"Of course you are. After this, you shall rest."
"Yes, Yuna."
"Poor Ren," Yuna murmured, wrapping her in a brief embrace. "You are the heart of the Empire now. You shall reign when no one else can. I can't imagine how hard it must be to lose your parents and your new husband at the same time. But don't forget that we are here for you. Azuma and I will love, cherish, and protect you. Together, we will help you, for many important people rely on your choices now."
Ren's heart chilled. She didn't want people to depend on her. She didn't want them to think of her as a leader. She just wanted to run away, to find her love, and live in peace and joy again.
"Are you feeling well?"
"A moment of dizziness, that's all. I saw Nobu Ameya being taken away and . . ."
"Yes, a terrifying thing for anyone. He's vile, isn't it? Iskawan is too good for the likes of him."
Ren's heart gave another tug.
Iskawan. What she wouldn't give to go, live there with Rakesh, and forget all of this.
"Now," Yuna said with a note of finality, "it’s time for you to do your assignment in the city. I know you're nervous, but remember I won't be far away. The Empire needs to see you do this on your own. And Ren? I know you can do this. Show the people how strong you are; that you are the princess they long for and the princess they need. Have you memorized the speech that Chancellor Qin prepared for you?"
Ren glanced to the parchment on her bedside table, then nodded. There was a knock on the door, and then someone opened the door.
"My Nishu Yuna, Nishu Ren?” a servant called. “I'm sorry to interrupt, but the bodies of the Emperor and the Prince are ready for the night funeral. The advanced preparations are finalized."
"Thank you. You may go."
Ren's maids drifted to different parts of the room, packing up cloaks, barrettes, or a warm muff for her hands that Ren could possibly need if the weather were to turn during the funeral.
Ren accepted the offer of Yuna's hand. Together they entered the hall, Ren taking a small measure of comfort from Yuna's presence. Yuna may seem cold and unfeeling, Ren thought, but she had always been there for her. Had always understood the true source of her pain.
"Come, Ren," Yuna, murmured, twining their fingers together. "Let us go put this behind us and move into a new and brighter future."
People lined the streets of An Wan. They packed the alleys and the streets; they stood on balconies and rooftops, watching the procession walk past.
Ren tried not to see the people bowing to her as she walked through the streets of the city along the funeral route toward the Temple of the Eternal Balance, where the Empire held the coronation ceremonies. She tried not to see much of anything, keeping her gaze focused on the back of Azuma's shirt.
She heard Bramen whisper to Azuma that he would leave soon to manage the clan back in Nagon.
She turned away from Bramen and Azuma to look at their Nari and Hiwan soldier escorts. She thought of the first part of the upcoming coronation ceremony: It would be in private because it was within the temple. Then the second one, it would be outside for all to see her. Cheer for her. Boo for her. Whatever they will.
The temple loomed ahead of her in mere moments, and Ren realized they had passed down the entire street almost without her knowing it. She felt a tremor of fear pass through her. Uncertainty.
What was she doing here? She was no leader. She wanted nothing to do with this.
She paused on the outer step, drew in a breath, then stepped inside the temple. The Sevakas – two priests – waited for her inside wearing robes of black and white. Three handmaids, the Dasyas, waited behind them, also dressed in long, trailing robes of the same colors.
The Sevakas closed the double door entrance behind Ren, leaving her in there alone with them.
Without a word, she followed the priests into a soaring hall, at the end of which lay a pool filled with clear water. Only the torches and the flickers of wall sconces and candlelight breached the darkness inside the hall. Carved symbols of the Sacred Triad decorated the walls here. One was a depiction of a hand holding a sphere of orange and white. Beneath it lay an empty table normally reserved for the tools of divination. No doubt removed years ago, following Saemon’s edict.
Baran, the Imperial High Priest, waited for her on the far side of the hall. The Sevaka priest and the Dasya priestess, tasked with assisting the High Priest during the crowning, surrounded him, whose elaborate black-and-white robe spilled onto the marble floor. A scepter in his right hand bore the symbol of the Triad. Jewels and other baubles decorated his shoulders and arms.
