by R. J. Batla
“The Helion and the Tempus,” Aurora supplied.
“Yes. In order to expedite travel, would you be so kind as to take me to each place, starting with the Helion?”
Aurora shivered, already anticipating the bite of the cold, as Ames showed her a picture. With a nod, she grabbed his hand and the two slowly faded out of view.
“I’ll n-n-never underst-st-stand why they live up h-h-here.” Queen Aurora shuddered, emerging into a blizzard and hugging herself, trying desperately to stay warm.
In an instant, they’d traveled hundreds of miles to Nordheim, the frozen palace of the Helion. Ice was everywhere, covering the white stones underneath by at least a foot, and shooting up toward the sky in pointed spires. From their vantage point in the outer courtyard, the palace of the Helion looked like a sea urchin.
That outer courtyard opened up right onto the frozen tundra, the biting wind snapping her cloak outward. Snow covered the landscape, with scrub brush sticking up in patches among the sheet of white. Several roads had been cleared, heading toward different clusters of structures off in the distance. Between them and the spiny palace was a ten-foot wall of a bluish stone. A heavy white metal gate stuck up well past the wall. Strangely, the gate and the wall had no snow on them at all.
“I’m sorry, my dear, but it couldn’t be helped. They’ve had a late winter storm it seems,” Ames Talco said, “Come now. Let’s get out of this and into the less cold hallways. Ah, here’s our escort.” Ten heavily armed, white-haired young Helion emerged as the enormous white gate burst open, and the pair was escorted into a large covered hallway that extended directly to the middle of the palace like a tunnel. The hallway never veered in any direction, heading straight as an arrow right toward a large door. The escort, all male with heavy white plate armor worn over white furry clothing, ushered them forward, their signature heavy war hammers carried in front of them. Aurora noticed the ornate tiles that lined the floor, each four feet square with a different scene carved into the stone and painted to add realism. Various chairs sat and paintings hung at random intervals along the hallway, each very elaborately carved or painted. Several hallways intersected the main passageway that they traveled, always at ninety degrees, the only sounds coming from the creak and clank of the soldier’s armor, weapons, and feet.
Aurora shivered again. Normally water Races weren’t affected by the cold, but she was different. As the only water Race Senturian to have to have her powers Awakened instead of being born with them, she’d learned early on that she was different. “At least it’s above freezing in here,” she whispered.
The guards opened the doors with a clang, and white ice carpeted the entire floor of a wide circular room with two large thrones situated on a raised platform at the far end. Nothing else was in there, and the guards didn’t follow them in as they walked toward the two Helion sitting on those thrones, staring Ames and Aurora down as they advanced. The Helion towered over the Reka and human, their whitish blue skin mostly covered by furs as their eight-foot frames rested rigidly in their chairs.
“Oh my...this may not go as well as I’d hoped,” Ames whispered as they drew closer. He brought them to a halt at the front of the raised platform, and took a bow, with Aurora mimicking his movements. “Your highnesses, thank you for granting me the audience.”
Queen Daisetta Winters spoke first. “My husband graciously allowed this meeting, despite my wishes.”
Apparently it hadn’t taken the king too long to find a new wife after his was assassinated only a year ago.
King Bremond Winters grunted. “It’s out of respect for the councilman that I granted this meeting. But that doesn’t mean I like it or that you have a lot of time. Speak quickly, Councilman. What do you have to say?”
“I thank your highnesses kindly,” Ames said, and told them the situation, what he had already recited to the various other leaders of Terraunum.
“Humph,” Queen Daisetta said when Ames had finished, “we’ve already held back more than enough soldiers. The Helion will stand on their own.”
“I’m...I’m sorry, what?” Ames asked.
“We have held back enough soldiers, Councilman. I believe my wife was clear,” King Bremond said. “We have no need of your assistance. We will protect our own, as we always have. We will survive and thrive here in the North. No one can traverse this frozen tundra without our knowledge. If they try it, they’ll be thrown back swiftly.” He leaned forward. “The winter is not kind to those who are not used to it.”
Aurora straightened her back. “Will you not consider the people of Terraunum? If we do not stand together, we will not stand at all. We will –”
“I WILL NOT BE SPOKEN TO LIKE THAT BY A RIVER RAT!” bellowed King Bremond, his voice echoing in the icy chamber. He composed himself and straightened his robes while looking directly at Queen Aurora. “When have the other people cared about us? Helped us? When have they come to our aid? When have your people, Queen Aurora, ever cared about us? No, you sit in your fertile land, drinking and playing, while we work hard to survive. And we’re doing more than that – we’re thriving. On our own, with no help from any Southerners.”
“Your highness, if I may,” Ames started.
“No, you may not, Councilman,” Queen Daisetta said. “You may have noticed that my husband has a strong opinion on this subject. We will keep ourselves safe, as we always have. We did not part with a vast majority of our armies for this very reason. If we didn’t take care of ourselves, no one would. Good day, Councilman. Queen Aurora.”
With that, the guards emerged from nowhere and Councilman Talco and Queen Aurora were escorted out of the throne room, down the long entrance hall, and unceremoniously put back into the freezing snowstorm.
