked all of Te’s numbers. She then proceeded to block all Neptian numbers, before handing Ceceta back her device. When Ceceta reached for it, Latsoh held it a moment longer. “Promise me you won’t go anywhere near Te.”
Ceceta felt Latsoh was being overprotective, but she said, “Okay. I promise.”
Latsoh leaned forward to give her a hug. She knew she’d done the right thing.
***
The Supreme rose from the floor. He’d been prostrating himself before a mural of Themrock for hours. His joints ached and his knees cracked as he stepped towards the altar before him. The room was cold, the stones he’d been resting on like ice. Fortunately, his long woolen robes were thick, so they’d kept the chill at bay.
“You are the chosen.” He turned towards the group of elves that had been praying beside him. “The few who Themrock counts on to maintain order in his Universe. Themrock’s mortal shell has become a hinderance. I’ve heard it from the God himself that he wishes to be free. To live among us in his purest form. He’s tired of the underformed mortal that remains by his side and he longs for Layla.”
“As it should be,” the elves said in unison.
“Rise,” The Supreme said while opening his arms wide in a welcoming gesture. “You will be rewarded for your loyalty by our Lord.” The elves formed a single line in front of him. The Supreme blessed each one in turn then bid them safe journey. “I will speak with Lord Themrock and tell you his wishes, when next we meet,” he added before they left his personal temple.
Once the elves had left, The Supreme marched through the door behind the altar into his private office in the Air Elf castle.
“What the Hell is the matter with you?” he barked. “You know damn well that this is when I meet with my purest disciples.”
He pulled his communicator out of his pocket and shook it in Te’s face. “I felt it vibrate the first time. You didn’t have to call me seven more times.” He tossed his communicator onto the desk and jerked at his ceremonial robe to remove it.
Te didn’t have time for this. “Just tell me, how many disciples do you have?”
“Enough.”
Te bristled. “I need the number.”
“Why? Why could it possibly matter?” The Supreme pulled off his outer robes and tossed them onto the back of his chair. “You have nothing to do with our work. I don’t even know why we meet anymore. Your son was useless and you’ve offered no one to take his place.”
“I fund you,” Te snapped. “I deserve to know where my money is going.”
The Supreme scoffed. Some of his newest recruits had pledged more money to his cause than Te ever had.
“Don’t you huff at me,” Te said. “Do you know who I know? I know Genisters. Now tell me how many disciples you have.”
“Which Genisters do you know?”
Te hesitated only a second before saying, “Themrock. I’m very close to him. He called me after Yfetb’s death.”
The Supreme wasn’t sure if he should believe Te, but the man had found a way to turn some of his recruits invisible when they’d gone after Ceceta. Perhaps he was working with the Genisters? “I have thirty committed to our cause with about fifteen more in the wings. I’m not actively recruiting anymore.”
Te was surprised. It was a greater number than he’d expected. “Excellent. Keep up the good work.” He opened the door to leave. “The next time I try to reach you, you better answer, no matter what you’re doing.” He slammed the door behind him.
The Supreme put his palms together in front of his face as he considered how hard it would be for him to convince his followers to kill Te. Maybe he’d mention that Lord Themrock wanted them to do it?
Chapter 30
Academic Building – Elfin University
Jet pulled the guard elves aside before they entered Rhen’s history class. Rhen had been spending a great deal of time ‘spacing out,’ watching the devastation that was occurring in Solar System 12. “He’s more agitated than usual today,” Jet said. “That’s usually a precursor to war. Prepare yourselves.”
Aaron and the others were glad Jet had warned them, because they weren’t totally caught off guard when later that day Rhen stood up during his chemistry class, morphed his tunic into his military uniform, kissed Ceceta goodbye, then phased away. Jet had the presence of mind to grab Rhen’s arm as the guard elves grabbed him just in time to go with Rhen.
They arrived in a war-torn city on one of the planets in Solar System 4. Bosternd, Ngi and several battalions of Surpen soldiers were already there waiting for them on the city’s broken streets.
Bosternd saluted. “We have contained them to the city. I believe Nk’s men are in the process of rounding up the last of Loreth’s pawns. Regarding System 12, it’s a complete disaster. Loreth has demolished every major city in the system. There are billions of people who are hurt, hungry, and homeless. Not to mention the fact that civil war is still raging out of control on most of the inhabited planets."
