by K.N. Lee
Edwin suddenly grew jovial again, and it felt as though a dark cloud had moved from above them. Liam looked over the crowd. Everyone was happy and going about their lives as though nothing was wrong.
He envisioned what this village would be like once Wexcyn paid a visit. The chaos would be devastating and the thought of any of those joyful fairies dying made him more anxious to hurry and join the Flame.
Liam felt such an intense emptiness without her, and they hadn’t even met in real life yet. He wondered if the dreams counted.
Liam sat there in deep contemplation the rest of the evening. He needed direction. He needed someone who was around during the Great War to help him. If only someone like that still lived.
Looking over to Wilem, Liam froze. The boy was standing in his chair, telling a story to the fairy children. They all watched aptly, their eyes big with wonder. The talisman hung from Wilem’s neck.
Vleta. He needed to speak to the dragon.
Chapter 38
The sound of weeping woke Kavien. He groaned. His eyes opened and he rolled onto his back, listening to Lilae’s soft sobs. Maybe it was a mistake keeping her so close. He wanted her to be closer. He hadn’t expected her to be so beautiful. He hadn’t expected her to be so calm, so tame. She was nothing like he had imagined. For some reason, he wanted more of her than he was allowed. He had to resist.
“That is right. Resist. She is the enemy. Do not forget that.”
Kavien squeezed his eyes shut. He wasn’t in the mood to be controlled.
I can do this on my own. I do not need you coaching me! He thought.
“You are mine. Your will is unimportant.”
He tried to drown out the voice with his own. He sang inside his head, hoping the intruder would shut up. He couldn’t let Wexcyn gain control. Not again. He was a terrible person and did terrible things when Wexcyn took over.
“Let her cry. She deserves it. Your punishment was just what she needed to keep her down.”
He sat up abruptly and kicked the chest. “Shut up!” His voice boomed and the sobbing immediately ceased.
Kavien sighed. He hadn’t meant to say that to Lilae. He almost reached down to open the lid of the chest. He withdrew his hand. He didn’t want to hurt her. Still, he could never tell her that, or show more than a little kindness at any given time. He felt physically sick that he had let Dragnor hurt her. She didn’t really deserve it. He had no choice. He growled.
I’m tired of never having a choice!
He would never forget the day he first laid eyes on Lilae. Kavien would have never expected to feel what he did now. Her image haunted his every waking moment. Those green eyes stared back at him in his sleep. That soft creamy white skin. Her brown freckles.
Kavien longed to run his hand through that long silky red hair. His pulse began to quicken, just thinking about how close she was. Inside that chest, by his bed, he wanted to open the lid and just look at her…to touch her.
His pulse beat loudly in his ears. He grew hot. He stormed from the room. Kavien didn’t stop until he was out of the palace and far from her sweet scent. He already had enough to drive him mad. He had to get her out of his head. She suffered, because of him.
He marched through the palace as everyone bowed to him as he passed. He ignored them. Every day was the same. No one wanted to look him in the eyes. They all feared him as if he were as foreign as Dragnor.
Kavien was cursed.
He was an abomination, full of demons that haunted his every waking moment. His anger started to rise at those thoughts. Kavien stopped at his army’s training grounds.
Kavien ripped off his shirt and grabbed a sword from the weapon rack. He rolled his shoulders and stood at the center of the training circle. The men all quieted when they saw him, backing away behind the wooden fence that encircled the training grounds. They lowered their eyes to the dusty, sun-scorched, ground. No one wanted to accept his challenge.
“Come on.”
The soldiers were all afraid of him. They had seen what he could do in battle.
“Who wants to practice?” Kavien’s eyes slowly surveyed the crowd of soldiers. They were all well-built men with years of training and experience.
“Cowards,” the voice hissed in his head.
Kavien’s grin faded. “Someone had better step up or it’s off to the dungeons with all of you!”
