“He was so brave and patriotic that he outsmarted the enemies and gave the most difficult yet clever tactics for his leaders to follow. He wouldn’t count twice before firing or hitting the red button and blowing up an entire Amazonian camp.” Una looked down admiring her own story. “For three years he kept coming and going back to war. Nothing fazed him. He would come and drink with his mates and would laugh at any silly joke they said, without letting the stained memory of the war change the way he perceived our beautiful world.”
“He is emotionally damaged,” Riley finally let out. She was surprised and a little shocked at the things she was hearing. Was Jonathan void of emotions? Of reaction to trauma? She had heard about the tales of the battles in the Amazon. Some of the people who survived committed suicide a month after returning home. They were unable to live with the nightmares haunting them from the horrible sights the West’s weapons had brought to their presence. What was even more stunning was the fact that Una was telling her Jonathan’s story in perfect details, although Riley was already aware of his pure bloodline.
“Oh, no! On the contrary, he is a very brave man. People even wrote poems about him.”
“Governmental poems I believe.”
“Yes!” Una excitedly clapped her hands. “Do you want to hear one?”
Riley sighed and nodded. “Did you actually memorize it?”
“Carved from Mother Earth’s womb—”
“Apparently yes.”
“A stern tree gave birth to a child of war,
Throwing the enemies to their doom,
His name forever in a book of lore,”
It went on for fifteen minutes with Una struggling to remember the exact lines of the poem. She gave up after the twentieth stanza.
“Wait, I think it ended with glory?” Una looked down then up at the ceiling. “Or was it story?”
“You know what? I will make sure to purchase a copy of that poem. It was fun hearing you recite it.”
Una nodded and looked down again.
When Riley opened the drawer again, Una decided to continue.
“And after returning from the war, he settled in the castle again and helped with political matters. He was and still is the king’s favourite person in the world. He would take his advice and ask about a few things Jonathan had taken upon himself to investigate. And slowly he was introduced to the Assembly. A few weeks later, he was assigned as the king’s consultant.”
“Oh, interesting,” Riley replied lowly. She knew that story was not entirely true. Una was telling her this to hide the identity of the next possible heir.
“I think it’s better if you go for these ones,” Una chimed in and held out two large pearl earrings.
“Yes, they are perfect.”
Rufus walked the long hallway with his guard, Quinton. It seemed easy to reach the office at first, but later on, the floor itself seemed to slow him down. The walls were melting around him and his legs began to wobble.
“Sir Patrick.” Quinton turned around when the old man stopped. “Are you alright?”
It seemed to Rufus that there were four Quintons talking to him. Nausea made it difficult to respond, for if he uttered one word, he would throw up.
“Sir Patrick, if you please—” Quinton pleaded him and held him up in his sturdy arms. Rufus leaned on his guard and tried to breathe slowly. With every breath, the dizziness was wearing off.
“I’m alright, Quinton. I’m alright.” He breathlessly stood straight and closed his eyes.
“I will call for help.” As Quinton snitched the cellulogram out of his inner pocket, Rufus caught his arm and looked him in the eyes.
“This has been happening to me once every damn day for a month now. It won’t happen again today.”
Quinton nodded then let go of him. Rufus straightened up and kept walking.
When he reached Charles Arnold’s office, the latter opened the door smiling widely. It was when the door closed behind them that the circus would officially appear on every telly in the East. It was right then that Rufus had put the show under the surveillance of the kingdom. One shake of the hand of an aging man with one of a raging thief led to the change in the destiny of Cirque Et Feu.
Independence Day had arrived.
Every balcony in Regitum was decorated in black to mourn the death of the eastern soldiers. The public sector along with the private one hung the flag of Regitum and Noteram and chanted the anthem all so lovingly. Three dimensional shapes of the Regitan flag were reflected on the walls of the castle and reported live on national and international television. There was food of all sorts everywhere. The servants were running everywhere, changing the flowers in the vases. Specialists were trimming and fixing the Royal Garden. Tables were set on different patios outside the castle gates to conduct interviews with the Assembly members and film how the castle celebrated Independence Day.
Inside the main hall, where the show of the circus was going to take place, Cirque Et Feu gathered to agree upon the details of the performance. Everyone was tense and aflame. They had dreamt of that moment for a very long time. Now that is was happening, everything had to be perfected.
“Is everyone here?” Rufus arrived quickly and stood between them. The crew nodded. “Mathew, Riley, Marcus, Charlotte, the twins, and Fay. Alright. You do remember your parts. Right, mes amis?”
“We’ve been practicing for a long time, for this performance I mean,” Marilyn assured everyone.
“How are you never nervous?!” Fay frowned at her friend. “I shit my pants every time I go on stage. And this myth of imagining the crowd naked? That does not work well with a super weird looking audience.”
Marilyn laughed. “Don’t be too hard on yourself. It’s just a show.”
“But it is not!” Flore exclaimed. “It is for the entire kingdom! The king is here.”
