by Auryn Hadley
Ilija huffed out a breath. "It will be a long time before we can tell him that, I think."
"Yeah," she agreed. "Make sure he doesn't blame the rest of them, ok? Tell him when you get the news of us. It'll make him hurt less."
"No. You're coming home, Sal. I can't keep that secret from him forever, but when you come home, you can explain it all to him then, ok?"
She chuckled. "Sure. Or tell him when you get the news. Ilija, we know what we're going into. We're good. We're damned good, but we're not that good. This is a one-way trip. We're looking at nearly two hundred men to each of us. We can get in, but we won't get out." She sighed. "One more thing?"
"Anything. I mean that, Sal. Anything."
"Risk's lover, his name is Ahn Tilso. He's as human as Dominik. His sister will be arriving with a string of horses in early summer. Arianna Tilso. The horses are for Dom and the Shields. Most are young, but they're worth the wait. Tilso will be bringing Roo and the pups back. Take care of them?"
"Is the, uh," Ilija faltered, "man a soldier?"
"No. He's also more of a boy than a man. Twenty-one I think. He knows horses, though. Everything there is to know about a horse, he knows it. He's shy, and he won't want to say much, but he'll need someone to talk to. Losing Risk is going to tear him apart."
"What about Hwa?"
"I am going to try, but," she shook her head. "He'll want to help his pack."
"And you're leaving tonight?"
Sal nodded, standing. "Yeah. I'm sorry I'm going to miss your wedding. You've been a good friend to me, Ilija." She reached up and kissed his cheek gently, then turned and left the room. When the door closed behind her, Ilija wiped at his eyes. If she couldn't cry, he'd make sure someone did it for her. If he couldn't save those damned iliri himself, the least he could do is cry when they couldn't.
Chapter 49
The band played a powerful marching tune as the King took his place before his throne. Dominik stood proudly, finally looking like he belonged exactly where he was. Sal, flanked by the Black Blades, walked down the aisle from the palace entrance to the throne room. She glanced up at the balcony remembering the last time she'd taken this path, and smiled when the archers saluted her. When she reached the dais, she knelt, hearing the rest of her unit fall to a knee behind her.
"Kaisae Salryc Luxx," Dominik said. "Please rise. Your family, too."
Sal glanced at Dom to show her appreciation as she climbed to her feet. Without a command, the Blades formed a line extending from the throne. Sal and Jase walked to the King's left side. Behind her, the Verdant Shields entered, repeating the process. When the King gave them leave to rise, Ilija and Ricown mirrored her stance while their unit stood in opposition to the Blades. The music swelled, and carefully organized units in green marched toward them. Each one knelt when they stopped. When the last soldier had taken a knee, the song ended in a dramatic crescendo.
"Anglia," Dominik called out to both the citizens and the soldiers before him, "We have beaten Terric from our doorstep. We have pushed the enemy from our lands, and we have made new friends while we did it."
With those words, the grauori entered the building. Each beast made its way to the side of a soldier, laying beside him quietly. Rragri and Arrgro walked between them all, toward the King. When she reached the dais, she bowed her head, and Dominik mimicked her. They met before the people as equals. A grey male stood and walked to the dais, laying beside the King's throne.
"I would like to introduce the people of Anglia to our other citizens. Orassae Rragri, and her Ahnor Arrgro. Vargwar Harrgra will speak for them," Dom said, gesturing to each.
Rragri stood, and the translator said, "Anglia, for many centuries we have known you, but feared you. When de iliri came, we learned to view humans again, and to our sur'rise, we found friends among you. When de violet men came, we could no longer hide from dem, and see good humans die to bad ones. We, de grauori, have come to a decision. We feel dat de time has finally come for us to be one. No longer rhall we fight wif you. We beg you," Rragri turned to the King, and bowed her head, "to consider all of us as citizens of Anglia."
"You were here first," Dominik said. "Grauori held these lands long before humans were here. I would be proud to call you Anglians, but Orassae Rragri, I beg you to consider us as citizens of your land." Dominik bowed his head to her as he said it.