Rhen nodded. "Understood. From what I can tell, Loreth has been messing with the minds of the soldiers on most of the planets in System 12. Tell our men to work to disarm them, without killing them, if possible."
“Yes, sir.” Bosternd turned to give the order. He was glad to be back in action. He’d been worried that Rhen might use his powers to stop the wars. He was looking forward to strategizing their battles and was pleased that their younger soldiers would finally be getting some battle experience.
***
“I have received a report from Surpen that they have ended the wars in Solar System 12,” James told his Council Delegates during their meeting. “It appears Loreth was the cause for the System’s problems. He used a form of brain confusion to get the people in that System to attack each other.”
“Brain confusion?” one of the Delegates asked. “What’s that?”
James lifted his eyes from his computer. “Apparently, they thought they were being attacked by Rasacks. They could see and hear the Rasacks, so they bombed their homes and countryside to stop them but evidently the Rasacks were never there.”
“That’s horrible,” the Delegate next to Te said.
Te frowned at the woman. If you asked him, the horrible part was that Loreth had lost. Now he was going to have to help him come up with some new ideas on how to wake up Rhen.
He was tired of constantly having to provide Loreth with advice. It seemed the Genister couldn’t do anything without him. They’d had a fight right after Yfetb’s death, but then Loreth had seen the error in his ways. Te had explained to him that Rhen was the enemy. It was obvious that anyone who was a part of the Convention was their enemy. Te had tried to get to Rhen through Ceceta, but that hadn’t worked. The whore had never returned his messages, so instead Te was helping Loreth plan his battles on System 12. They were meeting regularly since Loreth needed his advice.
James raised his gavel to ring the bell to end their session when out of the corner of his eye he noticed a message pop up on his screen. “I’ve just received word that there is a new item on our docket for today.” The Delegates complained. They had hoped for a short session. “Emperor Rhen of Surpen has requested an immediate audience.” James glanced towards the double doors, expecting to see Rhen, but instead one of the many portals against the lower, back wall flared to life.
Bosternd, Jet, and several of Rhen’s servants entered the Council Chamber. They walked up onto the dais before James’ golden crescent desk and waited, their hands clasped behind their backs. The Delegates could hear men chanting Rhen’s name repeatedly on the other side of the portal. They leaned over their desks to see what was happening just as Rhen walked through the portal backwards with his swords held high in the air.
As soon as
Rhen was in the room, he joined Bosternd on the dais.
Reed lowered his head to peer past the columns. He could still hear people chanting Rhen’s name. Why was the portal still open? A moment later, Rhen’s guard elves and Charlie stumbled into the room. They looked exhausted and practically collapsed onto the floor by the portal. It seemed they were having trouble keeping up with Rhen’s schedule.
Reed turned back to the dais to see that Rhen’s servants had jumped into action. As Rhen spoke softly with Bosternd, they took his swords and started to unbuckle his war outfit, pulling off his heavy metal breast plates. Rhen acted as if he didn’t even know they were there. He nodded to Bosternd then turned to face James. Rhen saluted James then dropped his hand so his servants could pull off his shoulder plates.
By now, Rhen was down to his basic linen tunic. The servants pulled a beautiful, blue tunic out of a box that they had brought with them and started to dress Rhen in it.
“Solar Systems 4 and 12 want to be Surpen,” Rhen told James, as a servant clipped a long black cape to his shoulders. “Do you have any objections to that?”
James was confused. Why would Rhen want his permission to adopt two new systems? He had just opened his mouth to ask, when Rhen continued.
“System 12 has a new spacehole to Rasack. As you know, their old spacehole to Thestran is still operative.” Rhen paused to take a quick drink from the goblet a servant was holding out to him. “Check with your oracles. Mine believe the new hole will bring the Rasacks to Thestran within the next four and half decades.” A servant crouched down in front of Rhen to attach his new weapons belt with System 12’s weapons on it. Rhen glanced down at the daggers he was wearing and then back up at James. “You need to move the spacehole before that time or…” A servant draped a second cape around Rhen’s shoulders, interrupting him. Rhen shifted his weapons belt until it felt more comfortable then glanced up at the Thestran Delegates. He had lost his train of thought. “Shouldn’t Thestran take System 12? Twelve means nothing to us, but it’s tied to you. It should be a part of your system.”
The Surpen King - Part 2 - Rise of the Elves Page 38