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Epic fantasy! Completed book looking for reviews and advice! Please check it out |
| CHAPTER TEN As promised, Guinavev kept him company for the rest of the day. Since entertainment was her business, it didn’t take much for Articus to loose his need to get out. Guinavev was to have lunch with the Head Mistress and, later on that night, perform for her and a few Lordlings at dinner. While they didn’t play Toss, they did swap a few stories. She was fascinated by the military aspect of his life, and even Mia--to his surprise--sat down to listen to some of Articus’s adventures. Guinavev was very persistent in her questions, mostly it was because she had never stepped foot south of the border. Articus even found himself telling her stories that would have normally been suited for soldiers. He was only mildly surprised that the woman was entertained by his soldier humor; the minstrel really didn’t have the decency to blush when most women would have. At least Mia turned her head away at some parts. While Guinavev thought his stories was like finding a hidden treasure, Articus felt he’d gotten the better end. She talked of royal courts of all the nations she had been to and how different some of the cultures were between nations. To her, it was a bland topic but to him, it was fascinating. “Really Articus, you don’t want to be royal. I don’t think you’d fit in with that crowd even if you tried. You’d end up punching a guy anyways--although sometimes I wouldn’t mind having you or Waylon along. While Brutus protects me, he wouldn’t punch any of the royal pricks I have to deal with. You’d think women didn’t have any backbones the way some of those pigs talk. Hell, even some of the women!” She was scandalized by the later. “Say, when are you getting out of this dump? I wouldn’t mind a companion. Maybe I could hire you on as a bodyguard? I saw you jumping off that roof like an acrobat. I could even train you! No one would expect an acrobat as a guard, surely.” Articus, laughing all the while, had to hold up his hands to defend himself against the woman’s wild fantasies. Only Guinavev would think Tekal was a dump... and an acrobat bodyguard? “I’m sure Mia wouldn’t mind. Isn’t that right girl? You see? Ohhh! We could say you are of a noble house from the Empire! No one would know otherwise. Then it’d be okay for you to punch a guy. You don’t mind punching girls do you? Damn winches.” Articus had to grip his ribs as tears began to form. Looking at Mia’s horrified face only made him choke. Guinavev, smiling like an idiot, said, “So how about it?” Wiping away the last tears, Articus started to feel pain in his cheeks--his face had been frozen into a smile too long. He was glad she’d stopped by. “I’m sure Brutus wouldn’t like that. Where is he anyways?” “Outside in the hallway. Now stop trying to change the subject. I’ll pay well.” Articus dismissed her with a wave of his hands. “I could retire on the amount of money I won off of you if that were the case. I don’t live such a fancy lifestyle as you.” Articus let a little country accent into his voice. Rolling her eyes at him, she motioned impatiently with her hands for him to go on. Articus almost choked on his own tongue when he realized she was being serious. Coughing, he said, “You can’t be serious?” When she rolled her eyes at him, he said, “I still don’t know what I’ll be doing when I get out. While I might not be going back to the Empire, Nina offered me a job already. But I don’t think I want to be sitting around all day doing nothing… So maybe.” Mia looked from Articus to Guinavev and back. The look of wonder that crossed her face was comical. Articus closed his eyes as his head began to pound again. Mia was at his side almost at once, her hand pressing to his forehead. “Nothing you can’t cure,” he grumbled. “Headache?” Mia asked. When he nodded he felt her hand disappear and, when he opened his eyes, he found her already opening his wardrobe’s door. She was looking for some medicine, of all things. Shaking his head, he heard two voices from outside his door as if he were right there. He only caught the tail end of Brutus’s reply. “Mistress Guinavev is visiting and she told me specifically that she didn’t want to be disturbed. Come back another-” Brutus’s voice faded away in a disoriented kind of way. Guinavev looked at him expectantly but Articus started to rub his temples. “You guys didn’t hear that? Eh, no matter. Tell Brutus that he can let the visitor enter.” Mia, half across the room, turned on a dime for the door as if the request was ordinary. Guinavev, on the other hand, frowned. Touching his forehead, for what seemed like for the third time that day, she shook her head. “Your not-“ She stopped in mid sentence when