“No… You didn’t!” Tási replied questioningly. “On purpose?”
“Actually, no,” I assured her. “Totally happened on its own.”
“Wow,” she said as she joined me under the covers. “Tell me more.”
Yes, do tell us more, Bane added. Like if I can eat her now.
‘Eww. Gross, Bane.’
Apologies, Sintári, do go on.
I told them the whole story of my brief meeting with the elven queen, leaving nothing out. I trusted both of them completely, and there was no reason for me to hold back.
“She really pulled the whole ‘you are my destiny’ bit on you?” Tási scoffed when I finished the tale.
“It worked for you,” I reminded her.
“That was after!” She protested, quite accurately.
“Minor detail,” I rebuffed her flippantly.
“I hate you sometimes,” Tási responded in frustration, although the faint smile she couldn’t quite hide told me she knew I was only toying with her.
“I’m going to make sure Ella’s taken all the right measures,” Tási added as she got up to leave. “Líann didn’t come alone, she brought enough troops to cause a great deal of harm if she wanted to.”
“It’s a wise precaution, but I doubt that she’ll do anything so rash.” I replied. “Lashing out like that would be an emotional response, and I don’t think she has that in her.”
Tási nodded in acknowledgment, but still left to make sure that our own forces were put in place to counter any moves Líann might make. She had brought an escort of fifty soldiers just for herself, and combined with the similar number that each of the other monarchs had traveled with, the large force had insured their safety as they crossed the dangerous roads to my Realm. But now those same soldiers represented a potential threat, and Tási was determined to ensure that whatever Líann might do, she would be ready to counter it at a moment’s notice.
Tási had more than enough of our own soldiers to call upon to deal with the threat, and even so, I truly doubted Líann would attempt anything. She was a cold-blooded creature, calculating and emotionless. There was nothing to be gained in launching an attack, and I knew in my heart that she wouldn’t do so.
So, while Tási made her preparations, I took advantage of the rare moment, and relaxed with Bane in the cool evening air. We’d left the glass doors open, only closing the beautiful Khelduin gates, and let the fresh air flood into the room. The low flames of the fireplace across from us kept things comfortable, and Bane lay his broad head next to me as I curled up beside him.
‘This is how it should always be, Bane,’ I sent to him. ‘You, me, maybe even Tási,’ I joked. ‘Resting here together at the end of the day.’
I agree, Sintári, but you know better than that. What should be often isn’t, and your path is not an easy one.
‘You could learn to lie to me a little, Bane,’ I sent back with a little irritation. ‘You know, just to let me be happy for a few minutes.’
I will try to remember that, Sintári.
I must have fallen asleep quickly after that, because the next thing I knew, Aiva was shaking me awake. Tási was snoring softly beside me as I opened my eyes, and Aiva stepped back to give me some room to get up.
“Nothing went amiss during the night, Empress,” she reported as I strapped on my weapons. “The Commander’s precautions remain in place, but we’ve detected no sign of any aggressive action from the Queen’s soldiers.”
“I’m sure she was up late,” I said as I glanced at Tási sleeping peacefully. “If there’s no reason to wake her, I’d rather let her rest.”
Aiva simply nodded and we left Tási and Bane sleeping together as she led me off to breakfast. Surprisingly, Venna was waiting for me in the antechamber when I sat down for my morning meal.
“Good morning, Chief Minister,” I offered cautiously. “I assume that you’re here on business?”
“Unfortunately, yes, I am,” she replied almost hesitantly. “Tási made sure that I was informed that your meeting with Queen Líann did not go well. Badly enough in fact that she felt the need to take military precautions.”
“We can discuss the details of that later,” I cut in.
“Of course,” Venna responded, realizing immediately that the subject was delicate, and not to be revealed in front of anyone else.
“Although she has made no aggressive moves, Líann has reacted to whatever transpired,” Venna informed me, “Or, I should say, there has been a reaction on her behalf.”
“What do you mean by that?” I asked curiously.
“I have received a request for a follow-up meeting. Several of them actually,” Venna explained. “Normally, such requests would bear Líann’s seal and carry her authority, but none of these did. They were only signed by her aide, Thelmé, and each one was worded more urgently than the last.”
“If that bitch can’t even be bothered to press her ring into a blob of wax,” I replied harshly, “I’m certainly not going to rush down to meet with her again.”
“Etiquette would agree with you,” Venna replied with obvious restraint. “A request like this from an underling should be ignored, but based on your reaction, I think you need to fill me in on just what transpired between you.”
“Aiva,” I called to the lieutenant, “Can you give us the room, please?”
“Of course, Empress,” she replied before leading the guards out of the room.
Once we were alone, I vented some of the anger that Venna’s news had stirred up in me.
“That fucking bitch said she was going to make me hers,” I spewed as my rage only intensified with the memories of Líann’s words. “She thought she could own me! She dared to claim Tási’s place in my heart!”
“She did what?” Venna inquired in shock.
“She tried to seduce me,” I fumed. “The fucking whore thought she could own me just by baring her flesh.”
“Líann?” Venna asked incredulously. “Queen Líann tried to seduce you?”
