The Red Glaive

Caius, Niko, and Telfer left before daybreak and the night was pitch black with no moon to light their way. Their horses were all packed up and they were led to the harbor by torchlight. Aeria tagged along with them until they had to board. It was still dark out so she could see very little of the sea; only the unfamiliar smell of salt filled her nostrils and sound of waves roaring far away.

During her stay at Lux Aeterna, Aeria had never been to the docks, she just never had the time. She had never seen the sea, though the lake where the Cypress Grove sat was pretty vast on it’s own right.

“You be careful.” Telfer said giving her a hug but Aeria shoved him off.

“You’re as emotional as a woman Telfer.” Caius said with mock disgust.

“Alright how does a man say goodbye then Caius?” Telfer said.

“Watch and learn.” He said. “Hey Ariel.” He turned to her and nodded his head upwards at her.

“You’re an idiot Caius.” Aeria said and they all laughed.

Aeria stayed until their ship vanished into the darkness of the morning. Three days there and three days back. A week and two days estimated for their trip if everything went according to plan. It was one day till the weekend so she figured she’d skip that last day of training and go visit Adelaide and Videl.

As she walked down the pair she was surprised to find Arsene standing in the middle of her path. “They’ll forget about you.” Arsene’s voice sounded in her head.

“No they won’t, why would you say that?” Aeria said but Arsene only cawed before he flew away.

Beyond the horizon there was light, Aeria turned to look just as the sun poked out of the horizon and breathed its warm light into the cool water. For a split second, the sea burned with its heat. The skies above battled the blues and purples of the night with the sun’s oranges and pinks. The sun would eventually beat out the other, the declared winner, until night came again.

It was the most awe inspiring thing Aeria had ever seen. Grigos Lake back home in no way compared. She understood now, why so many bards sang about the sea. Strangely, she felt lonely then and wished she could share that moment with Valor. Did he know about how beautifully the sun rise was down on the beach? She wished he was with her now.

“Arsene?” she called and the black raven flew down as if nothing happened. “Can you take this to my sister?” Aeria said holding a small rolled up piece of paper. She didn’t trust any of the messenger services of Lux Aeterna, any one of them could be intercepted.

“You take me for a common carrier pigeon?” he said flying up to a post so that he could be at her level.

“No,” she said grabbing him by the beak, “but you’re the only thing I trust. . . most days.” She let him go when he started flapping his wings. He picked the small rolled up paper from her outstretched palm and flew away.

“I’ll never forgive you for this!” he said as he flew.

Along the coastline, white sand covered the pristine beaches. On one said beach was a couple sitting under a massive parasol. A few ways of knights stood close by, their full armor shinning in the morning sun.

“Arsene who are those people?” the bird could still be seen circling in the sky, she hoped he would spy on them for her. It seemed strange to see just that one single couple accompanied by a heavy escort in an otherwise empty beach in the early morning hours.

“A prince treats his lady to a sublime sight and hopes she will not revel in its beauty as he does.”

“What? A prince?” Was this the prince everyone was going insane about? He was too far away to make out from the docks, but at least now she’d have something to tell Adelaide about.

Aeria was halfway to Adelaide’s house when Arsene returned and dropped another note in her hand. “You don’t have to open it. I’ll tell you what she said, she said: “Does she really think she needs to ask my permission to come visit me? Does she take me for a complete and utter stranger!?”, I removed all the obscenities of course.” Arsene said flying high above her.

When Aeria opened Adelaide’s letter it read, You are very welcome to come visit my dear sister. Videl and I are most anxious to see you.

When she arrived at Adelaide’s Videl was outside atop a paint mare racing her up and down the courtyard as he held a jousting lance. The guards stopped her as they usually did and as Aeria usually did she told them she was the duchess’ brother.

“Adelaide doesn’t have a. . .” Videl could be heard saying when he turned to look at her. Aeria’s pendant blazed hot before she heard a soft ‘click’ of the pendant chipping. “Right, the lady’s brother. Let him in.” Videl ordered.

“You sure got a lot of pull around here now.” Aeria said approaching him.

“The only way I can compete is if I represent a house, Adelaide made me her head knight so I can represent house Lonroth.” Videl said letting the heavy lance fall to the floor.

“I thought you were only participating in the melee?” Aeria said.

“Adelaide has all these training tools just lying around, figured I’d give it a go. I need a break from my practice anyway.” Videl said climbing off his mare.