They let the silence hang across the hall for a long moment, and then Harrgra gave voice to Rragri's words again. "King Dominik Jens, Anglia is welcome to my land. We," and she gestured across the room, "would be proud to share all that we have with you."
"And we Anglians would be proud to call you citizens. While we're different, there's no reason that we cannot be equal and come together to make a whole. I would be proud to call all grauori citizens of Anglia, and give to you the same rights and protections as we give our human citizens," Dominik said. Rragri looked in Dominik's eyes, and he held her gaze. She stood, and he offered her his hand, her tongue falling to the side of her mouth as she lay her stubby hand in it. Across the hall, humans and grauori cheered.
"But," Dominik spoke, "We have soldiers to honor. Kaisae," he said, stepping aside.
Sal walked forward and called out. "Dalyr Trant!" The young man stood and walked toward her. When he stopped before her, he saluted crisply, but Sal shook her head slightly before he could kneel. "In the Second Battle of Barton Meadow, you showed bravery above and beyond the call of duty. You risked your life to save another – and were injured while doing so. Because of your actions, Ahnor Arrgro was able to walk into this hall today and become a true citizen of Anglia. Because of the sacrifice you made, we have strengthened our military and increased the number of citizens Anglia can call her own. These actions require that I promote you to Specialist."
People cheered, and Sal offered him her hand. His eyes widened as he accepted it, whispering, "I thought it was a dream. The drugs."
Sal smiled at him, "No. It was all real, and I meant every word of it."
Dalyr laughed and nodded, muffled by the roar of the crowd until Sal raised her hand.
"Because," she continued in her parade voice, "you have proven yourself a friend to the grauori, I am tasking you with forming an elite unit. You, and the men and women you choose, will be stationed with the grauori, serving as both translators and protection for the Orassae. While you have earned this position by your actions, I'm afraid that your rank as Specialist is not suited to the responsibilities that come with it. Therefore, I am forced to promote you to Lieutenant, with a review and possible promotion to be given with Orassae Rragri's consent."
Dalyr stared at her, barely comprehending the words. "You can't, Kaisae," he whispered.
"I can, I have, and you earned it," she said softly so that her words didn't carry. "I told you that you were a hero. I do not use those words lightly. Take care of them for me?"
He nodded. "I swear it, Sal." He glanced up quickly to see if the use of her name would cause offense.
"I meant it. Every word. See Ilija in the morning. He'll have your orders, uniform, new bars, and such. Enjoy tonight, and tell your girl that the Kaisae said she's pretty lucky."
Dalyr Trant saluted Sal, and spun on his heel perfectly, back to his place.
Sal called a few other names, promoting them for their actions in the battle and handing out minor medals to each. Every soldier was well aware that she did not touch another of them. When her list was complete, she stepped to the side, and Ilija took her place. He, too, had a short list of soldiers that were deserving of recognition. Unlike Sal, he shook the hand of each man he promoted. When he was finished, he returned to the King's side.
Rragri stepped forward next and called a list of Grauoran names. They all came forward and submitted before her. She spoke to them in their native tongue, and Vargwar Harrgra translated her words into Glish. "You have all demonstrated that you have skills that will help your pack, and that you can be counted on to follow orders wi'out oversight. Each
of you has risen above the expectations of common grauori, and shown that you have the traits we desire in the next generation. Because of this, I give you the right to breed. Congratulations, Gerus."
The grauori were the ones cheering this time. Their excited yips and growls were unexpected to many of the civilians in the hall. The soldiers all grinned and joined in. Rragri dismissed the Gerus and returned to her formal stance. With a deep sigh, Dominik stepped forward.
"And now, I would like to hand out my own awards. Kaisae and the Black Blades, will you step forward?"
Sal turned to face her king and waited until her men were in place before she knelt.
