An Impromptu History Lesson

“I trust that your lodgings are satisfactory?”

“They are. Thank you.” Diane struggles a bit to keep up with Aster’s tall mother as she’s leading the way through one of the long corridors in the castle, toward what’s commonly referred to as ‘the war room’. Diane is less than thrilled, having a seat in a meeting discussing battle strategies isn’t something she wants, but it apparently comes with being the Chosen. Not negotiable. “And Momo loves the window arrangement. She’s been exploring non-stop. Especially the kitchen.”

They both smile. The kitten had quickly won everyone’s hearts and was cleverly using the awe it inspired to get food. She usually slept through the night, curled up next to Diane’s pillow, then disappeared out the window at first light. Diane had been worrying about how the small cat would feel about being around more people and being indoors, but Momo seems to be taking everything in stride. In some ways adapting much faster than Diane.

“Your Yamabiko-neko is very resourceful. And those eyes are hard to resist, even for our surly head chef,” Lilah’s smile widens. “She’s probably with him now, inspecting the dinner preparations.”

“Getting the best scraps.”

“I believe that is a safe bet.” Lilah sighs, eyes going blank for a moment as she stares into nothing. Or a memory. “I wish Alyssa were here. She was always intrigued by the myths about the Mountain whisperers. She would have loved to meet your little one.”

“Alyssa?”

“Our daughter, our middle child. She married two years ago and moved to the island kingdom of Liramar, her husband’s home country.”

“You must miss her.”

“Oh, I do. She’s a sweet and adventurous soul. It was hard on all of us when she decided to move so far away. We get letters by birds every so often, but it’s not the same.” She smiles. “But she’s very happy there. Her husband is a good man and they are madly in love. Being happy is really the best we can hope for our children, isn’t it?”

“I guess. I’d love to meet her one day. And then she can see Momo too.”

“I hope so.”

“Your middle child? Is she close to Aster’s age, or did she marry young?”

“A little. She was eighteen then. Twenty now. Most people around here get married in their early twenties.”

“And Aster…” Diane isn’t even sure what she’s asking, but Lilah’s face darkens.

“Is still unmarried at twenty-five. I wish…”

“That he’ll be happy.” It isn’t really a question.

“Yes. That he’ll survive this ordeal unscathed and be able to live a happy life. Take over his father’s responsibilities as head of the house. To find love.” She fiddles with the hem of her tunic, then makes a face. “We’ll see. Unfortunately, the Mystics and their prophecies are very hard to argue against.”

So, she is less than thrilled about Aster’s upcoming marriage. It’s understandable, and it somehow makes Diane feel less selfish when it comes to her own feelings for the whole affair. And the princess.

“I…” she starts, but Lilah seems ready to move on to more practical matters. She smoothes down the front of her tunic, pats the daggers at her hips as if to make sure they’re still there, giving Diane a critical look.

“We should give you a more practical outfit. And a weapon. Which is your preference?”

“A weapon? I’ve never used one, so I don’t think…”

“My recommendation would be a bow. From what I’ve gathered, you have a steady mind and hand.” Lilah smiles wryly and raises an eyebrow. “And to be frank, you don’t quite have the range to make full use of a sword.”

“Guess not.” She’s not offended. Aster’s mother is correct. And even if she’d been taller, the thought of cutting into another living being makes her feel sick. Archery somehow seems less violent.

“Excellent. I’ll speak with the courtermaster then. And the tailor.” Lilah pauses and lets her fingers trace the sleeve of Diane’s scrubs. The dress had been in desperate need of washing, so she was back in her old, no, her real clothes. “He’s very talented, so I’m sure he’ll be able to make something that’s inspired by your own cultural garments.”

“That’d be wonderful,” Diane smiles. “But honestly, anything that’s comfortable and easy to move in will be fine. More than fine. As long as it makes me blend in.”

“I’ll set up the appointments then. And Tenna will take care of your magic studies.”

“She already does.” Master Tenna had wasted no time informing her that they’d spend several hours every day working together, training, as well as taking care of patients. It was long, tiring days, but also exciting, overwhelming, and frankly terrifying.

“I can imagine. She’s very efficient. We’re lucky to have her here.”

“She’s amazing,” Diane agrees. She's grown very fond of her mentor in the short time they've worked together. “Also, I wanted to thank you. For everything. But mostly for making me feel welcome here.”