"The time for your purification bath has come," he intoned, his voice booming through the room. Ren lowered her gaze. "Let the Karan — or crowning ceremony—begin."
Several Dasyas bustled forward and nudged Ren up to the front of the pool. They reached for her robes, undoing the sashes and slowly removing her clothing piece by piece.
Ren's cheeks flared in embarrassment. Yuna had warned her about this, but she hadn't been truly prepared for all those strangers to see her unrobed, her entire body exposed .
Not a sound moved through the room once the Dasya finished.
"You may now enter the pool."
Ren stepped slowly into the shallow pool, moving carefully. The chilly water lapped around her ankles. She shivered, but forced herself to keep going deeper and deeper – even if it was only a vain attempt to hide herself from intense scrutiny.
Once the water covered her shoulders, fire flared around the room. The Sevakas burned incense, smoky perfume filling the air. A chant started to ring out in the ancient language. It continued for several minutes, bringing goosebumps to Ren's skin.
She just wanted this over with.
The High Priest spoke again, his deep voice filling the room as he invoked the Triad: Suryan, Canandra, and the Messenger Braham.
Ren focused on the water. The shadows. She ignored the chill and the onlookers. She thought of Rakesh, drawing strength from his memory.
"You have been purified," the High Priest announced once the chanting ceased. The Dasyas approached the pool again, holding out Ren's robes for her. Ren slipped out of the water and into them before they also dressed her in a gold and green robe that glittered with gems.
The Sevakas approached Ren. The trio carried three boxes with them.
"The Three Gifts of the Ruler," the High Priest announced. "Please open them."
Ren pried the first open to find a ring with a winged lion nestled in a swath of green silk. Her throat tightened, for she recognized it immediately.
That was Saemon's ring, and no doubt was meant to be handed from one ruler to the next.
This should have gone to Isao, she thought.
Next, she opened the second box. It contained a necklace with white and orange spheres that represented the Triad.
She found the third held an intricate golden scepter. The symbol of command.
Fear spread throughout Ren’s chest, solidifying what she already knew: She didn't want to be here. She didn't belong here. She was no ruler.
Ren swallowed heavily and turned to the High Priest with a grateful nod. One by one the Dasyas slipped the jade necklace over her neck, placed the ring on her middle finger, and set the scepter in her hand.
"Repeat with me," the High Priest intoned, "the Sacred Oath to serve the Empire: ‘I vow to serve the Empire with all my heart. To give my time, my will, and my life to their service.’"
Ren repeated the words, but they came out halting. Terrified, even, lined with a hesitation she could barely control. Did she sense a flicker of disapproval in the priest's gaze? Annoyance in his eyes?
Once finished, the High Priest straightened. "You are now the new Ruler and Empress of Marugan."
The Sevakas lit powder in glass jars, then connected the jars to long shoots of bamboo that trailed outside. Green smoke curled in the glass jars at first, then drifted higher into the shoots. From the shoots the smoke was
released into the sky.
The appearance of the smoke announced Ren’s anointment to all outside.
Cheers rang through the city.
Led by the Dasyas and two Sevakas, Ren followed them back out of the hall to the double doors. They opened, revealing Yuna standing just outside, a wide smile on her face.
"Ren," she murmured. "This is wonderful."
Azuma and Bramen Qin flanked Yuna on either side. They were also smiling.
"Come, sister," Yuna murmured. "It's time to meet the people. They have lost much recently, and we need to start out your rule by serving them."
Ren accepted Yuna's gentle tug down the stairs. She stared at the people as she passed by them.
A Hiwan scrivener scrambled along in the street ahead of Ren, a heavy parchment in his hand. As Ren began to walk through the city, he began to call out names.
"The names of those lost," Yuna murmured to Ren. "That is the Karensi with him, the Hiwan treasurer."
Some spectators shifted their eyes away as Ren walked past. Several scowled. Many glared at her with cold expressions and dark, soulless eyes.