Dom looked at each of them. "There is no way Anglia can thank you for the actions you performed over the last few months. We've formed alliances," he gestured to Rragri, "and expanded our kingdom. Our culture has changed, and our citizens claim to be happier with their home than they've been in centuries. There is no way I can repay you for this – not truly. Kaisae. Ahnor. Both of you have become friends to me. In your honor, I want to make it known that I will accept all iliri who are fleeing Terric. We will welcome them here in Anglia as our citizens. Because of this, I have proclaimed that the title Kaisae – leader of the pack – shall only be used officially by the leader of the iliri. Rragri agrees with me and has suggested that her own people save the term for only the leader of the iliri. We have always known that you are citizens of the Conglomerate, and your actions have given us reason to discuss an alliance with them." He glanced quickly to the side, and Sal noticed a scribe recording his words. Dominik caught her eye and smiled. "You have made it clear – repeatedly – that your alliance is to the Conglomerate of Free Citizens, but Anglia is in your debt. The position of Kaisae shall be reserved for an iliri matriarch who has the discipline, knowledge, and instincts to truly lead all the iliri. Until that time, the iliri will be welcome to follow the rules of either the grauori or the humans, depending upon which they are more comfortable with."
Sal tipped her head in acknowledgment. "Thank you," she whispered.
Dom held up his hand. "Anglia shall be a kingdom of three people. The grauori who were here first, the iliri who descended from them, and the humans who came after. This is the least we can do for the people who saved us from tyranny. As of today, we will no longer use the stripes of silver and green, but declare the uniqueness of our country with a more fitting symbol. The triad." He gestured behind him to a banner with three interlocking silver circles on a field of deep forest green. "Furthermore, let it be known," Dominik glanced at Zep, "that anyone accepted by the Black Blades as a member of their pack shall be viewed as iliri regardless of his or her ancestry. We are a nation of many people. It is not, and shall never be the King's place to tell someone who or what they should be. You may rise."
Dominik held out his hand to her. When Sal moved to take it, he wrapped his arms around her, whispering in her ear. "It's not much, Sal. But it's public record. I listen, ya know. We're going to change the world, and we're going to do it the right way."
She stepped back to see his face. "Thank you. You know what comes next, right?"
He nodded. "Yeah. Go ahead." He stepped back and held out his hand to the floor gesturing for her to speak.
She glanced at her unit, and Jase nodded encouragement. One deep breath, then she turned to the packed room. "Anglia," she called out, and the people quickly fell silent. "For the last five months, I've worked closely with many of you. Some of us," she glanced up to where the nobles sat, catching Marcu Piet's eye, "have disagreed. Others have become my friends. Throughout my time here, I made no secret of my loyalties to my homeland and my intention to return to the Conglomerate. That time has come." The hall filled with murmurs, but Sal raised her hand. "You all have mastered the tactics necessary to prevent Terric from overrunning this country, and you agreed to become my allies. For this, I thank you, but it shows that my mission is complete." She turned to the King. "Your Majesty, I would like to request a boon."
Dom nodded once. "Of course, Sal."
"I would like to request that Colonel Ilija Vayu be instated as the Sergeant at Arms and leader of the Anglian army. It's my opinion that he's the best suited to continue the work I started."
The King smiled. "I'd be happy to grant that. I swear it shall be so."
"Thank you, sire. Then," she turned back to the people in the hall, "I would like to thank you all for what you have given me. I regret that my duties require that I resign my position as leader of the Anglian military. I, therefore, renounce the title of Sergeant at Arms and any claim to Anglia that may be given with it. We, The Black Blades, wish your country health, happiness, and prosperity. To all of my friends in the military, I hope that we only meet in the best of circumstances." Sal bowed her head, but continued in a clear voice, "Gar corvae van alous ed ca tola, lor sinna edst gar wona denn." She saluted the entire Anglian military, snapping her hand to the corner of her eye. Then, without a word between them, the Black Blades stepped from the dais and moved to the side of the hall.
Cyno translated for the Blades. My love will always be with Anglia, for this is my true home. Then smiled at her. Well said, kitten.
Chapter 50
When the Blades were no longer the center of attention, the King turned to Ilija. "Colonel Vayu, I hereby promote you to Sergeant at Arms, both because I agree that you are the best man for the position and because it fulfills my boon to the Kaisae."