“Well that went well,” Aurora said, snowflakes turning to steam where they hit her skin as she used her water powers to warm the vapors directly around her body to try to get some semblance of warmth in her body. It didn’t work as well as she’d like. “Those ungrateful, cold, pig-headed...”
“It was as I expected,” Ames said, hanging his head with a sigh.
“What? You expected this?” Aurora asked.
“Yes, I did. I thought the number of soldiers they sent to the Breaks was quite low, though they insisted it was more than half their army,” Ames said. “Clearly it was not.”
“Then what was the point? Why even ask if you expected them to say no?”
“To give them a chance. Everyone deserves at least that. You cannot force them to see reason. You can only hope and pray that their hearts are changed.”
“Why not? If that army gets through ours, they’ll be decimated, despite the natural barriers,” she said, her temper actually raising the temperature around her and melting more ice and snow. “I’ve been to the Wall. I’ve seen Malstrak’s army. If we don’t stop them there, we don’t stand a chance.”
“They’ve had their opportunity,” Ames said. “That’s the burden of free will that’s given to all. We must choose, but we must choose wisely. I fear they have not done so. Now come on. Let’s get out of here to somewhere more to our liking and to rulers who will be more hospitable. You’ve been to the Tempus city of Watauga, yes?”
She nodded.
He grabbed her hand. “Well then, let’s do this.”
Queen Aurora Shimmered Ames Talco and herself to the edge of the city of Watauga, the capital city for the Tempus. She rubbed her hands together to help thaw them out; she wasn’t sure if her feet would do the same.
“Odd,” Ames said, looking around.
“Yes?”
“Well, when I talked with King Keene before we left, he said we would have an escort to the palace from the gates, hence our arrival here. It appears...ah, maybe here?”
A lone figure, fully armored, sea green hair billowing behind him, bounded up to them, a pair of cutlasses strapped to his back. Aurora straightened. He was very handsome. Her heartbeat ticked up and she tried to calm herself down. She’d never been attr
acted to a Tempus before, but this one...
“My apologies for being late, Councilman Talco, sir, but we’ve had an incident at the docks. But if you will follow me, we can talk on the way.”
“Incident?” Ames asked, not moving yet.
“Yes, sir, but I’ll let my father, the king, explain,” he said.
So he was a prince? Interesting...
“If you would follow me...” His eyes found Aurora for the first time, and he immediately dropped to one knee, fist on the ground, head down. “Your Highness, my apologies. I didn’t realize you were coming, nor did I notice you were standing there.” He turned and blushed, red blood and blue skin mixing together to turn purple on his face. “I mean, um –”
“No problem. Please rise, sir...?” she said.
“Notseh, Prince Notseh Keene, your majesty,” he said, rising and offering his arm as an escort. “Please, allow me to show you to my parents, er, the king and queen.”
“Thank you,” Aurora said, putting her hand on his offered arm, and she had to suppress a shiver that had nothing to do with temperature. He stood quite a bit taller than her. He set them on a brisk pace through the town, with Ames right on their heels. Squat buildings, made out of what had to be coral, spread in all directions, the roads winding around, not a single one straight, wondering around in seemingly random directions. Though it was very disorderly, she figured that was the nature of the Tempus. Both the Reka and Tempus were water people, yet they were very different.
Here and there, Prince Notseh pointed out an important building or statue, of which there seemed to be many. You couldn’t round a corner without coming to fountain featuring a whale or a sea turtle or some other creature of the deep. Eventually their meandering path led to their destination and they arrived at the palace in seemingly no time, but that may have been due to her company. She could hardly take her eyes off the man and found it hard to think.
What am I, sixteen?
Rounding a final turn, the palace loomed in front of them. Stone in varying shades of green and blue rose almost right out of the sea, waves crashing on the rip rap placed to keep the shore intact. The first layer was sea green, then a wall taller but further inside the other was turquoise, then the third and final, a huge cylinder, was a deep blue, the same color as Prince Notseh’s skin. It was beautiful. The battlements were laced with massive seashells and statues of creatures, mermaids, and turtles. The whole thing looked like a huge ship riding the waves, defying the laws of physics.
Prince Notseh pointed further down the coast, past a massive number of piers where ships of various sizes were docked, to a similar-shaped stepped building. “Now there’s the Tempus Academy, where we train our sailors.” Aurora caught sight of wreckage, of which there seemed to be a lot. She had heard of the attack from years ago, carried out by one of their own, but hadn’t seen the devastation up close before. Prince Notseh caught her looking. “It was a lot of damage and we lost a lot of good men and women that day. We’re still repairing even after all these years, and our navy is not up to where it should be.”
“I’m sorry for your loss,” Aurora said. “I would’ve liked to have seen it before it was destroyed.” Aurora’s trips to Watauga had never her brought her to the docks.
“Anytime you feel like coming to Watauga, I will gladly show you around,” Notseh said, and they both blushed as he led them through the outer wall of sea green rock. It was thicker than it looked, and the open space inside was crammed with shops and people. He waved his hands. “Quite a bit of this had to be rebuilt, so we added fortifications to help make us safer.”
