As Merrick and his team neared the grand palace, its spires seemed higher than imaginable, even though they still had to walk another mile before arriving at its gates.
The entrance itself reminded Merrick of the hidden tunnel to the Earth City, as the gates were etched with ornately carved characters and symbols that Merrick could only guess represented words and wards in the Wind Tongue.
Upon seeing the Prince, the royal guards stepped aside, and Merrick’s group entered the palace proper. Once inside, Merrick gasped in wonder. The buildings outside the palace were impressive and shiny, but the inside of the palace was amazing.
After entering through the archway, they passed through a narrow corridor and emerged into a grand courtyard. Here, there were plants of some sort, but they were white and sparkled as if made of diamond chips. In the center of the courtyard, there was a single, large tree cut in the bonsai style, surrounded by red petals on the ground.
The crimson petals produced the largest amount of color that Merrick had seen since he had left Rune Corp. It was amazing how quickly his eyes had adjusted to the different tints of whites that pervaded the world of the Wind Family. Seeing so much color now seemed almost alien to him. The stark contrast between the petals and their surroundings made it look as if the palace were bleeding.
The Prince led Merrick and his group through the courtyard, past men and women sitting on white stone benches, engaged in reading, playing games, and even making music with various instruments. Each of them looked up and bowed their heads as the Prince passed by. The feeling was somewhat more casual inside the palace, but the reverence and respect for the royal family was still obvious.
“We strive to increase our knowledge of the world around us every day,” the Prince said.
“Are these your Keepers?” Merrick asked.
“These are the members of our royal court. Some are distant relatives, but all are in one way or another related to the Emperor by blood. Our Keepers, I assure you, lead a much more regimented life. Often they are not even present in the city, except for naming ceremonies, of course. I am told that your clan follows a similar custom.”
“As I believe all of the families do,” Merrick said.
“This is beautiful, Prince Takehiko,” Mona said as she reached out and held Merrick’s hand.
“You are too kind,” the Prince said. “Allow me to show you to your quarters so that you may rest from your journey. I know that you must be tired.”
Merrick had to admit that even though he found it easy enough to maintain his true self when traveling as part of Araki, he was feeling surprisingly more tired than usual—unnaturally so. He thought for a moment before remembering that he and the others were not used to being at such a high altitude. The air, although regulated in the city, was still much thinner than at ground level, and Merrick’s lungs had to work overtime to keep his body moving.
It would be good to rest and recuperate and to talk with Mona to see what was on her mind. Even despite the wonderment of their surroundings, she still looked paler than normal, and he was concerned that she might be coming down with something. He began to worry that he should have been more adamant about her not coming along, even though she was justified in claiming that she had proven herself in the past to be both resourceful and capable.
The Prince led them to a set of platforms that were positioned as elevators would be, but he saw no mechanical apparatus present. Their group stood on top of the platforms, and the Prince suggested that they hold on. Before Merrick could ask what they were supposed to hold on to, a gust of air shot them up in a controlled manner five, ten, then twenty floors into the air.
Once they came to a stop, the Prince motioned everyone to follow him as he led them into a hallway and took a right into a large room. Merrick and his team followed the Prince and were shocked to encounter a room filled with green plants, brown dirt, and even a small tree. In the center of the room was a small patch of sand that had been raked in the traditional Japanese garden style. In the center of the sand was a stone bench, and behind that was a pedestal. On the pedestal sat the bonsai tree statuette carved from the Earth divinium—the very present that Merrick had given to the Emperor.
Merrick silently appreciated the perfect political and military move the Emperor had made. By placing the divinium sculpture here in what must be what Mr. Kawagishi had referred to as the Embassy for the Earth Clan, the Emperor was showing his respect for Merrick’s gift as well as isolating it from the rest of his palace. Even though he still planned on checking, Merrick was sure that the little statuette’s listening wards had not recorded anything of value. Much like Merrick had stored the Emperor’s gift of the divinium flute inside the body of a tree, the Emperor had essentially nullified the ability of Merrick’s gift to spy on him.
Merrick was starting to appreciate that fact that each of the families tried to gather information on the other whenever and however possible as a matter of standard practice.
The Prince laughed as he approached the bonsai tree statuette, his feet making full contact with the ground.
“I see my brother, the Emperor, has honored you by placing your gift to him in the center of the Earth Room,” the Prince said. “This is where Mr. Kawagishi and I practice walking on the ground almost daily.”
Merrick smiled as his feet felt the solid ground underneath him. It felt like returning home from a long voyage.
Mona, Master Banzo, and even Jonathan also smiled as their bodies reveled in the sensation of solid ground beneath them.
“You and your people are free to come here at any time if you need to commune with the earth elements or if you just want a place to relax. As I said before, we have such a room for each of the three dragons. The Emperor hopes that his tribute to Terrada pleases you.”
“It certainly does,” Merrick said. “Thank you very much for this hospitality. I will be sure to thank the Emperor himself later. When do you think the Emperor will see us?”