“Can y’all stop panicking so we can go over the script?” Mathew cut them off. “This particular performance is rarely acted out because of how careful we should be and the assistance we need of extra dancers. So let’s see. Marilyn and Flore, you go first. Fay—”
Fay smirked at him.
“I know. I know. I have to make the snakes dance. Wouldn’t be the first time.” She winked at him.
Mathew shook his head in disbelief. The rest of the group laughed at how easily Fay could irritate him.
“Fire… Fire, yes!” Mathew took the small notebook Rufus was carrying and tapped on Marcus’s name. “You have to come with the fire followed by Charlotte on the strings.”
“And then comes prince charming.” Riley smiled proudly at her friend. His part of the performance was beautiful.
“And then I come.” He raised one eyebrow at her with a smug look on his face. “After the blinding light, uh, yes, it’s you.” He pointed at her.
“I won’t disappoint you, boss.”
They all snickered and nodded in agreement. As they dispersed around the room and some of them went to the changing rooms, Riley remained in her place looking around her. As much as she tried to keep herself under control, she was scared. Today was the day and she was scared. She was scared she would mess up. She was scared the king would no longer hold on to her influence on his decisions. She was scared her scam would be revealed and she would be put to death without achieving anything and her efforts would be in vain.
“The only step I could take now is forward. There is no turning back,” she whispered to herself and went to change.
A black cloud of Notermen and Noterwomen was floating forward on the endless streets of the farming zones of Regitum, not too far from the castle, black capes covering their bodies. They were chanting governmental poems to praise their king and his rich history of obtaining independence from the West. Even though a small percentage of those who were roaming the roads believed in this independence, the rest wanted to live in the fictional reality where they were free and their king truly cared about them. Otherwise, they would depress themselves to death with t
he routine and unsatisfying lives.
Jonathan covered his head and face with the black cape, walked with the people, and chanted with them. They did not recognize him or even notice that he was a member of the Assembly.
As his eyes scanned the place, he felt a couple of other ones following him. He could not venture on the possibility of believing that his mind, damaged by the war, was playing tricks on him, because if that weren’t true, he would put his life in danger. He had been escaping that particular cape for long five minutes. The quicker he tried to walk, the more he saw of that cape.
Abandoning his guards way back, Jonathan launched forward through a crowded part of the walk. As soon as he turned around to see if whoever was following him had disappeared, he felt two hands snatching him to the side and throwing him inside the nearest empty warehouse. Jonathan’s breaths quickened, afraid of being exposed as the true heir of the throne, and waited for the assassin to show his face. When the man stepped out of the dark, he pulled the cape away from his head and stared back at the prince.
“Brother?” Jonathan whispered.
Gabriel Freedian stared back at him.
Chapter 17
The gigantic walls of the hall extended upwards. They were like two prison walls intermingled with false promises that entrapped Riley inside. She sat in the middle contemplating the seating arrangement around her and sighed. As the crew passed from the changing room to the small kitchenette next to it, they watched her. She was unhappy, and no one was able to make her enthusiasm return.
She felt her friend sitting next to her, his eyes focused on her face.
“What’s wrong?” sweetly, Mathew asked.
“I’m afraid.” She played with the elastic bracelet around her wrist.
“Of what? Performing?” he tittered. “Since when?!”
“Not performing… being exposed.”
“You mean—” he started but shut up immediately. She had every right to be afraid, for if her nature was to be unveiled in the castle, she would be executed hurriedly. The West was not gentle towards run-away tricksters. It would not be gentle with her. Even the king cannot protect her… if he weren’t the one who would send her to her death in the first place.
“What if there were western tricksters attending the show, Matt?”
“Rye, you’re strong. I’m not worried about you.” He tried to comfort her, but something told him that it was in vain.
“What I am sure of is that the king is not a trickster.” She covered her mouth and lowered her voice. “That is a good thing.”
“Wait, but what if there are royals who are tricksters?”
“They are not immune to my powers. No one is. I just don’t want any trickster capable of telling the difference between illusionary oxen and real ones.”
“That’s possible?”
“Yes. If they were professional tricksters themselves, they would recognize the signs and ask questions.”
Mathew sighed.
“I know it’s risky but you have no choice now. We are already in the castle so we better make the best out of it. And no one will lay a hand on you, or they have to go through me first.”
At this, Riley laughed. She nudged his shoulder and shook her head.
“Yeah, sure, macho man. You do know that one click of a button could make us both disappear.”
“So, you never cared to mention,” he added. “What happened with this Jonathan? He seemed pretty tense yesterday morning.”
“I have to get dressed.” She stood up, feeling her heart speed up at the mention of Jonathan’s name.
“Riley!” Mathew called after her but she did not turn back.
The cloak unveiled his familiar features. After years of disappearance and distance from his brother, nothing changed in the way he looked. It was as if it were yesterday that Jonathan heard his father enraged over his wife and his son’s escape. Back then, he thought of this as treachery, but time taught him that nothing of what had happened was properly explained. At times, he wondered if his father and the consultants eased the way for the poison of their words inside his ear. But no… it cannot be. Dyane killed his mother and his father knew. That’s why she had escaped and taken her son with her. They were murderers.