“Don’t get your hopes up Videl, jousts are no laughing matter.” Aeria said. They were the premier event at any gathering. Everyone knew how competitive jousts could be, and the winners were well renowned knights. When she was a tiny little girl pretending to be a knight, she’d always make believe she was competing on the final round at a joust. She always won.

“I know.”

“You should focus on the melee.”

“You know, you’re a lot more overbearing when you’re a man.” Videl said.

Aeria eyed him then jogged to the weapons rack where all the dummy blades were. She took two and came back to Videl and handed him.

“Show me how well you’ve trained.” Aeria said taking a few steps away.

Videl hesitated. “Aeria,” he said just loud enough for only the two of them to hear. “I don’t want to hurt you.”

“You won’t.” Aeria said assured. She had sparred with Videl a long time ago back when he was still set on becoming a knight. He, like all other knights, practiced the sword with a set of stances. Some were aggressive, others defensive, but Aeria knew some of them. Walther Ney, Videl’s eldest brother, had shown them to her when she had refused to learn how to dance. He had explained that dancing was just like learning stances in sword fighting and that if she wanted to be a good swordsman she’d have to learn to dance first.

Videl frowned and took a stance, sword held high over his head but pointed directly at her. Aeria recognized the stance but had long forgotten its name.

It was just another reason everyone feared Glaives. Knights fought with honor and dignity. Glaives fought to win. They never cared for stances or the dignity of battle, because when it came down to it a devil didn’t care what stance a glaive was in before it came to kill them. A devil was relentless and vicious and so a glaive had to be as well.

Videl gave plenty of warning. Perhaps he was waiting for Aeria to take a stance, but she just held her sword at her side watching him. He hesitated at first, but she was glad to see come at her with everything he had. But his stance had given him away. Aeria swatted his blunted blade out of the way as hard as she could with her own. Then before he could recover Aeria kicked him hard in the belly and he went tumbling back.

“You cheated.” Videl said as he held onto his stomach and gasped for air.

“Forget what you were taught.” Aeria said crouching by Videl. “Forget about honor, you have to fight to win.” Videl watched as Aeria stuck her thumb in her mouth before shoving it in his ear. He screamed as Aeria laughed.

Adelaide was ecstatic to see Aeria, even more so to show her all the new dresses she had had made for her. There were four expensive dresses for the evening events during Radiant Week, and two less expensive dresses to the daytime. Not only that, Adelaide had gone out and bought complimentary jewels and headdresses she thought would accent Aeria’s features the best.

Instead of complaining, as she usually did Aeria just enjoyed the time she had with her sister and even allowed her to apply some make up on her face and do her hair. Not that it took Adelaide very long with her magic flowing in all the tools she used making all kinds of brushes levitate and work all at once.

“What do you think of this one?” Adelaide said showing Aeria a violet shawl.

“It’s. . . uh. . . purple?” Aeria said very conscious of the thick layer of make up on her face. If she paid them mind, she could see her eyelashes.

“That red dress I showed you, do you think this would match with that dress? For me I mean?” Adelaide said. Aeria thought back to the red dress Adelaide had shown her when she first came in and before she had moved on to what Aeria should wear.

“I guess so.”

“Aeria, your hopeless.”

“That’s why I have you.” Aeria said with a smile making Adelaide sigh.

“I feel like wearing this will break up the red of the dress, at least a little.” Adelaide said. “I heard the prince likes red but it might be too much with my rubies too.”

“Oh, I saw the prince!” Aeria exclaimed. Adelaide’s eyes went wide.

“You did?” Adelaide said, “Where?”

“Well, he was very far away, but Arsene said it was him. He was down at the beach this morning with some girl.”

“Was it the same girl everyone has been saying they’ve seen him with?”

“I don’t know.”

“Aeria! How could you not know!? This is important!” Adelaide walked paced around the room still only half dressed. “I bet it’s that scheming bitch Nalia.” Then when she saw Aeria’s clueless face she added, “You’ve met her.”

“I have?”

“Yes, that red headed woman that was here when you last came to visit me.” Adelaide said. She remembered her, though she wasn’t sure if the woman the prince had red hair. “You know why she was here?” Aeria shook her head. “She heard that I could craft powerful spells and came looking for one of my love spells. She told me it was for a knight she had met, I shouldn’t have believed her.”

“I still don’t understand why you’re so angry.” Aeria said. Adelaide was the one who had agreed to have her in her home in the first place.

“Nalia is the only woman who can honestly say she’s bedded the prince.” Adelaide said. “It was a massive scandal years back. Lord Armthal demanded the prince marry his niece for having dishonored her so, maybe that was her ploy, either way the prince refused and Lord Armthal recalled his entire navy back to Flumina leaving the crown city defenseless in the seas. Pirates have become a real nuisance now.”