“You are welcome, and I hope one day you’ll think of this place as your home.” She pauses, on the verge of saying something more, but just like her son, she looks away and changes the topic.

“Did Aster tell you about our history? About our country and our relations with Kagemure?”

“No, not really. Only that you think the disease, sorry, curse comes from there.”

“So he did tell you that at least. But I think you should know some of the background as well.” She laughs softly. “But please stop me if I become too tedious. I tend to ramble.”

“Of course,” Diane says, knowing fully well that she wouldn’t. She’s desperate to learn more. To have a chance of making sense of everything. Or, anything.

“So, as you know, our kingdom is Akeyokuni, the Land of Bright Goodness. It is said that in the dawn of time, the land itself was born from a desire to preserve balance between beast and man, night and day, chaos and harmony.”

“We have the same principles,” Diane said. “We call it yin/yang.”

“I’m glad it’s familiar to you. I guess some things are truly universal,” Lilah smiles, then continues with the impromptu history lesson. “The first rulers of Akeyokuni were the Kami-touched, beings who could take both human and beast form. Back then, there were several clans, and the Arakiba was one of the most powerful ones.” She chuckles smugly. “Still is. After all, all male members can take the form of a strong predator. The other families had their own specific classes of beast forms. Our only rivals in terms of power were the Ryūketsu, the dragon clan.”

“Dragons?” Diane gasps.

“Yes. But remember, this was centuries ago. And even then, only the first head of the family could turn into an actual dragon. The others turned into various reptiles.” She smiles sadly. “As far as we know, this is still the case. Nowadays people refer to them as the Mokushi, but we’ve had very little contact with them since the split.”

“The split?”

“When the Great Wall was built, separating our countries and people.”

“What happened?”

“We’re not sure. The details have been lost in time. We do know that there was a great war. A terrible war. In the aftermath, the Virelions, our present royal family, moved in to claim the crown.”

“Really? Why am I not surprised?” Diane can’t hide the sarcasm in her voice, and Lilah smiles, placing a hand on her shoulder.

“Don’t judge them too harshly because of the princess. They’ve kept the peace and taken good care of their people since they came into power. Until now.”

“Until now? You mean the curse?”

“Yes, at first we thought it was a natural thing. Then we started seeing their mages, spreading the curse.”

“Like the one we saw. On the way here. That poisoned the bushes?”

“Exactly. But that shot was meant for you, not the bushes.”

Diane swallows hard, not wanting to think about what that black energy goop would have done if it had hit her. Images of the infected animals she’s seen float to her mind, making her shudder.

“You are safe here.” The hand on her shoulder gives a comforting squeeze. “We are the sworn protectors of the border. This is why our castle sits so deep in the shadow of the mountain range that is the kingdom of Kagemure. It was built at the same time as the wall, for this purpose.”

“But,” Diane asks, “why now? What has changed? If you’ve lived in peace for so long…”

“We don’t know. Yet. But our spies should have information. Soon.”

“Aster mentioned old records? In the royal library? Perhaps they still hold some information. We were planning to go there to hopefully get to know more about this Chosen business.”

“That sounds like a good idea. The two of you should go. As soon as Tenna is satisfied with your progress.”

“I’ll do my best to learn quickly.”

“I’m sure you will.” Lilah stops outside a massive door and turns the handle. “Well, here we are. Ready for your first council of war?”

Diane wants to say no, she really isn’t. Instead, she plasters on her most professional smile and nods bravely.

The war room is large, dominated by a huge wooden table, filled with maps and parchment. A lot of new faces are seated around it, together with a few she recognizes. Aster, Tenna, and Alder are a welcome sight, as is Rafe, Aster’s father. He's presiding at the short side of the table, his leather armor and impeccably styled hair and short beard giving him a regal, competent look. Unfortunately, she can also see Hector and the princess, who both look at her as if she’s something particularly nasty the cat dragged in. Diane hurries to take one of the empty seats, glancing at Aster, who gives her a welcoming wink.

Then the princess Aurelia rises, points an accusing finger at her, and with a clear melodic voice questions why she’s allowed here. Diane stares, speechless, feeling smaller than ever, but the princess isn’t done.

“Look at her. She has no true power. She’s clearly a fake, an usurper seeking to steal the glory of the real Chosen. Or she’s a spy for the Kagemure. Using her innocent looks and devious scraps of pathetic magic to seduce and deceive our faithful men, luring them to reveal information she can pass on to her evil masters.”

Things rapidly go downhill from there.