by F. F. John
She looks away from her screen, her face momentarily harsh in the sparse lighting of whatever hallway she’s hiding in.
When she looks back at me, I know I’m going to have to figure this out on my own. She confirms my fear when she finally says, “I don’t know but if you could convince Uncle Nabo, you can definitely get Invier to do what you want.”
I really hoped Bel would have some good tips for me on how to get Invier into the competition. Looks like I have to figure that part out on my own.
“I’ll have to make sure he can’t refuse to participate.”
She offers a conspiratorial smile. “That sounds very naughty. Do you have a plan brewing?”
“Not yet.”
She frowns. “Listen, getting him to say yes is the easy part. What you really need to worry about is getting him to the finish line. And by the way, stop slumping in your chair, it’s bad for your back.”
I sit up in my chair as ordered and stare at the frenetic sea. I’ve been so focused on figuring out how to get my father to agree to a Pursual and how to convince Invier to participate that I neglected to consider how I’ll ensure he wins.
“Oh no. I hadn’t thought about -”
A leathery hand replaces Bel’s face on the screen. The sight of it reminds me of the banana-scented lotion that usually accompanies its owner. Bel yelps in fright and a steely voice says, “I’ve got you!”
After a brief shot of the red stone walls of the hallways at the Mezan mansion, Mistress Ifan’s face fills my screen. With all our talking, we forgot she was hot on Bel’s trail.
“Who are you talking to?” The old woman demands.
I should disconnect the call before I’m caught, but I’m too stunned to react quickly enough. The next thing, I’m staring into the wrinkled face of Mistress Ifan. If she wanted to, she could look younger than Bel and I combined. After all, she’s mistress to Nome Mezan which is in charge of beauty, health and wellness.
However, Bel once told me that Mistress Ifan believes the desire is a thing of vanity and an unbecoming weakness that she will not succumb to. Despite my respect for her opinion, I won’t let myself look like her when I’m her age. I’m going to go the route Portan has chosen. He’s a hundred and thirty-one years old but he looks no older than sixty. And, as he always says “never let them see the wrinkles.” Besides, having a restorer as a best friend means I will always have access to the newest and best procedures to ensure I stay healthy and young for as long as possible.
“Scioness Reffour.”
The mention of my title sounds like a condemnation, not an acknowledgment of my presence and standing. Mistress Ifan’s voice is a strong wind whistling through a slightly open window and makes my body goes cold.
“You, young Neith, should provide a better example to your friend.” She hisses, hauling Bel’s arm closer to ensure she can see me properly.
“Yes...ah, yes, Mistress Ifan.” I mutter.
“What did you say?” Her voice is fierce and strong.
“Yes, Mistress Ifan.”
“Good, you must always enunciate, young Neith, or else the world will never hear you.” She nods at me, her brows strung closer to each other by the lines on her face. “And while you are at it, please discourage your friend here from these new hairstyles she wears underneath her restorer cloak. They are so pedestrian.” Bel says something that I can’t hear and Mistress Ifan shushes her. “One would think she gets her fashion inspiration from the Lesser Lands. It’s unbecoming of a lady belonging to an esteemed nome in the Twenty. In fact, it would be indecorous of a lady from a Lower House. And they barely have any sense of propriety, those people.”
Refusing to concede, I simply say, “thank you, Mistress Ifan.”
She takes my words to mean agreement and crows in satisfaction. “Lady Mezan may not be the Scioness of her Nome, but she is still a representative of this great family and must live up to the expectations of her position.”
“Hmm” is all I reply to Mistress Ifan. To my best friend, I say, “call me when you can, Belly,” and turn off my comm link.
What a dreadful way to end what was a pleasant conversation.
Invier.
His name floats into my consciousness and I smile, lightened despite that unpleasant encounter with Mistress Ifan.
It’s time to comm him.
I watch a wave scatter upon the black sand below.
“Seize the day.” I say out loud to nobody but myself.
Chapter Eleven
His lips break into a smile. That full bottom lip won’t let my gaze wander and so I give into my rude desire to stare at him.
Whatever niggling fear I had right before the call is now gone. I’m not worried about whether or not he will agree to be in the Pursual. All I can think about are his lips on mine and how happy he makes me.
“Neith.” My name from his lips drags my attention to the rest of his features. Whatever expression he sees, makes him snicker and say, “I’m happy to see you too.”
Warmth fills my cheeks and he laughs a little louder. “How are you?”
I want to stare at him all day but remember that we have a serious matter to discuss.
“I’m all right.” I focus on the wall of books behind him. Their spines are a rainbow of colors. Invier loves of old books - a characteristic I adore. While I appreciate history, his love is for books involving law. Sadly, law talk puts me to sleep when we talk at night. Luckily for me, it’s late morning and I’ll be able to stay up if he decides to start one such discussion.