“How is this possible?”
Gabriel’s eyes, that resembled Jonathan’s, glinted with mischief.
“Everything’s possible nowadays,” he said with satisfaction.
“How the hell are you still alive and not burnt to ashes?” Jonathan’s eyes were widening but his voice was steady.
“There’s a lot you don’t know, brother.”
Jonathan’s teeth gritted and his lips turned into a thin line. After years, he came back to boast.
“You’re alive and well for a fugitive.”
“Don’t let me go there.” Gabriel sighed. “You are oblivious of many things, Nathan.”
Jonathan gave out a raging laugh. Something inside of him wanted him to stop his world from spinning around for a second and hug his brother. Another controlling part was tearing him apart at the sight of the one who left him to deal with everything on his own and decided to stay with his traitor of a mother.
“Don’t call me that. And I know more than someone who lives on the streets.”
“It's because I am not locked up in that castle and fed the fake stories westerners tell you that I know more than you do. Listen to me—”
“Why should I listen to you?!” Jonathan cut him off immediately. “You and your mother left me to deal with those bullocks on my own. At least my valour is in fighting for my country and the kingdom instead of fleeing from responsibility and living in the shadows.”
“Don’t judge what you don’t see.” Gabriel was fuming now. He didn’t want to turn this meeting into a meaningless fight. Jonathan was unaware of what was happening around him, but that was not the time to pester him. He wouldn’t have risked his identity if it weren’t important.
“Where’s your mother?” Jonathan stood his ground.
“This is not why I’m here,” Gabriel explained in irritation. “Nathan, the king is in danger.”
“I said where’s your mother?!” Jonathan screamed. Getting the news about his father being endangered from his long-lost brother was intolerable. All the heat was coursing through his body. He loosened the collar of his jacket.
Eyes cold and flinty, Gabriel hissed. “Are you even listening to me?! The king could be assassinated at any minute.”
“It cannot be. He is protected by the West and the East. There are no enemies left to murder him.” Jonathan pinched his nose and was looking around the room. He was pacing back and forth, anything except looking into his brother’s eyes.
A shadow behind his brother moved.
“How blind are you?!” Gabriel’s voice resonated in the warehouse. “Take a look around! Is this a true nation? I'm certain not even you believe it. No one does. He made a deal yesterday with one of the kingdom's greatest enemies. He's going to cost the West a lot if he goes on with it. Trust me when I say it will be bloody.”
“How the hell do you know all of this?”
He was supposed to be dead. His brother was supposed to have died or at least he should be unaware of undecipherable classified information.
“There is no time for questions, Nathan. Take my word for it and protect your king.”
“I said stop calling me that!” Jonathan screamed. His eyes turned blurry and his hands were shaking uncontrollably. His head felt a thousand times heavier and his heart was wildly beating against his ribcage. The same shadow he saw earlier returned, but this time, its form was clearer. His mother stood behind his half-brother smiling. She was wearing the same black cape but something in her face was distorted. Were her eyes too far apart? Was her nose too long?
“How can you not see her?” Jonathan whispered under his breath.
“See whom?” Gabriel frowned and turned around. He couldn’t see anyone.
Jonathan blinked s
everal times and his mother disappeared.
“Nothing…”
His heart was calming down.
After moments of silence, Jonathan cleared his throat. “Where are you staying?”
Gabriel finally sighed and closed his eyes. He was hoping that meeting his brother would talk some sense into him.
“You don’t find me. I find you.”
With one move, Gabriel pulled the cape onto his head and set out, disappearing between the moving crowds. Jonathan dashed after him with the hopes of getting him back and asking more questions. The mourning melodies of the elegy turned into marching trumpeters and wailing horns. The black cloud of chanting people turned into a white one as they flipped their black capes to the opposite white side and their chants of the national anthem swarmed all over Regitum.
Gabriel disappeared and so did Jonathan’s hope in ever finding him again.
Great screens blasted the numerous colours on the Regitan streets where the citizens marched and chanted the rhapsodies of the greatest governmental poets and singers. They were all covered in white, recalling the day of victory, the day where the East, particularly Regitum, gained its freedom.
The war had taken a lot from the Notermese people. It resulted with it being the capital continent of the East and the capitol of the king. Everything that surrounded it took and was still taking a lot of time to build again. Many soldiers came back to their home country as martyrs in black caskets with the print of a diamond-shaped symbol, where the famous lion of Regitum had its mouth open to let the two eagles spring out of it. What was the point of it all? The strong educated soldiers died to save their country from the western attacks and their leader ended up shaking hands with their enemy. It was not a handshake of sudden peace. It was the handshake of accomplices in the same bloodbath.
“What a bloody red circus,” huffed Rufus and turned to the clock. It was eleven.
Everyone was seated where they had reserved previously. Even though he thought none of the royals was attending, he was surprised to see them all occupying the first row. The king had already arrived and he sat on the largest and highest chair.
Red Circus Page 13