Divided Throne

Alec had a very small number of his men go undercover into town looking for man who’d been accused of being a spy. It may not have been as effective as a large search group, but even Dominic and Samuel agreed that they didn’t want the people to go into a panic at such a sensitive time. Still, there was no sign of him. Alec began to wonder if the man existed at all.

And then there were Lily’s nightmares. They seemed to get worse and more frequent every night, to the point that sometimes Lucian would wake up and Alec was in charge of putting both of them to sleep again. He knew he had to stay strong and pretend it didn’t bother him, but at times it was hard not to let the exhaustion show. Still, if he wasn’t the rock that held everyone down, he didn’t know who’d take that spot.

He’d pretended to be sick in the morning so he could avoid having to dine with everyone like they did every day. Above all, with King Hamilton and Queen Gloria. He imagined that they talked about the pathetic boy king of Aegaera every night before going to bed, wondering if they made the right decision in trusting him. Alec stayed in bed all morning, pulling the covers over his head and hiding in the darkness until he heard the door open and the bed shake slightly. A small hand reached down and grabbed a handful of his hair, tugging hard. Alec winced and sat up, prying Lucian’s fingers open and setting the boy on his lap as Lily sat down on the edge of the bed with a tray of breakfast.

“How’s your fever?” she asked, feeling his forehead. “Oh, non-existent. Just like it was this morning. Woe to Aegaera, for it seems fake disease is what will take their king from them.”

“Don’t give me that attitude,” Alec mumbled. “It was the only way I could take a break.”

“King Hamilton tried to come check on you,” Lily said. “He’s genuinely concerned. I felt guilty lying to him like that.”

“Bless,” Alec said, rolling his eyes and shifting Lucian in his lap so he could reach for the foo.

Lily slapped his hand away, glaring at him. “Alec, I’m not joking around, here.”

“Neither am I,” he said.

She sighed, shaking her head. There was a soft knock on the door some time later, and Lily let Tobias in to discover that his son was perfectly fine and was just acting like a baby. Tobias sat beside Alec and felt his forehead, raising an eyebrow at him.

“He was never sick,” said Lily.

“Clearly,” Tobias mumbled.

“I am sick,” Alec said. “You’re all making me sick with how seriously you take everything.”

“It should be taken seriously, Alec!” Lily snapped.

“Hey!” Tobias said, standing and catching both their attentions like two children who were caught arguing over a toy. “I wonder if he’s doing this on purpose.”

“Alec?” Lily smirked. “He is. To bother me.”

“Why would I do this to bother you?”

“No,” Tobias sighed. “Rufus. I wonder if he’s doing this to make all of us mentally weak when he arrives.”

Everyone went silent, and Alec realized that his father was probably right. Alec and Lily both muttered an apology to each other. Rufus would arrive before they knew it. They only had a few more weeks. They all needed to be strong if they were going to stand a chance. Alec finally agreed to get dressed and meet with King Hamilton, who was reviewing the troops with General Rigorsky. Alec took Dominic, who was his highest military official other than himself, to meet with them.

Hamilton dropped what he was doing at the table the officers met to hurry to Alec, looking incredibly concerned.

“I’m fine,” Alec said, before the man could even ask. “I promise I’m fine.”

They made their way back to the table, where there were a couple more of Alec’s appointed Aegaeran officers and three Elbian officers. The first man Alec trusted to lead his military was Marie Graham’s second son, Holden. Once a soldier to the old Queen, Holden had crossed over to the rebelling side after seeing the death of his brother, and being the only one in his family to survive the revolution, devoted himself so much to the new government that Alec couldn’t help but trust him. The other was a younger man named Rhett Howard. Rhett had snuck his way into Aegaera with the magic users, but managed to hide during the entire violent portion of the revolution. He was young and caused Alec quite a bit of trouble at the start of his reign, trying to chase Rhett down after he committed several well-planned robberies, but Rhett was too strategic and was always two steps ahead of everyone else. For this reason, Alec knew that the only way to turn Rhett’s life around was to give him a place of authority in the military, instead of putting him behind bars. The boy was far too clever to give up.