The men grumbled, looking from one another in apprehension. One of the captains stood up for his men. He took a sword from the rack and took his place before the emperor.
Their eyes met and Kavien nodded. “Artero.”
“Be fair this time emperor,” Artero replied. “We are but men.” He felt no shame in admitting such a fact, even in the presence of his men. They all felt the same. “We are no match for you.”
Kavien raised an eyebrow at the statement. Then he smirked, yet they could never tell that his eyes were full of pain. Those men would never understand. Kavien feared that no one would. He wasn’t blessed with god-like powers. He was cursed.
“As you wish captain.” Kavien took a step back and his body vanished before them.
Artero gulped. His eyes searched frantically. He held his sword up, anticipating a mortal blow to come at him.
“You better use more than your eyes captain. How about you turn on some of that Reach of yours? It’s the only way to catch a Silver Elf in battle.”
Artero turned quickly towards the voice and met Kavien’s sword with his own. He was hesitant, unsure if Kavien were testing him or teasing him. Reach was used to pull an opponent to oneself.
How could he use it? He’d have to… see his opponent first. Artero’s eyes widened. Maybe there was a method to Kavien’s madness. Artero’s eyes blinked and with his free hand, he Reached.
To his surprise he could feel Kavien, even though he couldn’t see him. He cringed at what he was about to do, but had he any choice? He pulled Kavien towards him…an invisible body slammed into him with such force that Artero was knocked to the ground.
Kavien reappeared, his eyes glowing silver and back to its normal gray. “Good man!”
“This isn’t fair,” Artero protested, his face reddening. He was breathing heavy already, with fear. He didn't want to die that day.
Kavien’s intentions weren't to humiliate the man. He reached a hand out to Artero, helping the man up.
“Yes. This I know,” he admitted. “But the Silver Elves can vanish before you can blink.”
Then his body seemed to fly from man to man as he took their weapons before they could understand what was happening. He dropped their weapons in a pile on the ground.
“You see, the Shadow Elves can dart faster than a cat, and spit venom. The Tryans,” Kavien's grin widened, their power was his favorite. He gripped the hilt of his own sword. It began to glow red. He stared down at the light as it illuminated his bronzed face.
“They can enchant their weapons, making theirs more powerful than any in the entire world. Such power could cut right through your armor,” he explained, his voice lowering as he looked into the light, feeling the power radiating throughout his entire body and into the sword.
His shoulders slumped. The men were staring at him in utter shock. Their jaws had dropped. “I have the main skill of all the races, and I will train you men to fight against them all.”
Kavien walked to the gate. With expert Agility, he stepped onto the gate and walked it like a tightrope. He looked out at the masses. These men were all gifted. They were all selected for inheriting special abilities.
Kavien didn’t conquer lands to acquire slaves; he didn’t take girls from their homes to make them whores in his harem. He wanted people to think that, but he wasn’t sure if the truth was more intimidation or less. Kavien was recruiting men and women, powerful ones.
Before him was a collection of well-organized men who each held a very special talent. Talents that the world hadn’t seen in thousands of years. He was anxious to remind the world of the power of hi
s people. Kavien looked them over. The sun blazed and he was already dripping with sweat. He ran his fingers through his hair and sighed.
“You see men: the Realm Wars are not going to be fair. Because the world is not fair.”
The men finally understood, but that didn’t make them any less fearful.
Chapter 39
“What would I do without you Faira?” Kavien asked as Faira sat before him. Her amber eyes looked up at him and she smiled.
“You would probably go insane,” Faira replied with a laugh.
Kavien returned her smile and leaned back in his chair. She massaged his feet and his entire body felt at peace. He took a sip of cold pineapple juice and glanced out the large cutouts in the clay wall. It was going to rain. He looked forward to its sweet smell.
“Can I ask you something master?” Faira dipped a cloth into a hot basin of scented water. She wrapped the cloth around his feet and sat back on her heels.