They walked through the open space and under an archway in the next wall, much taller and thicker still, with another open space between it and the massive center tower. They entered a heavily guarded gate and straight down a deep blue hallway directly to what had to be the center of the structure, where several hydraulic-powered lifts waited, each with their own dark blue bellhop. They entered the center one.
“Floor, your highness?”
“Throne room, Reginald, thank you.” So he was nice enough to remember the names of his people – check. While she was counting, she went ahead and thought handsome, humble, tall, dark, and cheery. Check, check, check, check, check! Check? What the hell am I doing? This is a diplomatic mission.
Reginald pushed a button, the door closed, and the lift rocketed skyward. Just as quickly, it came to a screeching halt.
Aurora braced herself on Notseh’s arm, and he looked at her, and they both blushed again.
Reginald said, “Throne room, your highness.”
“Thanks, Reginald, have a good day. And say hi to your wife and kids for me,” Prince Notseh said as they exited into the throne rom.
Every surface of the circular room was covered with sea shells, pearls, or barnacles of all shapes and colors. A round table sat in the center with two larger thrones at the far side where the King and Queen of the Tempus sat.
As the prince led them forward, the table split down the middle and moved to either side, allowing them a free path to the monarchs. “Your highnesses, I present to you Queen Aurora of the Reka, our sister nation to the south, and Councilman Ames Talco, who needs no further introduction.” He let go of Aurora’s arm, bowed low to his parents, then to his guests, and went to sit at the table to the left.
“Thank you, son,” the king said. “Councilman, my apologies about the lack of formal escort.”
“It’s no trouble at all. Prince Notseh said you’ve had a bit of an issue?”
The queen nodded. “Yes. We’ve been attacked.”
Ames frowned. “Attacked?”
“Yes, sir. Twenty vessels, full of pirates and mercenaries tried to force their way into the harbor and then into the palace. We stopped them fairly quickly, although it was a complete surprise attack,” the king said. “What has me puzzled is why pirates? We haven’t had this much trouble with them in years, not since the traitor.”
“Your highness, I think it may have to do with what I’m about to discuss with you,” Ames said, and launched into the story he had told previously.
The king and queen listened with rapt attention, and Aurora tried to as well, but she kept finding herself looking to the left at the prince.
“So you agree with the plan, then?” Ames said at some point, snapping Aurora out of her daydreaming.
“Most certainly. We’ll start preparations immediately.”
“I fear the worst, and if it comes to pass, your naval power will be needed. Can you build that many boats that fast?” Ames asked.
“You’re talking to the Tempus here, Councilman,” the queen said with a sly grin. “They won’t be the greatest quality, but we’ll get them done.”
Ames smiled. “I figured as much. I’ll send my emissary to contact you about a separate mission on the islands to the east of you off the mainland. They will be vital assets.”
The king and queen exchanged a look, then the king said, “It will be done. Especially the additional boats.”
“Thank you both for your support. Queen Aurora, if you’re ready?” Ames said, bowing to both of the royals as Prince Notseh rose from his seat and moved toward them. She bowed as well, then took the offered arm as he escorted them back to the lift, and down to the first floor.
“If you two will excuse me one moment, there’s a painting over here I’ve always wanted to take a closer look at. I’ll be right back,” Ames said, and slipped off to the side with a silly grin on his face, leaving them alone.
Aurora realized her arm was still looped with the prince’s, and she quickly took it back, and felt blood rush to her face. Prince Notseh simply clasped his hands behind him in a parade rest position and looked around the room. But his eyes kept returning to hers, and he would look away quickly when she noticed. After what felt like an hour of silence, Aurora said, “I think your parents have made the right decision. My people, too, are making preparation.”
“Will it really be that bad?�
�� he asked looking at her dead in the face, his sea-green eyes blazing.
“God, I hope not,” she said, “but if I know Ames, er, Councilman Talco, he wouldn’t prepare like this unless it was a distinct probability.”
He chuckled. “I think you’re right.” He visibly relaxed and spread his arms wide. “How did you like the capital?”
“It’s amazing!” she said. “Everything is nice. It’s beautiful! You know, if you like the ocean!” She giggled, then snapped her mouth shut. Oh wow, was she teasing him?
He laughed too. “Oh yeah, we do like that here. I’ve never been to Sweetwater, but I hear it’s almost as pretty.” Oh man, was he teasing her back?
“Oh yes, it’s incredible,” she said, and described all the flowing water and pathways and how they incorporated the forest and rivers into the landscaping. “And we even have rivers as streets!”
“So everyone gets around on boats?”
“Absolutely. We use gondolas. There’s a brand new fleet of them.” She flinched. “It was the last thing my parents did before they came to Harlingon. The last thing they did for our people before they died, actually.”
He paused and looked at his feet. “I was saddened to hear about your parents. They were great people and even greater leaders from everything I’ve heard.” He shuffled his feet. “I lost my brother that same night.”
Aurora reached out and put her hand on his shoulder. “We all lost special people that night,” she said, tears pooling in her eyes. “But I feel like we’re honoring their memory and doing what they would have done – protect the East Side.”