The Elbian officers were quite young, much like Alec and his officers, but they held themselves a little taller and prouder. Like every other Elbian, they were handsome men with crisp, clean uniforms, decorated in various medals. Like the Aegaeran military, they wore white, but the Elbians looked far more noble in their uniforms. Alec couldn’t imagine them stained with blood.

“Allow me to introduce you to my two highest officers,” General Rigorsky said, patting one of them on the shoulder. “Christopher Helton and Lance Churchill.”

Both of them bowed, so in sync from years of training that Alec was a little bit uncomfortable. They were a few years older than him at the most, but next to them, Alec was no more graceful than a pile of horse shit. He simply nodded to them, and for a moment, he caught Christopher eye Rhett and Holden up and down before giving Lance an unimpressed look that made Lance crack a smile.

Alec felt his blood boil. They weren’t impressed with Aegaera at all. Now it was personal. Alec intended on showing these daffodils exactly how the people managed to overthrow the old government in just a couple of days. Lance cleared his throat, stepping forward with a charming smile on his face and using a metal pointer to show areas on the map on the table.

“It would only make sense for King Rufus and his men to come through this mountain pass, here,” he said, his voice so full of authority that Alec almost forgot he was the boss around these parts. “We’ve set up camps here, here, and here to defend the Kingdom’s walls, but scouts claim not to have seen any Jalecians. This either means they’ve outsmarted us and have hidden well, which is unlikely considering the size of their men and carts of supplies, or that they’re taking a different route than normal.”

“Alright, fine,” Rhett said, heavy tones of annoyance in his voice. “So do you have any other suspected routes he’s taking, or are we just sitting ducks.”

“Allow me to finish, please,” Lance said, a hard look in his eyes. “We’ve set up several other camps around the perimeter. Still no sign of them. I highly doubt that the stubborn king has taken back his threats at the sight of this army, but he’s certainly taking a different course of action. One that takes longer. We suspect they’re trying to catch us off guard. Surprise us. But we’ll be ready, no matter when they choose to take action.”

“We should go looking for them,” Holden suggested. “I feel like bait, sitting out here waiting.”

“We can’t go after them,” Rhett told him. “We need to stay defensive, or they’ll get to the people.”

“You and your ‘defensive strategies’ kill me,” Holden grumbled. “Do what you do best and go back into hiding, kid.”

“Hey, look me in the eyes and say that again,” Rhett growled.

Dominic elbowed Rhett in the gut and Alec kicked Holden in the shin under the table, noticing the Elbian guards trying not to laugh. While they were so in sync, Aegaera’s officers were fighting like schoolchildren. Alec was almost embarrassed by them, but he refused to let that show in front of Rigorsky and his officers. Hamilton seemed oblivious to it all.

“Well, we’ll leave it to you men to show your king around the camps,” Christopher said. “Good evening, your highness.”

Once again, in perfect sync, they bowed and saluted to Alec before following behind Rigorsky in a neat, single-file line. Alec waited until they left, with Hamilton trailing behind, before turning to Rhett and Holden.

“Are you two trying to taint the kingdom’s name?” Alec asked them.

“I hate working with those two mannequins,” Rhett grumbled. “And their stupid clean-shaven faces.”

“Really, Alec, they’re impossible,” Holden sighed.

“That’s ‘your highness’, for your information,” Alec reminded him.

“Alright, your highness,” Rhett said. “Tell King Hamilton to get his snooty men under control. I’m tempted to sleep with Christopher’s sister, just to spite him.”

“Hey,” Alec scolded. “We respect women in Aegaera. She’s not an object for your stupid revenge.”

Rhett raised a brow, but held his hands up in surrender. “If you say so. I just hope you’re right about these guys. They’re polished and trained, that’s for damn sure. But they don’t take Aegaeran armies very seriously. We’re mostly made up of volunteers with no experience, after all. Training consists of Elbian soldiers swinging their swords around, flirting with girls, and Aegaeran soldiers fetching lunch for everyone.”

“What?” Dominic frowned. “You mean they haven’t been trained.”

“The volunteers are… for lack of a better word… weenies.”

“They lack strive,” Holden shrugged. “They’re in it for the nice uniforms, I suppose. I don’t think they understand what the military is, and none of the Elbians care enough to teach them.”

“Alright,” Alec sighed. “So what have you two shitlords been doing this entire time?”