Kavien glanced down at her. “What is it?”
Faira met his eyes. “My sister and I, we’ve been with you for five years now.”
He nodded. “Yes…” He sighed inwardly. He could already tell by the look in her kohl lined brown eyes what she was thinking. Faira was a needy one, but Kavien didn’t mind. He enjoyed being needed.
“We’ve served you well haven’t we?”
“Of course,” he tenderly pinched her cheek and sat back in his chair.
She looked troubled. “Why have you chosen Lilae?”
Kavien sighed. He had tried to keep her out of his head. He knew there was nothing he could do. King Ayaden was already heading their way. Soon he would have Auroria. Soon Lilae would have to die. He wished he’d never promised her to Sister Eloni. He dreaded thinking of what the Bellen would do to her.
“It wasn’t my choice. You know this. Why do you ask?”
Faira shook her head. “She doesn’t fit in. You chose us for our talents, and beauty, however, we do more for you than people think. We live with the way people look down on us in silence. We don’t protest against the way people call us whores, when we are not. She is a Northerner and yet you keep her close to you… in your private quarters, which none of us has even seen. It doesn’t seem fair. I would happily give myself to you, if that’s what you wanted.”
Kavien lifted her chin and leaned in close to her. “Are you jealous Faira?”
A sad look came to her eyes. “Yes.”
He sat back again and she rested her head on his lap. He watched her as she hugged his legs and came up to sit in his lap.
She looked him directly in the eyes. “She will take you away from us.”
He moved her hands from his chest and she clung to him. “Stop it, Faira. This is nonsense.”
“Is it? Why won’t you tell me? Can you imagine how it feels to be a person of power, yet thought to be nothing more than a slave?”
Kavien didn’t answer. He did know how it felt to be a person of power, yet people feared him. They thought of him as a tyrant, an oppressor, a murderer. He wished he was more than those things. He had no choice but to be whom he was born to be.
“Focus…”
“My sister and I were the first in our family to be born with a skill. We were practically worshiped in our village, and now…look at us. How is this fair?”
“Enough Faira.” Kavien put his hands to his temples. She wasn’t helping him anymore. His feeling of relaxation had disappeared. He lifted her off of his lap and peeled the cloth of his feet and stood before her. He looked away when he saw the tears in her eyes.
“You don’t get it. You brought us here, and made us fall in love with you, and now…you’re going to abandon us, for her. How is that fair? Something is not right about her.”
Kavien shot a glance at her. “What do you mean?”
“Her power… it is frightening. I’ve never seen anything like it.”
Kavien’s shoulders slumped. That was obvious. She was the Flame. She had immense power. He sat up taller. But wait, he thought. Dragnor was supposed to have taken her power…how could Faira still see it?
“But what is she like?”
“She is a Northerner. What else do you need to know?”
“Leave.” He turned away.
She didn’t budge. “Why? What did I say?” She tilted her head as she looked at him.
“I said leave!”
His tone made her jump. She scrambled to her feet and collected the basin and cloth. She hurried from the room without another word.
Once she closed the doors behind her, Kavien walked over to the cutout in the wall, and looked over his gardens. Even though Faira had failed to give him an idea of what Lilae was really like, she had just revealed something he hadn’t even anticipated.
She was the best Seeker in Avia’Torena. He brought her along on recruiting missions, and she would always find him the best soldiers with skills. She had seen the Flame’s power. There was a clue in there somewhere. He would figure out Lilae’s mystery. He would just have to find out what he wanted himself.
***
Over his shoulder, to the west, stood red mountains and the sprawling desert that rose and fell like waves. Kavien stood there stoically. He watched the picturesque sunset quietly but his mind raced. Everything was about to change and yet he wasn’t sure what he was doing. He shook his head. He didn’t even know why he was so affected by Lilae. She was just another girl. He tried to convince himself of that. It wasn’t working.