His smile is still in place when a female voice says, “Do you need me for anything, Scion Floran?” Her tone is a little too sultry for my liking.
“No, thank you.”
His attention is back on me and his smile widens.
“How is your day going?” I ask him as normal as I can, though I am distracted with a need to know what the speaker looks like.
“Fine so far. I sat in on a few adjudications today and I was just finishing up my notes when you called.” He leans into the screen, the collar of his dark blue shirt wrinkles. “Seeing you is the best thing to happen to me today, though.”
“You rascal!” I say with a smile and wrap a few strands of my chocolate-hued locks around a finger. “We need to talk.”
He sits back. “What’s on your mind, darling?”
His pet name for me sends tingles across my entire body. Before I can enjoy the sensation, however, I hear Bel’s reminder in my head - if I could convince Father to agree with me, I should be able to convince Invier. After all, he loves and adores me. He’ll never tell me no.
Notwithstanding the internal pep talk, a quick gulp of air is needed to steady my growing nerves.
“Father and I had a conversation not too long ago and he -”
“I can ask for your hand in marriage?”
Invier is on the edge of his seat. His face brightens with anticipation and my hopes crash. We’ve had this conversation before. I’ve told him that my father’s focus is on profit and as his family ranks twentieth, the prospect of profit for my nome are negligible, if not close to nil. He refuses to understand that we need a different approach if we’re going to be together and asking for my hand is not the answer.
But, how am I going to tell him about the Pursual? My mouth dries like rain-starved desert. I slam it shut while I gather up my courage to say, “No, sweets. Father and I never discussed that.”
Invier looks away from the screen. He can’t camouflage his disappointment.
I continue, before I lose my confidence, “But he has agreed to a Pursual.”
He grits his teeth and closes his eyes. When they reopen, he asks, “Didn’t you mention something about that once?”
“Yes, I did.” My stress ebbs momentarily. He remembers that I mentioned the custom to him. That has to be a good sign, right?
“Yeah,” he snaps his fingers a few times as he recalls the memory. “We were talking about how pairings are ridiculous because they discount love
and emphasize profit as a metric for a good union.”
That was a tense chat and it resulted in our first argument. I don’t want to think about it. I love everything about Invier. He’s strongly principled and takes the time to understand what he believes in. He’s also very compassionate and caring - I love how in tune we are. However, that night ended in us being infuriated with each other’s stance on things. Given my understanding of how they came about, I don’t think pairings are stupid. They’ve played a key role in nome stability for centuries and that has been good for not just the nomes but the Sixty and even the people of the Lesser Lands. Invier’s preference for old-world marriages, where a man simply asks a woman to marry him, is perfectly fine. It’s just that, my father and nome society don’t appreciate that approach. It’s lost favor over time and due to necessity. I think Invier should be a bit more accommodating.
Either, he can see my reluctance to return to that night’s debate or he, himself, is hesitant to rip off the scab of an old wound because he says, “Let’s not talk about that. Your father is fine with you having a Pursual?”
His face becomes inscrutable and I find it unnerving. I need to be able to read his feelings from his expressions but right now, there are none. That’ll probably help make him a great adjudicator someday. Right now, though, he needs to help me out.
Unsure of what to say, I nod slowly. Eyes glued to his, I watch for any trace of what his reaction will be. I’m not prepared for what he says next and it shocks me to my core.
“Well, best of luck with that because I will not be a part of it.”
“Invier!” I don’t mean to admonish him but I can’t help it. “How can you say that?” My heart is on the verge of crashing to pieces.
“I love you, you know I do.” There is no doubt of his sincerity but as much as I want to take that as a positive sign, I know better. Something is bound to split my heart into tiny shards.
“I’ve always been very honest with you.” His hands are now in view and they implore me to understand. “I don’t care how powerful your nome is or that mine ranks last in the Twenty. Society should not dictate whether I can spend the rest of my life with you. You’re the one worried about that, not me.”
“That’s because I have to worry about it, Invier!” I yell at him as if that will make him change his mind. “If you don’t want to take on the responsibilities as your family’s scion, you at least have a sister who can step into the role of scioness and lead your nome in the future.”
Invier knows that there are no siblings to assume the mantle of managing my nome when my father dies. The duty to steer my family and the business in the right direction is on my shoulders. I don’t take it lightly.
“No darling, you have chosen to make what society thinks a preoccupation of yours. It doesn’t have to be.”
The pet name doesn’t have the same effect as earlier.
I clench my fists and shut my eyes. The world feels like it’s fallen out from underneath me and I’m hurtling into an abyss.
My voice is quieter when I say, “There’s not just society to consider, there’s also Father.” My eyes fling open. “I couldn’t be paired without his approval.” I stare at my hands, now placed in my lap. “I’m his only heir. I have responsibilities.”