"Thank you, sire. I would be proud to accept the position," Ilija said, but Dominik held up his hand.
"I must also thank you for the service you performed for us. You have so far managed to prevent the first attempt Terric made to cause a diplomatic incident with their envoy, assisted with detaining the assassins, were the first man to assist me when I was wounded – even though you were not even on duty. You formed and lead the first elite unit of the Anglian military, and the Verdant Shields performed their duties flawlessly in battle. You collected and detained the Terran prisoners and were instrumental in assisting in their defection from Terric or removing them from Anglian soil. Any one of these things would be impressive, but all of them together makes it clear to me that you are no ordinary man. Anglia has always prided ourselves on rewarding those who excel, and Ilija Vayu, I believe you fit that definition. Colonel, would you please kneel?"
Ilija bent his knee before the King.
"Colonel Ilija Vayu, can you swear to honor the Anglian constitution, the positions of King, Kaisae, and Orassae equally, and serve those men below you as they shall serve you?"
"I do, sire,"
"Then I bestow upon you and the heirs of your body, the Marquis of Valmere. Please rise, Lord Colonel Ilija Vayu Valmere."
Ilija rose, a grin spreading across his face. The soldiers and civilians cheered loudly. The new noble raised his hand, begging the hall to quiet. When the sound was but a murmur, he turned to the balcony where the nobles sat and looked up. He smiled and turned back to the King. "King Jens," he said his voice trembling slightly, and the hall fell silent, straining to hear his words. "I know I have no place to dare ask for anything more, sire, but I will anyway." He bowed his head. "Sire, may I have permission to ask for your sister's hand in marriage?"
Dominik chuckled. "You have my permission to ask, but that is all I can give you. My sister now has the right to make her own decisions."
Ilija swallowed nervously and turned back to the balcony. "Princess Vanica Jens?" he said loudly, and Sal found herself smiling as he dropped back to his knee. "I started as a kitchen servant, and I worked up to a stable hand. I joined the army and fought my way to become an officer. As a Sergeant, I proved myself able to be a Colonel, and I was rewarded with the leadership of the Anglian army. Today, I have finally earned the one thing that I wanted all my life: the right to ask you to marry me. Vanica," Ilija took a deep breath. "Would you ever consider marrying a man like me? Would you become my wife?"
The Princess stepped forward from the back row of the nob
les. She stared over the balcony at him and smiled. "Ilija Vayu, I told you more than a decade ago that you were a great man. Do you believe me yet?" Ilija shrugged, and Vanica continued. "Admit it. Here before all of them," she said, gesturing to the knot of pages.
"That I'm proud of our children? That Jarl and Nava are as strong as their mother, and I can only hope that they inherited little from me? Yeah, Nica. I'll admit their mine. I would be a fool not to be proud to call them mine. Jarl," Ilija looked over at the boy, and swallowed, "will be ten times the man that I am. He's already proven that. Nava is as strong of a girl as any iliri, and that's nothing but praise in my eyes." He turned to the crowd of people in the throne room and said loudly. "Both of Princess Vanica's children are mine. I claim them, and I give them legitimacy."
"Then I'll marry you, you big fool," Vanica yelled down at him. She stepped away from the balcony and disappeared through the door.
The hall cheered, and Ilija sighed in relief.
Dominik thumped his shoulder before offering a hand up. "Welcome to the family, my brother. That's why you got Valmere. From now on, you'll stop with all the Kinging shit with me, ok?" Then he pulled Ilija into a big hug. The men pounded each other's back proudly, grinning at each other. Eventually, Dominik pulled away and turned to address the crowd.
"For me, this is what Anglia is," he gestured to Ilija. "A man who worked his way up from nothing. A King who was the son of a bastard. A group of men and women who are the bravest people, regardless of what word they use to name their species. Let us celebrate Anglia!"
Dominik stepped from the dais and gestured for the Shields and other nobles to proceed him through the doors to the smaller hall beyond. Sal looked at her men, but a thought whispered across her mind.