“First, I will show you to your quarters, and you will rest,” the Prince said. “This evening, you will be given an audience with the Emperor at a dinner in your honor. As we discussed, you may choose to deny what we perceive to be your heritage and your birthright, but in the Cloud City, you are known as the Ard Righ of the Earth Clan, and we are honored by your presence as such. The Emperor shares this opinion.”
The Prince bowed.
Merrick felt uncomfortable and didn’t know how to reply. Instead, he nodded his head and pretended to admire the tree in the room before saying that he was ready to be shown to his room.
CHAPTER 32
PRINCE TAKEHIKO showed Merrick and the others to their rooms after explaining to them that they would have two hours to rest before dinner. He also told them to just ask if they were in need of anything until then and that they were being housed in the very best guest rooms the palace had to offer.
The Prince noted with satisfaction that Merrick and his group appeared to be duly impressed.
When Merrick and Mona started into the same room, however, the Prince put a gentle hand on Merrick’s shoulder.
“I sincerely apologize, Ard Righ,” the Prince said, “but it is the custom in our family and doubly so in the royal palace that Drayoom who are not yet married may not share a bedchamber.”
“I humbly respect your traditions,” Merrick said, even as his woman seemed about to speak up with a much less metered reply. “But Mona and I are engaged to be married, and we would like some time to chat with one another in private. I am sure you understand.”
The Prince felt his cheeks turn slightly pink as he reminded himself to remain calm.
Merrick was a visitor and not used to the customs of the Wind Family. If anyone other than the Emperor or Merrick had talked back to him, they would have quickly paid the price for their arrogance.
“I do understand,” the Prince said. “I shall speak with the Emperor about your desire.”
Merrick reached over and gently kiss
ed Mona on the lips. It appeared that he was trying to calm her down and to show his affection toward her, but the Prince believed that he was also sending another message altogether—one that was meant to convey a level of disrespect for the spirit of their customs that would not be tolerated from others.
“Thank you, Prince,” Merrick said, after pulling back from his woman. “That would be wonderful. Please make it happen if you are able.”
Once again, the Prince forced his exterior to remain calm as he endured the audacity of his guest. Merrick’s wording was subtle, but it was clear to the Prince that his guest considered himself above the Prince’s own station.
Because of Merrick’s arrogance, the Prince would ensure that he and his woman would indeed not share a room together while staying at the palace.
Besides, the reality was that the Emperor himself had ordered the Prince to separate Merrick from the rest of his group under whatever auspices the Prince deemed necessary.
The Emperor had not mentioned to the Prince why he wanted such a thing done, but the Prince had his suspicions.
His brother would welcome Merrick with open arms and praise him with talk of being the rightful Ard Righ of the Earth Clan. But even as he built up Merrick’s ego, the Prince believed that the Emperor would be, at the same time, watching for any opportunity he could exploit that would result in Merrick’s accidental death—preferably one with multiple witnesses to verify the Emperor’s own lack of involvement.
The Prince had no love for this Merrick, but he still believed that he was worth more to the Wind Family alive than dead. Until he was certain that Merrick had either divulged his secrets or that he knew nothing more of worth, the Prince would do his best to protect Merrick from the Emperor.
After that, he would himself ensure that Merrick was disposed of at the first opportunity.
The only thing left was to figure out how to make Merrick talk, preferably without resorting to drastic measures. The last thing the Prince needed was for word to somehow get out about the Fuugoshujin torturing Merrick.
All out war with the Earth Clan and probably the Fire Tribe was something that both he and his brother would rather avoid if possible…for now.
Additionally, the Prince wasn’t sure how to leverage it, but he had noticed something as they traveled through Araki—something of which Merrick did not yet seem to be aware.
Mona was pregnant, presumably with Merrick’s child, and the Prince believed that if Merrick knew about his unborn child, he would not have let Mona accompany him on his visit.
As it was, Mona was a weakness that the Prince might be able to exploit later.
And that brought up another point all together.
Even though Merrick’s child with Mona would only be half Drayoom, it would also have both Fire and Earth blood coursing through its veins, and that made the child dangerous—too dangerous to live.
Not only would Merrick eventually have to be dealt with, but so would his unborn child.
CHAPTER 33
MERRICK ENTERED HIS ROOM. In keeping with the rest of the palace, the walls, ceiling, furniture, and the ornate chair molding were all hewn from divinium-infused water vapor, giving the chamber a mystical, ethereal feel. Merrick realized that there were bound to be multiple pieces of divinium placed throughout his room that would have recorded any conversation he would have had with Mona if they had both been staying in the same bed.
Regardless, he was still perturbed that he and Mona had to stay apart from one another while guests of the Emperor and the Prince.
Merrick sat on the edge of his bed, trying to get his mind around what to do now that they had arrived. It had been a long trip, but despite feeling tired, he decided to meditate—a practice that he had been studying under the direction of Master Banzo for the last few months.
Merrick sat upright on his bed and closed his eyes. He settled his breathing and let senses expand and leave his body, trying to feel the stolen cube. He could sense the energy of others just outside of his door—most likely a set of guards. As he let his own energy spread further like ever increasing rings on the surface of a pond, he felt more and more life forces. The palace was alive with activity.