He had her washed and dressed and brought to his private dining area. They sat on the large plush cushions on the floor at separate ends of the short black table. She avoided his stare and busied herself with watching the attendants bring out platters of steaming food.
The room was decorated with drapes that billowed along with the warm night breeze. The rain provided a soft melody in the background. Candles set upon tall pedestals bathed the room in a dim light. Such an unexpected invitation for her to join him resulted in a look of surprise on her face, and he loved watching her each expression. Obviously, Lilae had no idea how much he thought about her. Perhaps it was best that she was oblivious to how vulnerable she made him.
“Are you as innocent as you look?” Kavien broke the silence. He made his face unreadable. His voice would reveal nothing of the turmoil he felt. He took a piece of black bread and dipped it into the dish filled with creamy paste. He took a bite and watched her reaction. She stared at him with wide eyes.
Lilae shifted uneasily on her cushion. “What do you mean?”
He chewed his bread for a moment. He drank a long swig from his cup. He let her squirm a little longer as he savored the taste of the red berry wine. “I think you know. Let’s not pretend to be dumb. It’s not becoming of you.”
Lilae glared at him and his smile grew. It wasn’t the reaction he had expected. She was deliciously full of surprises. More, he thought. Show me more.
“I am a virgin, if that’s what you are asking.” She said it in a matter of fact tone, trying to hide her apprehension.
He detected her fear. Her breaths were shallow as if she half expected him to pounce on her at any moment. Kavien silently examined her face. He almost laughed at Lilae’s feigned bravery. She wasn’t good at hiding her emotions. It was endearing.
“Thank you.” He drank more wine. “That’s all I wanted to know. See? Simple isn’t it? I ask the questions, you answer them, no one gets hurt.”
“You don’t intend to kill me?”
“Why would I do that?”
There was silence between them. She stared at him, unblinking.
“What use would you be to me if you’re dead?” he waved a piece of bread around.
“What use am I to you alive?” Lilae made a face. “I’m not as stupid as everyone seems to think. You’re hiding something.”
His eyes darkened and any shred of friendliness faded from his face. She didn’t know. She couldn’t know. Could she?
Lilae challenged him with a look, despite h
er fear. His smile returned. Kavien had never met someone who vexed him so. She was an anomaly to him and he was determined to figure her out. He needed to learn her past, her secrets, and use them somehow.
“Go on,” he motioned to the food before them. “Eat.”
“Why are you doing this? Why can’t you let me go? You already have my powers, what threat am I to you now?”
“That would be too easy.” He drank the last of his wine and held his cup up for the servant. The woman filled the cup from a large vase and stepped back towards the door. “You deserve to suffer.” His mind went back to all of the things he had been taught growing up about the Chosen class. He wasn’t so sure he believed those teachings anymore.
Lilae held her hands out. “But why? What have I done to harm you?”
“You were born to interfere with my rule. I seek to unite the races under one rule. My rule.”
“What?”
“You’ll understand soon enough.”
“Understand?” Lilae’s brows drew in. “You can’t rule everybody. That’s absurd. Why would you even want to?”
Kavien paused from reaching for his cup. She had questioned him. He was on his feet so quickly that she fell backwards onto the floor. He grabbed her by the throat and pulled her close to his face.
“And why can’t I?”
Her face grew red. She desperately grabbed his wrists, trying to wrench free.
“Let’s remember something. I have you and there’s nothing you can do about it.”
She squirmed and struggled to breathe. His eyes widened and he let her go. He sat back on his heels, watching Lilae catch her breath. Her hair shifted from red to gold, like ripples on water. “Hasn’t anyone taught you about speaking out of turn?” He watching the beautiful change of colors.
Lilae’s eyes watering. “Yes. Dragnor.”
Kavien felt really guilty then. He couldn’t believe how much Dragnor influenced his actions. He had tried to be different from Dragnor. That elf had caused him enough pain. He hated how he was doing the same thing to Lilae.