He must have Riboni blood, she thought; their kind was very rare in Dravia. After the rebellion not many remained, and those who did were still subjected to demeaning servitude to Dravian nobles. After years of being enslaved they rebelled many years ago resulting in many of them being either executed or driven from Dravia. Tragic, considering Ribonians had been a respected and powerful nation for centuries in Saharia, until Dravia managed to conquer them. They were every kingdom’s reference point for what could happen without solid leadership and good defenses. Shadaya had never known of any noble with Riboni blood, but then again, she had been avoiding their circles so much that she was not very acquainted with the seven families as she should be. She frowned at him, taking in more of his odd features, now she doubted he was Riboni at all, his pointed ears seemed to twitch under her scrutiny, and her eyes widened in surprise. This earned her a good-natured grin.
"I’m fine," she finally replied, feeling foolish for being so distracted by this stranger. From the corner of her eyes she saw Bertrand hurrying towards her, she waved her hand at him in warning.
The man before her clearly did not know who she was, it was highly unlikely that someone of her stature would be standing alone and unguarded in such a dangerous village. She was grateful that she often wore her most unflattering dresses when visiting here.
"Thank yeh, kind sire," she replied in her best imitation of the kitchen maid at the Quadin manor.
He smiled, surprisingly it was genuine enough to reach his eyes. Eyes that seemed to hold a depth of knowledge and wisdom she had yet to see in the brightest of Dravian minds. Shadaya frowned, he was either the kindest nobleman she had ever met, or he had something else up his sleeve. She took a step back, just as a uniformed man walked up to him and handed him her purse.
"Thank you, Cad," he said before turning those tender eyes back to her.
"I believe this belongs to you."
She drew her attention away from the man's uniform, it looked official, yet she did not know the crest. She took the offered purse and was sure her confused expression further helped with her pretense of peasant in distress.
"Stay alert in these streets now," with that he turned and stalked away, the uniformed man at his heels.
Bertrand rushed toward her now, his eyes wide, "Mi lady I am so sorry."
Shadaya shook her head, "nothing to be sorry about. See I have my purse and not a hair is out of place."
Bertrand grimaced, "well actually madam," he lifted a nervous finger toward her cheek, "You have a bit of a... smudge on your cheek."
She reached up to touch her cheek frantically and when she withdrew her hand the smell of horse dung stung her eyes.
"Oh ugh!"
"Come let us get you cleaned up," Bertrand was saying.
She shook out a handkerchief from her purse and swiped at her cheek as she hobbled to the carriage, aching knees joining her body aches from last night. Her mind wandered back to the young man who had helped her, such kindness was a rare commodity in her circles. She should be embarrassed and wish to never see him again, but she looked forward to another chance to cross his path. Her desire had little to do with the fact that he had been shrouded in delicious smelling Aris petals and donned the most genuine smile she had ever seen on a man. Instead, it was because she knew his presence here in the peasants’ village was significant. She needed to know if her actions last night would be knocking on her door anytime soon.
Her next visit for the day was her mother’s theatre. On her way in the theatre Shadaya ran into a stark looking man, whose indifferent glance made her feel as significant as a gnat. He wore the palace guard uniform and a scowl enough to trap her greeting in her throat. She stared after him for a moment; he was not exactly part of her mother's regular theatre crowd.
She had returned to the manor to clean up and switch into clothing more aligned to her status and being true to her word, had come to see Henry.
Her mother was in the aisle in front of the stage, directing a scene when Shadaya stepped up beside her. Lidelia kept her eyes trained on her fumbling actors with furrows of concentration etched between her brows.
"Who was that soldier leaving just now?"
Her mother frowned, tilting her head toward her slightly, "none of your concern Shadaya."
"He hardly looks like a drama enthusiast."
Her mother turned to level hard sky eyes on her and for a moment she felt like a child, "leave it be," she said firmly, "not every matter of the estate concerns you."
So, it was relating to the estate. Shadaya parted her lips to reply but shut it again at the twitch of a muscle in her mother's jaw that she knew so well. She took a step back.
"Your leading man has two left feet," Shadaya said, "the leading lady is so stilted because she is utterly afraid for her toes."
Her mother turned her attention to the wide-eyed man, whose costume was way too big for his frame. Shadaya smiled, Henry must not like him for the part to dress him in such a hideous costume, she thought.
Her mother grunted, "I do believe you are right," she said.
"Of course, I am," Shadaya said with a wave of her hand.
As she turned away, her thoughts about her mother’s dismissive response resumed. Something was up and her father did not raise her to hope the threats she sensed in her gut would go away. She made her way to the back in search of Henry.
Henry had lived downstairs the theatre even before her mother had bought it. His quarters doubled as his living space, workshop and now the base of Shadaya’s secret operations.
“Took you long enough,” he said, as soon as she entered the room.
He always had an unnerving way of knowing when she was around, no matter how stealthily she moved.
Shadaya smiled, “sorry about that. But with everything that’s happened, I had to keep a low profile.”