After a while Ren clenched the scepter even tighter. The jade beads hung heavy on her chest.
Ren eyed the crowd with increasing discontent. She forcibly swallowed back fear.
After a time Ren noticed that the Karensi and several servants had started to drag bags of rice and Hana, the bronze coin of the Empire, behind them. Although Hana could be used to buy anything, in some places, bags of rice were as good as Hana, if not better.
"Here, Ren," Yuna said, pressing several Hana coins into her palms. "Give these poor people some condolences for all they've lost. We need to show them that we are here to lead and will help serve them."
Ren reached out, distributing coin after coin to those lining the street with murmured condolences, apologies for what they'd lost. She looked at what stood behind the people: broken buildings, caved-in ceilings, missing glass windows panes, broken doors. It seemed everything had burned.
These people, her people, were suffering. Scared. Tired.
None of them seemed happy to see her there, although their expressions brightened when she passed them rice or Hana.
They don't trust me, she thought, passing a bag of rice to an old woman with dirt on her cheeks and hunched shoulders. I don't blame them. I wouldn't trust me either.
Ren and her entourage continued their slow pace through the streets, meeting the people, and handing out food, coin, and condolences.
Some women sobbed. Children stared at her through distrustful eyes. Ren had a knot in her throat; she just wanted to be done.
Ren approached a woman in the Artisan District who was not much older than she was. The girl had tears streaming down her cheeks.
Ahead of Ren, the scrivener continued to call out names in a low sing-song.
Ren stopped, arrested by the sight of the woman's pain. "What is your name?"
The girl put her hands behind her back. "Reiko," she murmured.
"Your house has been damaged," Ren said, passing her two Hana. "Please, take this to help repair it. I'm so sorry that this happened."
Reiko pressed her thin lips together. Her entire body shook. She wants to hit me, Ren thought, taking in Reiko's flaring nostrils and cutting gaze.
"I cannot accept this," Reiko said.
"Reiko, come inside," called out a voice from entrance to her home. Its owner didn't step outside, but peered out at Ren through a crack in the door.
Ren tilted her head in curiosity. Something about Reiko's intensity, the livid rage bubbling within, sent a sharp pang through Ren. Reiko turned away from the Hana, leaving it untouched in Ren’s hand. The girl sent Ren one last scathing look, turned around, and disappeared inside her home.
Something overhead caught Ren’s gaze. She glanced up to see three crows. Mourning, she thought. Even the birds are crying.
"Come, Ren," Yuna murmured, putting a gentle hand on her arm. "Let's go."
Ren continued forward until they stepped into the central square of the city, the Cadra Muk, where tens of thousands of people congregated. There Ren climbed up onto a wooden stage set high above the crowd.
Ren gazed out onto a sea of faces below her. Yuna, Azuma, and Bramen Qin stood next to her. Yuna gave her an encouraging nod.
Ren moved her gaze to a building where she couldn't see any faces staring out at her. Her courage nearly fled her, but she forced her mouth to open.
"In the wake of the travesties and horrors of the past several days, I am here to be your new ruler. A strong Princess. The woman who will lead you out of the wilderness and back into better days. I will do everything I can to bring to justice those who have wronged us. Have betrayed and murdered us. Together, we can reestablish the balance within the Empire, support each other, and punish the traitors who would take our lives. I – "
"Lies!" someone shouted from the back of the crowd.
"Boo!" called out several voices in unison.
"The Hiwan are the true rulers."
"Down with the Nari!"
"This is nothing but a new regime. Maybe they stole the crown!"
Ren paused, sucking in a sharp breath. She'd known the people wouldn't support her at first, but this blatant disapproval and blind hatred robbed her of breath.
"Keep going, Ren," Yuna whispered over to her. "You can do this."
A number of Hiwan guards moved through the crowd, seeking out troublemakers to bear away to prisons.
A sense of overwhelming guilt welled up in Ren's chest. This was all her fault. If she would just be a better person, maybe they wouldn't feel that way. She tried to force strength into her voice, but it still wavered.