“Yes, the damn Ice Queen apparently has a thing for me,” I replied angrily.
“She’s never expressed an interest in anyone before, Dreya,” Venna responded in amazement. “And she has been courted by every elven King and Prince in Arrika.”
“Well then she can go fuck one of them instead!” I screamed back at her.
The air was thick with my anger, and Venna didn’t reply to my last shout of rage. We sat there, just staring into space as Venna considered what I’d told her, and I stewed in my venom.
“I will have Quin reply to Thelmé’s request, and offer to meet with Líann on your behalf,” Venna finally offered. “That should send the right message to her.”
Quin was a young dwarf who served as one of Venna’s junior aides. Having such a low-ranking official respond to Líann’s request for a meeting would certainly mirror the lack of regard I had for the Ice Queen.
“Do it,” I replied harshly. “And I don’t want to hear about any other messages that are made on her behalf. You have my leave to handle them in any way that you feel is appropriate. That useless hag will get nothing from me until she comes crawling on her knees.”
“As you say, Empress,” Venna responded formally.
“You think I’m being too harsh?” I asked as I picked up on her tone.
“Honestly, I don’t know,” Venna admitted. “Your response is well within the protocols for such things, but I have a soft spot for her. Despite Líann’s reputation, I always felt that there was something more to her than just the cold, emotionless woman she seemed to be. You’ve awakened many things in many people, Dreya. Perhaps you’ve done the same for her.”
“Well, when she finishes waking up and can press her dainty little finger into some melted wax, maybe we’ll find out if you’re right about that,” I snapped at her.
“I’ll see to your wishes.” Venna said as she rose to leave.
She was obviously troubled by the developments, and even more s
o by my reaction to them, but at that moment, I didn’t give a damn. Líann had already sworn her fealty to me, and I was going to hold her to that oath, regardless of her feelings—or lack of them.
Aiva and the guards returned when Venna left, and I picked at my breakfast for a while before heading to my office without eating much of anything. The heated conversation and the memories of my anger had spoiled my appetite, and I sought the distraction of my work instead.
Fortunately, I was able to find the diversion I sought in the never-ending stack of papers on my desk. The endless series of reports from around my Realm kept me informed of the developments that I used to watch over personally, but that my duties as ruler, and then Empress, kept me from reviewing first-hand.
Ilvain was still building more housing, as were the dwarves. With our new alliance, we anticipated that an increase in population would follow, so they were busy creating the necessary structures.
Evans’ report on our military was encouraging as well. The Garrison was fully manned, and his new recruits would allow him to assign more personnel to the newly designated Imperial Fortress and the Palace guard. Among Evans’ reports was his request to require all soldiers to swear allegiance to the Empire. Since they came to us from various Realms, he thought it would be prudent that we ensure that they understood where their new loyalties lie. It seemed like a reasonable thing, so I approved his request before moving on to the next pile of papers.
The mining and agricultural updates were promising. The veins of ore were still rich, and the harvests were plentiful, in no small part due to the Dryad’s influence. I had visited her little territory a few times, even spoke with her on one occasion, and she seemed to be doing well in her home. Even the hunters continued to have success taking game outside the walls, allowing our ranchers to focus on growing their herds, rather than culling them.
By the time I finished shuffling through all the papers, it was late in the afternoon, and my appetite had returned. Aiva offered to fetch some lunch for me when she overheard my stomach growl, and I gratefully accepted.
“Sit, Aiva, join me,” I cajoled her when she returned. “Don’t make your Empress eat alone.”
“So, tell me,” I pried. “You said you went on a date the other night, has there been a second one?”
“Um… Well… Actually, yes, there has,” Aiva flushed with embarrassment. “We went out together last night after my shift.”
“And…?” I prompted her.
“It… it went well,” she replied, clearly both reluctant and flustered by my inquiries.
“Do you think anything will come of it?”
“I hope so,” she replied quickly.
“Who is it? Do I know this person?” I asked curiously.
“Um... Yes, you do know him, but he asked me not to tell you,” Aiva replied, earning my most intense stare.
“You know I can’t let that go,” I glared at her.
“Please?”
“No,” I held her gaze. “You messed up by telling me that he doesn’t want me to know.”
“Georl,” she whispered. “I’ve been seeing Georl.”
Whoa! That was interesting.
“Are you upset?” Aiva asked as she misread my reaction.
“No, not at all,” I replied. “I’m happy for both of you. I just didn’t expect that.”
“Yeah,” Aiva chuckled. “We get a lot of that.”
I imagined that was true—while I demanded tolerance, that didn’t mean that certain pairings weren’t surprising. And burly Georl the half-orc with Aiva, the fair, blond elf, was definitely one of those.
“Well, if things develop further between you,” I teased her. “I’ll have to have the two of you over for dinner.”
“I’d like that,” Aiva replied, surprising me.
I let the conversation drop after that and focused on the food. After skipping breakfast, I was absolutely starving, and I enjoyed the simple meal of cold meats and cheese that she had brought up for me from the barracks kitchen immensely. When we finished, Aiva and the guards escorted me to my briefing with Broda and Venna, who would update me on the progress drafting the Imperial Charter.