“Ahh yes, you’re right. I still cannot believe our king is dead and a pouty brat is leading us. Did you have any problems last night?”
Shadaya shifted her gaze from Henry's unnerving stare, his question hanging in the air between them like the countless masks that littered the walls and hung from the ceiling of his studio. Henry was a stout grey-haired man, the wrinkles around his eyes and forehead, a testament to his dance with time, yet his green eyes still glistened with youth. The very youth that poured into his creations and gave him the reputation of being the best costume designer in Dravia. He had worked in the theatre for as long as Shadaya had known him, back then his long grey hair was a shiny golden shade, that bounced along his shoulders with his unwavering energy. He was slower now, but his eyes still glistened with the natural enthusiasm she admired so much.
“I heard two girls managed to escape a selection grab last night,” Henry said, eyes focused on the swift movement of his fingers, deftly sewing an elaborate stitch onto the edge of the mask.
“Was that your doing?”
“Yes, one of them is the daughter of one of my servants,” she shook her head, “I did not plan to intervene, but I am happy that she is safe.”
Henry lifted his gaze and smirked, “I was hoping it was you. It means you are out and about again.”
“Are you mad that I haven’t been around?”
He shrugged, “I wondered if you were just laying low or avoiding me for some reason.”
“I am sorry. I was thinking about… a lot. But I hope that I can make it up to you.”
Shadaya took a seat on a stool nearby and placed a small satchel on the table beside her.
Henry perked up, “you got it?”
“I did,” she replied, “don’t ask me how.”
“Were you seen?”
“No, no, I don’t think I was. The potion, well it worked perfectly. But something was different this time, it knocked me out. I barely made it home before I passed out.”
“Hmm, I’ll have to adjust the measurements,” he said thoughtfully.
“You may need a stronger dosage.”
“No
need Henry, I’m starting to think I can do without your magic.”
“Nonsense, if you’re going to embark on something so risky, you need to protect yourself. And you know it’s not just about the agility it gives you. It can help keep you from being identified. If anyone sees your face or recognizes your voice, they will be able to trace you to your family. It would be absolute uproar if the prince should find out that a descendent of Rad, is going against him. He would turn over every stone himself to find you. I’ll adjust the measurements, it may not give you the speed you are accustomed to, but it will keep you adequately disguised. It’s actually time you started using your own magic.”
Shadaya arched a brow, “you think I’m ready?”
“I believe you were born ready,” he said with a smile, “I’ve actually started working on something.”
He got up now and after picking up the satchel she had brought him, approached a shelf next to his workstation, he pulled a lever on the side of it and the shelf slid slowly to the side. Shadaya got up and followed him inside.
Inside the small room was where he did his mixtures, potions and magic. Above his work table, a short rod was attached to the wall as the only décor in the room. Shadaya knew that it was his channeling rod, every sorcerer started off with one until they grew strong enough to access their magic without a channeler. Henry had taught her some things about magic. It had been new to her at one point in time, because despite being Dravian, her father never exposed her to magic. It had always been a foreign, yet intriguing Dravian practice, that was never to be handled by her. But not anymore.
She picked up an old potion bottle and dusted a bit into a silver bowl, then added a splash of another ingredient, the result was a bright glow that filled the small space with yellow light.
Henry chuckled, “you’re getting very good at that. But that is only the tip of the iceberg that is magic. With the power you can possess, no one will be able to stop you.”
“I don’t know if I can be a sorcerer like you.”
“No, you can be better.”
Shadaya’s eyes perused the small space, she knew that in the locked cabinet in the corner of the room were some of the items she had acquired for Henry. In addition to her stealing from the Pillars and helping the poor, Shadaya and Henry had other goals.
Those items according to Henry, was all towards their shared goal of setting Dravia free from Haddin’s grasp and possibly getting back at the Demeris line for her father’s death. Henry like Shadaya, thought that Drayton was a better choice for king. In that cabinet he now placed the newly acquired item, next to her most difficult and most powerful acquisition, she was not sure about what it could do. It was nothing more than a hideous looking rock set in a silver ring. She had wondered about handing it over to Henry, it was guarded like something that held great work or power. That reality made her want to get rid of it as soon as possible. The new addition however did not make sense to her.
She gestured to the satchel, “I don’t understand why someone would go through the trouble of guarding that. It’s just a boring old chain.”
Henry turned to look at her with an excited smile, “I know apart they look like nothing but a plain rock that a child tosses on a lake for fun and a chain strung together by someone’s well-meaning grandmother. But together these make one of the most powerful weapons in all Saharia.”
He closed and locked the cabinet, “it’s why it’s safer locked away here than out there.”
Shadaya watched him drop the key into the breast pocket of his shirt. Before turning away from her again.
“This is what I wanted to show you,” Henry said, turning toward her now with an exited grin on his face.
He lifted a black leather mask towards her, the intricate cut of it, allowed for it to cover up to the forehead, with a claw like cut extending down the cheek bones. It was beautiful. Henry noticed her look of appreciation and smiled proudly.