Holden and Rhett went silent, exchanging uncomfortable glances to confirm Alec’s suspicions.

“Uh huh,” he said. “Gather up the Aegaeran troops. I have a word or two for them.”

Dominic grinned at Alec as Holden and Rhett hurried of to did as he asked, looking a little worried. In a way, Dominic looked proud of Alec. He turned to face the older general, confused.

“You’re starting to really sound like an authority, Alec,” Dominic chuckled. “Making a speech for your troops without me asking or forcing you to.”

“Well, someone needs to take control around here,” Alec said.

“Good, that’s exactly the mindset you should have.”

It took much longer than it should have, but Holden and Rhett managed to gather the Aegaeran soldiers in a crowd around Alec, who stood up on a platform made of wood and barrels so everyone could be seen and heard. He took a moment to look over them all, crossing his arms over his chest. A few he recognized, because they’d fought alongside him in the revolution. For the most part, however, the faces were new. There were a few Elbian soldiers who lingered, waiting to see what Alec had to say with amused looks on their faces. Christopher and Lance stood among them.

“Any day now,” Alec started. “Any day now, Rufus LeMontague and his men will come and wreak havoc upon Aegaera. At the rate you’ve all been training, there is only one thing I have to say to you: I hope you all rest peacefully.”

The men grew quiet, unsure of how to react to Alec’s comment.

“The man is vile,” Alec continued. “He won’t kill you all. He’ll make you watch as he kills your families. And then he’ll enslave you, so the only comfort you’ll have in life is knowing that your dead children don’t have to suffer the same misery you’re forced to experience. At this rate, this is your future.”

Even the Elbian soldier’s smiles had fallen off their faces, as if suddenly realizing this wasn’t a joke. Christopher and Lance listened closely, eyes glued to Alec.

“Just two years ago, ordinary Aegaeran people felt this misery,” Alec said. “When they decided this wasn’t right, they came together and fought one of the most incredible battles this world’s history had ever seen. And they made Aegaera a better place. They may have been strong and powerful, but above all, they had one thing: They had heart. They were ready to sacrifice everything to make the future a good place to live in. They longed not for medals or trophies, or a noble title next to their name, but for their children to sleep easy, knowing that they would not be fooled and used. In my eyes, these rebels deserve the highest of honors. Now, once again, Aegaera has found itself in troubling times. Someone is threatening to take away your freedom. Will you allow it?”

The soldiers suddenly leapt to their feet and cheered, pumping fists and weapons in the air.

“Will you allow it?” Alec repeated, yelling now.

The cheer that his soldiers responded with was exactly what Alec needed to hear. Right away, they dispersed to stop fooling around and got straight to work. Alec hopped down from his platform, giving a stunned Christopher and Lance a slight nod. They saluted him again, but this time, it was out of genuine respect. Dominic laughed and patted Alec on the back.

“Now that was a speech.”

“I think I’m going to throw up,” Alec mumbled.

“Save it for when you get back to the palace,” Dominic told him. “Be kingly until no one can see you anymore.”

Alec nodded, standing tall and strong until he was back behind closed doors. He could hear Hamilton excitedly telling Lily and Gloria about Alec’s “heroic speech”, but he was too exhausted to deal with them right now. He trudged to the bedroom, wanting to flop straight on to the bed, but stopping when he saw the door cracked open. He frowned and slowly opened it, silently sneaking in and catching sight of a figure moving around near the drawers. When he got closer, the figure stiffened. She turned, and Alec found himself looking at a startled Gwendolyn.

“What are you doing in here?” Alec asked accusingly. “You’re not allowed in our personal chambers.”

“My mistake. Forgive me, your highness,” Gwendolyn said quickly, trying to hurry past Alec.

Her voice didn’t seem so calm and smooth anymore. Alec turned and saw Lily’s drawer slightly open. He doubted that Lily has left it like that. Alec grabbed Gwendolyn’s wrist and yanked her back inside, glaring at her.

“You were snooping around in the Queen’s personal belongings,” he said.

“I was just… I…”

For once, Gwendolyn seemed at lost for words. Then she calmed down, back to her calm and controlled self. Automatically, Alec felt slightly less angry with her.

“Sit down, child,” she sighed, gesturing to a seat. “I have a secret I must confess.”