a man’s voice came from the waiting room. “You’d think a lapdog had more sense. Who the bloody hell do you think I am? I don’t care if she’s even the Head Mistress- hello. Oh so I can go in. Well thank you. Boy, if you were a Ce’lian I’d have you peeling potatoes fast than you could-” Articus’s eyes widened just as he recognized the voice. “Say nugget,” Articus breathed right when the General of the Vanguard said it. “By the seven Sins! What are you doing here, sir?” General Briar Ta'lee, the most respected man in the Empire, was standing in his room. He couldn’t believe it. Since Briar had been promoted to Major, they hadn’t spoken to each other. It wasn’t ‘proper’ in the military, but occasionally Articus received a letter from him. He tried to stand up and salute but he almost fell on his face. If it hadn’t been for Guinavev, he probably would have. “Well I was in the neighborhood and, after hearing Primus Titus complaining--something about his best soldier being shipped off, foolish nonsense I know--I had to say hi.” The man was in his late thirties but still had a healthy glow about him--the kind of glow that said he could run around you in circles if it came to a marathon. Built similarly like Cedrick, he dominated the room by his mere presence. “I wonder who this Primus Titus was talking about,” Guinavev mused as she wrestled him back into his seat. “Now I know why that brute of a man was keeping me out,” Briar said with a knowing smile upon looking at Guinavev. “You must be Guinavev. I have heard much about you, especially lately. My Lady is very anxious to meet you tonight.” Briar gave a courtly bow. Guinavev only nodded absently as she wrestled Articus back down. “The Empress is here?!” Articus gasped as he absentmindedly knocked Guinavev off her feet and into the wall with his right hand. “By the Gods, boy, what are they feeding you?” the general asked stunned. Articus gaped in horror as Mia helped the minstrel up. “I- I’m sorry. Haven’t gotten this strength thing down yet,” Articus stammered hurriedly. Waving halfheartedly, Guinavev said, “I’ve been knocked around harder than that before. But when Nina talked about the Awakening, I hadn’t quite been expecting--that.” Mia just shook her head with a frown. Nothing seemed to faze the woman lately. Scratching his beard with a puzzled look, the general continued, “Anyways, no. It is Lady Tyrn, her daughter. It is part of her training, international politics 101 so to speak. She will be here until the Summit starts. I was pulled along to baby-sit and to advise her, if that were possible.” “Lady Tyrn?” Articus blinked. She was rumored to be as strong as her mother and a diplomatic genius. It wouldn’t be much longer until she took the Ce’lian throne. “Aye. Took me some doing in getting away from her too, mind you. She reminds me of Bean.” Bean had been the call sign for one of their squad leaders who wanted to know everything. A small man, he was. With him, there was such a thing as asking too many questions. “She actually wanted to meet you but had an appointment already with the Kalian ambassador. Don’t really know why. Probably wants your opinion on these Reapers.” Articus blinked. He hadn’t felt so off balance since the day Primus Titus told him he had to go to Tekal. “That’s, unexpected,” he said cautiously. The General grinned, “Don’t look so pale. Worst thing you could do is knock her into the next room-- and that wouldn’t be so bad. In fact I wouldn’t mind it. She drives me crazy at times. I told her you could make it after dinner, though, for desert perhaps.” Articus didn’t need any help sitting down this time, “Oh.” Briar took Guinavev’s seat and Mia was only two steps away with a glass of ice water. Eyeing the slave, he raised an eyebrow at Articus, “Didn’t expect you to be the kind that would take on a slave.” Articus waved his hand and found him self explaining it before he could stop himself. “Believe me, I didn’t have a choice.” She wants to see me? Smiling, Briar took the glass with a thank you. “Should have figured that one. Well I’m sure you want some news. Let’s see…” What should I wear? Maybe Mia knows... “Your men are in route to the Summit already. They all wanted to come with me when they heard I was going to meet up with you, where they heard that I have no clue. Safe to say they were all upset about not hearing from you yet. But I told them you were indisposed of at the moment with that mission their Primus gave you.” What do I say? I mean she’s the Empress’s daughter. I heard she was tough, but what if she orders me to die when I break a plate? “That Under-Centurion that you promoted, excellent choice. He told me flat out that he only wanted his men given two days of rest. The balls on him! He reminds me of you. Hell he almost demanded