Chapter 26

We shared some simple food that the children brought and waited for Karim. He returned when the sun had already set, and the last of the daylight faded in the sky. He sat down with a sigh, looking at us with dismay.

“The King didn’t name his successor….”

Selene sighed, but Uruk looked at us and said,

“It could be worse. The sun will rise again.”

Karim nodded slowly.

“You are right, but our fates are in the hands of Goddess”

I didn’t think he meant me, but his words still shot a shiver down my spine.

“I don’t understand…”, I said quietly, feeling the weight of my role.

“We had hoped we could convince the King to name Nashka his successor when we arrived. She loved her brother and would never surrender her kingdom to the Imperium”, Karim explained.

“But she is young and the loss of her beloved brother has broken her”, Uruk continued.

“If he had named Zaria, our cause would have been lost. He…” Selene paused, and anger flashed across her face. “...spends his time gathering the nobles and feeding them with false promises, hoping they will support him when the time comes.”

“It is worse than that…” Karim whispered, leaning towards us. “There is a rumour…that the King didn’t die from old age.”

Aki gasped and huddled up against me, and I could feel her shivering in my arms. Uruk put his hand on her shoulder.

“It’s okay. We will stay together.”

I sighed, and despite the fire burning brightly, the room felt cold and dark. Had I made a mistake coming here?

“What will happen now…?”, I asked.

“The Lords of Marbug will choose their new King”, Selene said, gazing into the fire.

“Manelia has done what he could, but his influence is waning …”, Karim began to explain, but his voice trailed off.

“And Zaria didn’t waste his time. So he knew it would come to this…”, Selene said, naming the obvious, and silence fell between us.

I took a deep breath.

“Can I do something…? Will they..?”

I didn’t dare to name it, but they understood.

“Some will follow you…” Uruk said, turning to me. “But even if they do, the best we can hope for is the Priestess rejecting their vote”

I blinked and looked at him.

“What does this mean?”

“The old woman who greeted us is Marbug’s Priestess. If she realises there is no unity between the lords, she will declare a trial rather than force a new King on those who may resent this.”

I felt lost. I am sure he had explained it to me in Akka, but no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t remember it. Only one thing was clear: how hopeless it was. Suddenly, there was a knock on the door, and a young boy walked in, bowing his head.

“Dinner is ready. Would you like to follow me?”

Aki looked at me with a bright smile and said,

“Food! Let’s see what they’ve made for us.”

She leapt up from my lap and offered me her hand. I took it and got up, wondering how much of her behaviour was for her sake and how much was for ours. I sighed. Probably both.

We followed the boy through the cold, sparsely lit corridors into a large hall filled with long wooden tables where people sat eating in small groups. The room fell silent as we entered, and the people glanced at me as we passed. The boy led us to a table at the end of the room, near a door left half-open that, based on the sound, led to the kitchen.

“In times like this…. It is grandma who will offer you hospitality…”, he said.

It seemed like he wanted to say more, but didn’t know how, so he bowed his head and gazed into the room. I followed his eyes and noticed that the table at the end of the room, next to the fireplace, was empty. Would the King have welcomed us there if he were alive?, I wondered.

The Priestess, the same old woman who had welcomed us before, already sat at our table surrounded by her young children. She lifted her head and peered at us before a small smile appeared on her face, and she gestured for us to sit down. I was placed with my back to the room, but I couldn’t shake the feeling that everyone was looking at me.

The old woman peered at each of us slowly, taking her time to make up her mind. Her gaze stayed on Aki for a long time before she gestured to her.

“Come, little one. Sit with me and keep me company.”

Aki shuffled over and, after a short hesitation, buried her face in the woman’s tunic. We were served food, and I began eating while watching the old woman whisper something to Aki. Suddenly, the feeling of being watched intensified, and when I turned my head towards the kitchen door, I saw a girl standing there, staring at me. I frowned.

She wasn’t a child, perhaps Aki’s age, but was dressed like the other children in those simple grey tunics. Not that I had gotten used to people staring at me, but something about her felt different. There was sadness, hope, and hesitation in her eyes.

I noticed her watching the Aegis lying on my chest and nodded to her, wondering what it was about. I really hoped she wouldn’t be too weird if she came over, but something with her didn’t let me ignore her or pretend I hadn't seen her silent request and her teary eyes. Of course, I knew I was naive, and I hadn’t found a way to change it, so I just learned to take the suck.

She left the door and walked the short distance to me, restraining herself from running. She halted by my side and bowed her head. I noticed the old woman watching her carefully but didn’t say anything, and I wondered what it was about. I looked at my companions for guidance, but they seemed as surprised by it as I was.

I sighed and turned to the girl. Did she think I was a priestess like the old one? Or did she know who I pretended to be…? It didn’t matter. The silence between us felt almost unbearable.

“Come, keep me company”, I said as the Priestess had done before, and the girl eagerly sat down by my side.

“What happened…?”, I asked.

She leaned into me but said nothing, but I could feel her body relaxing as she became heavier and heavier against my shoulder. She stayed silent throughout the whole dinner, but I didn't want to ask what had happened again and respected her silence. When I had finished eating and I put my fork down, she got up and bowed her head before disappearing into the kitchen.

We returned to our rooms shortly after that and were followed by the curious gazes of the people around the tables as we left. Those looks still made me anxious, so I focused on following the young girl who led us back. None of us dared to speak, and the uneasiness I had felt before only increased in those dark, poorly lit corridors of the castle.

To my surprise, Manelia waited for us at the bottom of the stairs, leaning against the stone wall. His sudden presence sent a chill down my spine, but Uruk greeted him quietly, and he followed us to our room. The fire was still burning as we entered, or maybe one of those children had taken care of it while we were gone. I didn’t have time to wonder about it, though, because Manelia sat down in front of the fireplace and looked at us.

“The Imperium has its people here”, he said quietly.

Selene frowned.

“It is nothing that we didn’t expect”

“It is worse than you think. They don’t hide it, and no one dares to speak about it. They pose as traders, but they are traders only by name…”

Karim sighed as the weight of Manelia’s words hung in the air.

“They planned it …”, Uruk frowned, making Aki shiver, and she took hold of Karim’s hand.

“I cannot prove it, no matter how much I search for it, but Lanard sent a rider when we set up camp that night. But by itself it isn’t anything unusual”, Manelia said quietly, gazing into the fire.

He stayed silent for a moment before letting out a sigh, and he turned to us.

“It may be better, my friends, if you leave now, while you still can. I am sorry.”

He hung his head, and his grey mane fell on his face.