“You like it,” he said, “that’s good, because I made it for you. I just have to make a few more adjustments to my measurements and it will be able to do for you what the potion does, without the side effects. It will be like your own channeling item.”
Shadaya sighed, “I don’t know Henry. I don’t want you to go through all this trouble.”
“Nonsense,” he countered, “we are in this together, and we’re close. Soon you will have a better handle on this magic than I, then no one will be able to stop you.”
Shadaya did not know what his measure was for coming to such a conclusion. But she nodded in halfhearted agreement. Getting deeper into magic made her nervous. She had not told Henry about her part in the castle breach, she was not sure how he would take the news that she had assisted the Aldorians in rescuing their princess. She had thought it the right thing to do at the time to save Dravia, but she wasn’t sure he would see it that way.
“Are you sure we’re doing the right thing? I just wanted to do something worthwhile.”
“And you have, you saved many souls these past few weeks. You’ve managed to thwart many plans of evil men. Now with Haddin inches from the throne, we cannot give up. Progress, change… that is proof that you are doing the right thing.”
Shadaya clenched her fists at her sides, "the very thought of prince Haddin gives me chills. I too am hopeful that things will turn around with Drayton next in line for the throne. He is of a much kinder spirit than his father and brother. He will surely put an end to this foolishness. Dravia used to be a much kinder place than it is now.”
Henry shook his head, "Dravia has always been a place of illusions. King Wanland, oh he was the best of the illusionists and his brother, when he took the throne, he too managed to maintain the illusion for a time. I lived through it and I remembered thinking that an illusion of safety and goodness is better than the reality of what happens in the shadows of Dravia. King Demeris was a cruel man, and his son is no different.”
Shadaya frowned, “I understand your animosity towards the throne Henry. But I refuse to believe that Dravia is the evil place you make it out to be. With the right leader in place we can turn this place around.”
Henry nodded, “you’re right, we can. And you are key to this, no one else can do what you do as well as you do. You have the resources, you have the skill, you have the passion.”
He extended a hand towards her and a small green light ball with mini lightening tendrils hovered above his palm. In a daunting display of power.
“Put your hand out.”
Shadaya obeyed. Henry gently turned his palm over hers and the ball dropped inches from her own hand. She felt its power surge through her, and the ball started to shake as if about to explode.
“Think about holding it together,” he kept his hand close.
Shadaya concentrated hard, until the light ball became smoother and more stable in her palm. With wide eyes she looked up at Henry.
“You’re a natural,” he said.
“The leadership of this kingdom for years have dug their roots deep into the cesspool of cruelty in pursuit of power. Using magic to control and instill fear, well I decided I would never use my understanding of the arts to help them terrorize others. I use magic for the greater good of my world. You can ensure that Drayton isn’t blocked from the throne Shadaya. Despite being in line for it, you know these people do not respect law and rule. We have to make it happen!”
Henry’s passion almost made her second guess wanting to stop.
“I want to help Henry, but at what cost? What will I become?”
“You’re giving the people hope, Shadaya.”
Shadaya rolled her eyes, "People are so eager for someone to come save them they will say all sorts of things." she huffed.
Henry returned the mask to its place and turned to her with a smile.
“Nothing’s wrong with knowing you need saving and looking out for someone to do exactly that. Don’t cheapen the people’s desire to see change in this kingdom. Don’t cheapen everything you have ac
complished here.”
They exited the little room and Henry put the shelf back in place. He then returned to his workstation with a sigh.
“By the way who is the man I just saw leaving the theatre. He wore a soldier’s uniform and had come to see my mother. She seemed very… defensive of him.”
Henry chuckled as he turned and hunched over an intricate beading pattern on a mask.
“That was Captain Hesk of the high guard."
Shadaya frowned, "the high guard?" her heart skipped a beat at the implications.
"But... what business would he have with my mother."
"That man has carried a flame for your mother since before your father's death. But you know Lidelia, romance is just part of the stage."
Henry was right, even with her father, her mother played games. Shadaya always knew that her parents married because of their status and lineage, an attempt by their parents no doubt to keep their offspring pure. Offspring meaning, her, the sole heir with no desire for marriage. But she never thought that she might entertain another relationship.
“Ugh, I do not want to think about someone carrying a flame for my mother.”
“Would you rather think about your own flailing love life?”
Henry’s amusement over the lack of romance in her life always annoyed her. He could shift so quickly from that intense co-conspirator to a teasing close friend.
"We both know that marrying for love is unlikely for me."
"And why is that Shadaya?"
Henry looked up from his work with a stern frown, one that reminded her of the days when her feet dangled inches from the ground from the very stool she now sat upon. Henry had never married, he had told her that he had only fallen in love once in his life and when she was taken from him before he could profess his love to her, something broke inside him. He was pretty sure that it was the part that would have made it possible for him to love again.
“The responsibilities of running my father's estate is a great one to take on alone I admit, but my fear is only heightened by the turn of events in this kingdom. I can’t think about such trivial empty things like relationships or love.
Shadaya: Out of Darkness (Gemstone Royals) Page 4