that they leave for the Summit when I was leaving. Primus Titus was only too happy to pass on the man’s complaints to me.” Do I bow or kneel? I’ve seen some people prostrate themselves in front of the Empress before. “Don’t really know much about Reapers. Tyrn won’t even talk about them, as if they are taboo. We’ll have to get together for breakfast sometime since I’ll be around the corner for the next few moons.” A gift! I need to find a gift… “You aren’t listening to a word I’m saying are you?” Briar sighed. “What is this Summit?” Guinavev asked curiously. Realizing he’d just taken her seat so rudely, Briar shot up and offered it to her. “How rude of me. Please. Pardon me. It’s not every day this old man gets to see a friend.” Guinavev smiled politely before sitting down. “The Summit is the event of the year where all the nation’s leaders, all thirteen of them, gather to discuss treaties and laws. Normally, for the Ce’l Empire, it isn’t an important event since we don’t follow any of their customs or even trade with them. But this year, as part of our laws, Lady Tyrn is taking over her mother’s responsibility of the Summit. It is the ultimate test to see how she fairs. A very dangerous test if you ask me. I think this year, though, there are going to be a lot of changes.” Articus finally snapped back into reality, “Changes?” Briar shrugged but there was a hint of a smile, “You know I’m not at liberty to say here. I’ll let Lady Tyrn tell you about it if the topic comes up-- which I think it will, for some reason.” He gave Articus another mysterious smile. Treaties and laws. He wouldn’t be happy if it was the laws so it has to be a treaty. Trade perhaps? That would be… interesting. Articus had a growing suspicion that there was more to Lady Tyrn’s request than for ‘just a little chat.’ Guinavev frowned, “Why haven’t I heard of this Summit before? Something like that would be known to everyone, wouldn’t it?” “On the contrary,” the general said. “For security purposes, it is one of the biggest kept secret. Each nation is allowed one Cohort to accompany them. Articus’s former Cohort was designated that task since the start of it all.” Frowning, Briar eyed her up and down. “I take it you can keep a secret.” Guinavev smiled sweetly, “Of course.” Grunting, he continued, “Since you’re a Reaper now, I guess its okay to tell you another kept secret that even you didn’t know about Articus. Tekal also handles the security of the Summit.” Articus perked up at this. “I don’t recall seeing any Reapers the last time we had a Sum- Oh, the servants.” Every time he’d been to the Summit, every leader he’d seen had a handful of servants with them at all times. He hadn’t thought much of it before but, now that he thought back on it, they were suspicious. So they even had yet another layer of protection that even I didn’t know about. Briar smiled, “Always the quick one. Yes, they aren’t really slaves. Every leader knows that Tekal is the mediator, if any one of them breaks the Treaty of Peace, the Reapers would stop them.” Articus slapped his forehead. He’d been so stupid. “And Tekal also hires out their protection services to the leaders too, don’t they?” Briar clapped his hands in approval. “Very well done. I knew I promoted you to Centurion for a reason. Yes, and I must admit, their services are the best. There have been many attempts on the Family’s life and a few of them I don’t even think the Blood could have stopped.” The Blood was the honor guard that was similar to the Vanguard but their job was protecting the Royal Family. He wanted to think now that they were only for show, but he couldn’t believe that fully. He’d fought against a few of the Blood before and had lost every time. Articus wasn’t one to boast, but that wasn’t something easily done. Taking in the room for the first time, Briar let out a low whistle. “I always wondered why the three Ce’lians who’d come here before you to become Reapers hadn’t returned. This pad of yours is almost bigger than mine.” Articus smiled at his general, “And to think that little ol’ me, the peasant, could have bigger quarters than Legate Lucius Cor’bin. Mind mentioning that next time you see him?” Briar laughed and nodded, “Without a doubt. Well I should be going before my slave driving boss starts wondering why I’m not ambushing that Kalian prick. Apologies, mam’.” Guinavev said with amusement, “When you’re talking about a man in politics, the words ‘Kalian prick’ is redundant--no apologies necessary.” After shaking Articus’s hand, and bowing to Guinavev, he bided them farewell. The moment he left, Guinavev purred, “I like him. Is he married?” Articus roared with laughter and wheezed out a ‘no.’ He had honestly not laughed that much in one day in his entire life. To Articus’s dismay, Guinavev left him shortly after Briar’s departure--leaving him alone with Mia. Normally he wouldn’t feel uncomfortable being alone… with Mia… Why did I ever listen to Nina? I should have just bought the first damned piece of godly jewelry and ran. Thankfully, Mia had to leave to get his lunch and immediately excused herself when she returned. Come to find out, she had a ritual of taking her bath at noon, when he was normally with Celia. But when she started to leave, he stopped her. A little confused he asked, “Why are you leaving? Just take a bath in there.” He pointed to his bathroom. “I don’t know what they gave you, but I’m sure mine’s a lot more accommodating.” When she hesitated, Articus said, “If it’s because of me, well, I need to go for a walk anyways.” Getting up, he slowly headed for the door but he didn’t get far. Mia was at his side before he had taken two steps and she started directing him back to his chair. “Foolish man,” she muttered. He knew normally he wouldn’t have been able to hear that. Perhaps my new powers are doing some good after all. “Please sit down, Master. I am not some shy village girl. I just didn’t think you’d--” she sighed, “Never mind.” As he sat down, she proved it to him that she wasn’t the ‘village girl’ type by removing her robe. Almost as naked as the day she came into this world, he felt a lump in his throat and his mouth dry up. Pausing just long enough to make sure he saw her, she walked proudly to his bathroom. Right before she walked though the bathroom doorway, he caught her with a satisfied smile. Just when I think I have that woman figured out. He sat there for a long moment, listening to Mia’s humming and picking at his fingernails with the da’kka. Looking down at the robe bunched up near him, he debated on whether to bring the robe to the bathroom door or to let it lie where it was. Giving himself the feeble excuse of not being able to walk properly, he let it lie. It’s only fair if she sees me naked every morning… As he waited until dinner, his senses slowly became more sensitive to his surroundings, which gave him something to do for the rest of the day. Trying to master his new body was a great exercise that kept his mind off the fact that he was bounded to his room. Mia had resorted to cleaning his dart daggers, something he hadn’t known she knew how to do. Loosing himself to Mia’s humming, he did small exercises for each of his senses. By the time the sun sank below the horizon, he’d mastered most of his senses in a surprising amount of time. Articus could now smell Mia’s soap all over the place which he hadn’t been able to before, control his eyes enough to see the wood grains of the table out on the balcony, and he could hear Cedrick talking with Dylon out in the common room. He didn’t like eavesdropping but at the moment he couldn’t control it without concentrating hard. Mia thankfully had brought him his dinner in smaller portions on multiple plates, allowing him to have plenty of practice in breaking the silverware. He still hadn’t mastered his muscles when the clock in his room, that had mysteriously appeared when he’d returned from Boco Bay, chimed four hours past sunset. Mia had dressed him in the black silk uniform and surprised him with her explanation of the choice. She claimed that he was now a student of Tekal and he should present himself as such--not as the former Centurion of the Vanguard--because the Lady must recognize that he is part of two lands now. Slowly getting up, he unsteadily walked to the door. Mia immediately dropped the weapons and was at his side helping him before he even reached the waiting room. He felt like he was an old man. Articus opened the door just as a Ce’lian man dressed in red servant livery approached his door. He had heard the man ask Cedrick where his room was so it was no surprise to him. The man before him, however, was surprised. He only hesitated a moment, though, before he bowed. “Centurion Articus Waylon. My Lady Tyrn, of the House Ce’l, wishes that you honor her with your presence. May I escort you to her quarters?” The man was soft-spoken but there wasn’t any doubt on what answer the servant expected to hear. “Lead the way but forgive me for my speed, I’ve been recuperating.” Articus patiently smiled at the man’s skeptical glance. “As you say, sir.” He followed the man at a slow walk with the help of Mia. She smiled at him encouraging and he felt a guilty pleasure at knowing she was ‘taking care of him.’ After seeing her naked, it was hard not to see anything but her naked. Maybe I can find a way to get rid of her before I go to that ‘special hell.’ He patted her arm which had found it way around his. When she beamed up at him, he thought, Too late. |
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