“Listen, your father can’t stop us from marrying each other if we want -”
“Not without his approval, Invier.” I raise my voice and that brings all talk to a temporary end.
I sit there watching him and I feel my hands shaking. With a few short breaths, they begin to steady. Invier’s stubbornness is infuriating. Doesn’t he realize the importance of parental approval for a scioness in my position? If my father chooses to disown me, that would leave both Invier and I in a deplorable financial situation. I’d be cut off from our family’s wealth and with his family’s limited resources, where would that leave us? Or, our children? My mind is labored with these thoughts when he clears his throat.
“Whatever the case, why should your father’s happiness, that of your nome or even society stop you from being with who you love?” He groans in distaste. “I know I can only live for me.”
My hands resume their trembling. “Is that why you are preparing to become an adjudicator? Or is it because that’s what the Lords and Ladies of Nome Floran have done for generations?” My words are flames escaping from the hearth. They aim to burn and scald.
“I love what I do, Neith.” He’s cool, despite my harsh words and he offers me a smile seeped in pity. I can only seethe in silence as he continues, “I’d be training for this job even if I belonged to a different nome and if it wasn’t what I wanted to do, I’d be following whatever path would lead me to what I really wanted.”
Continuing to argue with him will lead us nowhere but I can’t resist one last try to convince him that a Pursual is the best option for us.
“Don’t say no just yet, Invier.” My voice is sweet to cajole him closer to my position. He knows what I’m doing and clenches his jaw. He wants to tell me no, but he also doesn’t want me to be mad. I use that to my advantage. “We’ll talk about it again when we’ve had a bit more time to think about things, hmm?”
He looks upwards and lets out a sigh. “I can’t promise that I’ll ever change my mind, darling.”
“That’s fine as long as you don’t make up your mind right this moment, sweets.” I murmur. “Talk to me about today’s adjudications.”
He’s so relieved to move on from the sore subject of my Pursual that he pours into the cases he witnessed. I listen and nod at the requisite intervals, my mind focused on a new objective.
I won’t give him an opportunity to refuse me again.
I’m going to get my way.
THE END.
Find out what happens next for Neith and Invier in THE PURSUAL, Book 1 of The Nome Chronicles.
Also, keep an eye open for THE PALADIN, Book 2 of The Nome Chronicles.
If you enjoyed this book, please leave a review at your online bookseller of choice. Thanks.
Glossary
Adjudicator (n): lawyer
AI (n): Artificial intelligence robots
Airship (n): mode of transportation
Coming of Age party (n): party held on the 17th birthday, when every individual achieves the age of majority, becoming an adult
Council (n): group of 10 representatives who meet to discuss matters concerning the Nomes
Doge (m): male who will not inherit control of his nome from his Titan or Titane
Dogenne (f): female equivalent of a Doge.
Ekebati (n): location of Nome Reffour’s Estate
Group of Twenty (n) twenty most powerful nomes
Insignia (n): emblem representing a nome and its conglomerates
Lower Houses (n): sixty families less powerful than the Group of Twenty Nomes. Their members play supportive business and administrative roles to the nomes
Master (n): male individual who is tied to a nome and gives advice to its Titan or Titane as well as aids in preparing a scion or scioness to one day become leader of a nome.
Mistress (n): female equivalent of a Master
Narthex (n): reception area outside Titan Nabo’s office
Nome (n): family belonging to the Group of Twenty
Opening Ceremony (n): precursor event to the Pursual competitions
Osmite (n): metallic substance mined for asteroids
Restorer (n): healers, doctors
Pairing (n): engagement period between a couple; trial period during which the nomes of the paired individuals work to seamlessly blend aspects of their businesses
Pairing Ceremony (n): event during which individuals are paired before their Nomes and other invited guests
Partite Relationships (n): marriage relationships involving more than two people
Pernold (n): location of Nome Mezan’s estate
Pomrose (n): popular drink made from a combination of pomegranate and other ingredients, can be alcoholic or non-alcoh
olic
Premiere (n): annual Debutante ball for daughters of the nomes that occurs on the third or fourth Saturday of June. Open to all girls who have achieved the age of majority by that date.
Pursual (n): competition to find a worthy Paladin to be paired with a wealthy scioness
Scion (n): male who will inherit control of his nome from his Titan or Titane.
Scioness (n): female equivalent of a scion.
Sixty, The (n): term used to reference the families of the Lower Houses.
Titan (n): male head of a Nome, typically the first born male child of a Titan or Titane inherits this position.
Titane (n): female equivalent of a Titan.
Author’s Note
Hope you enjoyed reading THE PROEM, Book 0.5 of The Nome Chronicles as much as I enjoyed writing it. If you did, consider leaving a review. Just a few sentences would be helpful. Reviews help to share your experience with other readers who depend on comments from people like you to guide their purchasing decision. Much thanks!