But even as his mind and his senses reached beyond the palace walls, he could not detect the energy signature of the cube, and he concluded that the Emperor had hidden the cube somewhere safe where it would be shielded from his probing.
Or the Emperor could have sent the cube far away, to be stored at any one of thousands of outposts across the world. Then again, Merrick did not think the Emperor would let the valuable piece of divinium travel that far from his sight.
Merrick reeled in his senses and explored the depths of his own mind, searching for other approaches to finding the stolen cube. After ten minutes of exploring different options and playing them out in his head, he began to fear that he had not planned well enough before entering the proverbial den of the lion. With each scenario ending in him getting caught, Merrick began to admit that he had, perhaps, come to trust in his own resourcefulness and power a bit too much.
In the end, he reluctantly decided that he needed more information before coming up with a plan that had any hope of succeeding.
The only thing he knew for sure was that he would have to return to the Earth Room to see if the divinium statuette had learned anything useful before it had been sealed off from the rest of the palace. He hoped to combine whatever he could learn from the divinium with any insight he might glean from dinner with the Emperor that evening to formulate a real plan for finding the cube.
While Merrick was still focused on his planning, someone rapped firmly on his door. Merrick opened his eyes, got up, and stretched as he walked across the ornately decorated room and opened the door.
He nodded as Mr. Kawagishi bowed in greeting. Merrick nodded.
Behind the Emperor’s diplomat, Master Banzo and Jonathan stood—a guard on either side of them.
As Merrick wondered whether the same two guards had been standing outside of his room the whole time he had been meditating, he felt himself suddenly relax—a wave of comfort and familiarity sweeping through him as it had the first time he had encountered the Wind Family delegation at Rune Corp.
Back in Tysons Corner, Merrick had wondered if the Emperor’s name was responsible for him feeling so at ease, but as he stood in front of the cheerful Mr. Kawagishi, Merrick realized that he had most likely been under the power of the diplomat’s name all along.
As soon as the possibility entered his mind, it made sense to him that a man with such a creation name would be cast in the role of the Wind Family’s foremost ambassador and diplomat.
With this knowledge, Merrick noted to himself that he would need to be mindful at dinner, lest he become too at ease and divulge something best kept from the Emperor.
Looking around, Merrick noticed that Mona was the only one missing from his group. Just as he was about to ask about her, she came around the corner. A guard followed a respectful distance behind her with his face focused on the floor at her feet. The guard was dressed in the now familiar garb of what looked like a mix between a formal suit and a traditional Japanese kimono, and he looked haggard, as if Mona had recently put him in his place.
Merrick grinned at the thought of Mona trying to take charge, even in an environment as alien to her as the Cloud City.
“Are you feeling any better?” he asked. “I’m just starting to get used to walking around in all these clouds myself.”
When Mona made eye contact with Merrick, her cheeks were tinged with pink, and her overall demeanor seemed healthier and less tired than before.
She smiled as she took Merrick’s hand.
“I feel much better, now that I’ve gotten some sleep,” she said. “But I’m getting a little hungry as well.”
“Me too, boss,” Jonathan said, even as Master Banzo made a sound of exasperation, most likely aimed at the weakness of his student.
“You need to learn to
feed your mind more than your body,” Master Banzo said. “Not you, my dear Mona. I am speaking to my chubby student here.”
Jonathan and the rest of the group started laughing.
Jonathan was tall and lean with nothing but muscle, and everyone, including him and Master Banzo, knew it.
“I’m not chubby,” Jonathan said as he uncrossed his arms slowly.
“You two can play later,” Mona said. “I’m sure we don’t want to keep the Emperor waiting for dinner, wouldn’t you agree, Merrick?”
“The Emperor would greatly appreciate your company in the royal dining room, if you are ready,” Mr. Kawagishi said.
With that, the group made their way down the hallway to the air-powered lift system that would take them to the highest levels of the mighty palace.
Once they were all standing on the invisible platform of air, Mr. Kawagishi uttered a short word that sounded like a songbird catching its breath. They immediately shot upward, higher and higher into the palace, floor after floor, until they slowed to a smooth, controlled stop.
Mr. Kawagishi motioned for them to follow him out of the lift area and down another long hallway.
“The Emperor’s personal dining area is this way,” Mr. Kawagishi said with a smile. “We hope that you will find everything to your liking. The Emperor’s chefs have prepared a special meal in honor of your visit.”
Merrick nodded and thanked Mr. Kawagishi as they continued to walk.
“I have no doubt that both the meal and the company will be superb,” Merrick said.
Silently, Merrick hoped that the Emperor’s cooks had studied human culture thoroughly enough to have prepared something that both tasted good and that would satisfy his growing hunger.
After another minute or two of walking, the hallway ended in a circular foyer with forty-foot ceilings and an ornately carved set of double doors set into its far wall. Mr. Kawagishi strode through the small crowd of people who were milling about chatting, and Merrick and his group followed. Almost as one, the members of the crowd bowed as Merrick walked past them and entered the formal dining hall.
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