"Together,” she called, her voice ringing through the crowd, “we'll form a better, stronger Empire."
Ren stepped down amidst a chorus of angry jeers and celebratory cries.
"Come, Ren," Yuna murmured, wrapping a protective arm around her. "Let's get you out of here."
She and Azuma whisked their sister away, out of the crowd.
Ren was grateful to be taken away.
Evening descended as Ren, back at the imperial palace, walked slowly down a hallway, ruminating on all that had passed that day. For being the most important leader in the Empire, she felt no different. She still felt small in her own body. Lost in her own world.
The tinkle of plates and silverware sounded in the distance. Ren knew the servants were bustling around, preparing for the dinner to celebrate the Empire’s new leader. She swallowed at the thought.
After the dinner, everyone would go into the courtyard where the bodies of Saemon and Isao lay. All would watch the funeral rites, see the corpses of the Prince and the Sheng burn in the flames.
Ren shivered, startled to find she had wandered up to a door leading into the courtyard.
She hesitated, glanced around, and finding no one watching her, headed outside. Shadows plunged the courtyard into darkness, except for a few Hiwan guards who vigilantly watched the bodies of the old Emperor and his son. Ren approached slowly, eyeing the massive platform that had been built as the funeral pyre. Black lotus flowers surrounded the pyre. In the background, men and women moved about, no doubt preparing for the time they would chant and bless the bodies before they were burned.
Ren studied them in the silence.
Soon, the air would fill with heat, flame, and the melodic chants meant to accompany the Emperor into the heavenly realms of the Triad. Ren could almost imagine it: the sultry smoke. The distant noise. She studied the bodies, so calm in death, and felt a vague stirring.
She didn't ever get to know Isao. And Emperor Saemon had frightened her. Still, she felt sad for them. For the Empire. For her.
A cloud shifted overhead, spilling moonbeams onto the bodies.
Ren felt a tug at her heart.
How unlucky her young husband had been, to die so early, and fall so fast.
Isao
A strange stillness seemed to h
ang in the air over the Okuna glade.
In the aftermath of the battle, all were fatigued. Khalem dozed while Isao, Ranbelt, and Celty finished bandaging each other up, drinking and refilling water pouches, and discussing their next steps in low tones. Each kept looking over at the nearby trees, as if waiting for an enemy to jump on them from the forest.
Isao kept a careful eye on Ranbelt – a strong fighter, despite Isao’s assumptions otherwise – and noticed that his aura had changed; he had become morose and quite serious. For the first time, Isao wished the bright, almost annoyingly energetic, Ranbelt was back, even if he had been grating with his constant laughter.
"Well," Isao said, gazing out of the glade. "Let us press on. It will be a difficult journey. The sooner we arrive to Havin, the better for all of us. Especially Khalem."
Taking in a ragged breath, Khalem awoke at the sound of Isao's quiet murmurings.
The others helped him stand, putting around his bandages, tightening and retightening where they needed it. Khalem grimaced with every movement. His eyes flickered to Celty. "The herbs," he said. "They help a little. Thank you."
She inclined her head once.
They started off, with Isao eventually asking Celty to take the lead. She did so while taking extra precautions: holding her nose up to sniff the air often, and darting her eyes from place to place constantly. She kept a distance from the rest of the group, but Isao couldn’t be sure whether this was because they moved so slowly with Khalem, or because she wanted to meet the threats head-on by herself first.
They eventually moved out of the glade, and out of the highlands. The beautiful, rolling fields became flowery meadows, then grasslands. Here a strange stench filled the air.
Khalem, who panted with almost every step, grimaced. "The stink."
"Yes," Isao murmured, shaking his head. "The land here is . . . strange."
"We are nearing the Isan region," Ranbelt said. "Watch and prepare."
A few hours into their slow journey, Khalem stumbled. Isao reached forward, grabbing his mentor and catching him before he fell. Ranbelt quickly supported him from the right.
Faces of Betrayal Page 31