“Well, Empress,” Venna began as I sat down in her office. “I’m pleased to inform you that the Charter of The First Sintári Empire is coming along well. As you know, the basic outline has already been agreed to, and the details are slowly being worked out.”
“Remarkably, the main obstacle to our progress has been strangely silent,” Broda added. “It was the representative from Íforn that resisted almost every proposal yesterday, but he uttered nary a peep today.”
“Did you tell her?” I asked as I looked at Venna.
“Of course, I did,” Venna replied bluntly. “She’s our Ambassador and she needed to know.”
“What’s your opinion then, Broda?”
“She’s pledged her oath to you, and her representative has signed the preliminary accords,” Broda noted. “Líann can’t back out now, but she’ll only be bound to the terms of the Charter, nothing more. I wouldn’t expect any favors from Íforn if I were you.”
Favors like the scribes I so desperately needed.
“I’ve asked Nadiel for Curates who can cast resurrection spells. I intended to get scribes from Líann to supply us with scrolls, but it seems that I’m going to need a different plan.”
“Yes,” Venna replied. “We’ve been made aware of this issue and we’re working on it for you, but Íforn really was our best option.”
“That’s just super encouraging, Venna. Thanks,” I grumbled.
“I promise that we’re doing all we can,” Broda jumped in.
“I’m sorry,” I apologized. “I know that you are. I’m just a bit frustrated.”
After discussing the difficult problem with Íforn, we went over a few of the more critical provisions of the Charter, and with everything in order, we called it a night.
Once I’d climbed up the stairs to my chambers, I was looking forward to relaxing and having another restful night’s sleep, but Karina stopped us before we entered the foyer and delivered some very unwanted news.
“You have a visitor, Empress,” she announced. “Thelmé, aide to Queen Líann, is waiting for you in your office.”
“Why did you let her in there?” I asked somewhat angrily. “We made no appointment for her, and I didn’t agree to see her.”
“Forgive me,” Karina replied. “That was my decision. She came here begging to see you and refused to leave when we told her you weren’t here. She sat on the steps for an hour before I finally let her wait inside, and she’s been sitting there waiting for another hour since.”
Thelmé’s apparent desperation intrigued me and overcame my sense of irritation at the woman’s presumption, so I decided to hear what she had to say. When I strode through the entry and into my office, Thelmé was wringing her hands nervously, but rose immediately from her chair and took a knee before me, a gesture of recognition that she had not offered the night before.
“What is so important that you felt compelled to intrude on my privacy, Thelmé?” I asked her harshly.
“Please, Empress, if we might discuss the matter alone?” She replied shakily.
“I’m not inclined to offer you any courtesies at the moment.”
“Empress,” she begged. “I have failed my Queen. Please do not make me disclose the details of that failure in front of others.”
The utter sense of regret and remorse in her voice moved me to give in to her request, and I dismissed the guards so that we could continue the discussion in private.
“Thank you, Empress,” Thelmé exhaled as the guards left.
“I have honored your request, but my patience is thin, get to the point.”
Thelmé nodded and began to hurriedly explain why she had come.
“I’ve been with her since the day she was born,” Thelmé began wistfully. “With her mother gone, and her father so close to death himself, the whole Kingdom
was in a panic over what might happen if she took the throne unprepared. So, as soon as we could, we filled her head with every scrap of knowledge that we thought might be useful to her. We did everything in our power to mold her into a good Queen, and in most ways, we succeeded.”
“Unfortunately, what we overlooked was imparting her with any of the skills that would help her become a good person. She’s cold and distant and has little sense of tact in personal matters. I have no idea what she did to offend you, Empress, because she refused to tell me what she intended to discuss with you, but I beg you to consider her transgressions as mine. Whatever faults she has, they are there because we failed her, and I take full responsibility for the trouble she has caused. I only ask that you see her and tell her she’s forgiven.”
“You want me to just forgive her? After what she did?” I asked her angrily as I rose from my chair and towered over her. “After what she said to me?”
“I don’t know what happened, Empress, she won’t tell me! But you must forgive her, or she’ll die,” Thelmé pleaded.
“I’m not prone to histrionics or manipulation, Thelmé,” I cautioned her.
“Please believe me! It’s true, I swear!” Thelmé implored desperately. “She hasn’t moved from her bed since you left, and all she asks for is more wine. Then she just mutters about how she ruined everything and that there’s no point in going on.”
“I’m going down there with a full escort,” I glared at her in warning. “If I see any sign of treachery or if you’re lying to me, Thelmé, I’ll slit your throat myself.”
“Thank you, Empress!” She cried.
“Don’t thank me yet,” I cautioned her as we left. “All I’m doing is taking a look.”
I took a double detail of guards with me, but there were no signs of any deception as we made our way down to the guest suites. Karina and Aiva led the way as we entered Líann’s rooms, but nothing seemed amiss. However, when they went to open the door to Líann’s room for me, Thelmé begged me to stop them.
“Please don’t let them see her like this,” she pleaded.
“Hold off,” I ordered them.
Second Skin: Unified: A litRPG Adventure (Second Skin Book 3) Page 63