“Why would she be back if she was so dishonored?” Aeria said.

“Didn’t believe the rumors at first, she seemed so sweet when she was here but rumor has it that she will do anything as long as it gets her a crown on her head.” Adelaide grunted, “Her family claims to have fairly pure king’s blood too! If that’s true then with the spell I gave her, she’ll have the prince bewitched in no time!” Adelaide sighed and took off the rest of the red dress she had been wearing and tossed it over the tiny trash bin. “There’s no point in trying, I’ve ruined it for us all.”

Aeria laughed. “Adelaide you’re married!” she reminded her again.

“I could’ve been his mistress!”

“I mean, if he marries this Nalia person, you still can.” Aeria said making Adelaide pause.

“Hmmm,” Adelaide said. “I think you’re right, but I’ll need something much better than that to get the prince’s attention now.” she said and rang her bell. A servant entered unfazed by Adelaide’s half naked body. “Call the dress maker tell them I need a dress encrusted with rubies. The cost is not an issue, tell him I need it before the ball, but he’ll get a nice bonus if he gets it done before Radiant Week.” The servant nodded and left without a word.

“What?” Adelaide said when she caught Aeria’s look.

“Isn’t it a little strange to be talking so much about a stranger?” Aeria said. “Here you are, and people like this Nalia lady, plotting to win him over by any means necessary, but have you thought about the prince wants? What if he already has a noble lady in mind?”

“No.” Adelaide said flatly. “The king and his family belong to the people. Without us, they are nothing.”

“What a sad existence.”

“For you maybe.” Adelaide said. “All the wealth of all the lands is concentrated there in the Ivory Bastion. To sit in the beside the man a million other girls would’ve killed to sit beside, to sit there victorious, now that must be a feeling.”

“Would you love him?”

“Of course I would he’s the prince.” Adelaide said.

“And if he wasn’t?”

“Why are you so concerned about love all of the sudden.” Adelaide said and Aeria’s thoughts drifted back to Valor. She looked away to hide her red face from Adelaide. “You never marry for love, you marry someone who can support you then learn to love them later. No one marries for love.”

“Papa did.”

“And look what that got him; a half forsaken tree grove with hard-to-farm soil.” Adelaide said. “I’d rather marry someone who can have me live in luxury than someone who will have me wondering where our next meal is coming from.”

“Do you love your Duke?”

“Of course I do.”

“Then why are you so focused on another man.”

“Alwyn and I have a unique relationship, one you could never hope to understand.” Adelaide said. “So I suggest you drop the subject little sister.” Aeria bit her tongue, she didn’t want to offend Adelaide after she had been nothing but helpful and supportive.

“I’m sorry Adelaide.” Aeria said. “I didn’t mean to pry.” Adelaide didn’t say a word. Instead, she stood and began to braid Aeria’s hair.

“I remember when mother died, but before father brought us Madame Salver, I took care of all of you. I used to do your hair like this.” Adelaide said tugging slightly as the braids started to form. “You wouldn’t sit as still as you are now.” Aeria smiled. She didn’t remember much of that time, only fleeting moments, she couldn’t be older than four.

“I remember her very little.” Aeria said. “She liked to read to us and carved totems for the Colossus. Sometimes, if I think hard enough, I think I can remember her face or her voice.”

“You were so little when she died, I’m surprised you remember her at all. . . Well, Aget looks the most like her,” Adelaide said, “but you’re the only one of us who got her hair.” she pulled Aeria’s hair so she could see it. “Black like hers.”

All of Aeria’s sisters had inherited their father’s chestnut colored hair. Though Adelaide’s had always been the lightest. With her black hair, Aeria always felt like it was just something else that set her apart from her sisters. Learning now that it was her mother’s hair somehow made it easier to embrace and be proud of. She also realized how shaky her memories of her mother had been if she couldn’t remember the details of her face.

“Of course,” Adelaide continued fiddling with Aeria’s hair. It had only been about a week since Adelaide had applied her painful serum and Aeria’s hair had already grown over two inches. “it’d be more like hers if you actually took care of it once in a while.”

“You’re starting to sound like Madame Salver.” Aeria sighed rubbing the itch in her eye with her palm. All the make up Adelaide had applied there smeared over her eye socket and into her palm.

“You’re not supposed to touch it!”

“But it was itchy!”

On and on they went, just like old times. That night, it felt like being home again.