The Red Glaive

Soren sat amongst the judges, barely listening. They all fawned over the Intoner’s painting, deciding when they should present the masterpiece the king and his son. They all seemingly forgot that Intoners, by the gift that blessed them, specialized in creation or the fact that the Lady Kireina wasn’t even a contestant to begin with. The first night had been a fluke, he’d come in Lord Einon’s place. This night he had asked to judge for a single reason.

In his hands he held the half finished patch Lady Aeria had worked on in the five hours the women were given. The judges had quickly dismissed it, but growing up with someone as magical as the Enchantress taught him to always be wary of women and their magic. He had watched Lady Aeria a majority of the time they had spent there. Watched her struggle. It didn’t look like she knew what was doing for most of the time. Then, suddenly, she sat down and starting stitching like she hadn’t before.

What she had completed looked more than presentable to his eye, but when he passed it to Furiae she was quick to nitpick the errors. But that wasn’t the reason he had handed it to her. She examined it then paused, her turquoise eyes rising slowly.

“She used magic on this.” Furiae said slowly confirming his suspicions.

As guest judge, Soren had been privy to the utter lunacy of official judges’ devotion to the rules of their silly pageant. For this night they were adamant that the women must display their own skill in an art of their choosing. He had been there when they had used the king’s magic, which ran through the Ivory Bastion itself, to place the magic barrier over the room to keep the women from using their magic to complete their arts. Even Furiae’s magic, the magic of Aestus and the Beast himself, bowed before the king’s magic. And yet Lady Aeria had somehow pierced it?

“So she is kingmaker, as Nalah was to Sefu and as Sarai was to Reth. Now, this Lady Aeria? All three with red eyes, women of great power. She belongs to Aestus and by your side.” Furiae said, she turned to face Soren. “Steal her my King.” she said again.

Soren looked around to make sure no one had heard. King of Aestus, anything related to Aestus or the Beast was looked down upon in Lux Aeterna. The only reason they were allowed in the capital at all was because Gebari’s wife was the King’s aunt. Talking of Aestus’ kings was open treason on these foreign lands, though he couldn’t deny that it was common chatter within his own ranks not matter how hard he tried to stifle it.

The Last War had ended when King Veritas killed King Corrin, shattered the old Legion, and seized the Sarkain children. Despite the age difference, King Veritas later married the Sarkain princess himself and married his aunt to the Sarkain prince.

That wasn’t the end of it though. Infernal Caim reformed the Inferno Legion and somehow, managed to take the Sarkain princess and hold her hostage. Already set with an heir, King Veritas risked the princess’ life and showed absolutely no mercy and killed them all before another rebellion could start. The Sarkain princess was killed before she could be rescued. At least, that’s the story King Veritas was told.

Aestians tell a very different tale, one of love lost, an ignored cry for peace, and sometimes of another child born to the Sarkain princess. It was a foolish fancy, Soren’s own father had been at the site after the King’s assassins had left. There were no survivors in that carnage.

But the people of Aestus needed to believe there was another Sarkain out there that wasn’t sullied by Donumdei blood. Someone that they could follow and fight behind that could lead them to freedom. A dangerous hope.

“I am no King despite how much you might want it. Our King is Donumdei and our Lord is Sarkain. Don't you ever call me that again.” Soren said severely. He believed in Einon, who had saved Soren from slavery and reforged the Legion with him as its new Infernal Captain. Who tried, despite his Donumdei mother, to cling to the old Aestian ways despite how much it upset the new Aestian nobility.

Furiae looked down at the patch in her hands with a frown behind her translucent silk veil. She continued to study it closely.

Soren sighed, wishing he could leave. But he could not. These pageants were the only place where he could see Lady Aeria, he had hoped to speak to her, but on this night she had left before he could get the chance. As a Sarkain representative, he could select one girl, out of the thirty or so, to move forward each night. This night he would chose Lady Aeria as he had done the night of questionnaire.

He refused to kidnap and just take a woman, without her agreeing to come with him. Never. But Furiae was right about one thing; this girl had power and that simply couldn’t be ignored. Power that, somehow, no one had noticed. If they didn’t do something about it someone else eventually would. Power like that couldn’t fall in the hands of those who stood against them.

“Her blood is on this cloth.” Furiae said her eyes widening in excitement and showing him a small thumbnail sized stain on the outer rim of the patch. Around them everyone was crowning the Intoner’s painting as the winner of the art portion of the pageant. No one was paying Soren and Furiae any mind.

“Don’t you even think about it Furiae.” Soren warned. Furiae was skilled in blood magic in a way no priest could ever even begin to comprehend. The things she could do. . .

Furiae smiled and leaned in close. “I can make her love you. Infect her dreams with thoughts of you. In her waking moments she will think of you but not know exactly why.” She whispered, “You won’t have to take her that way, she will come to you willingly.”

“No.” he said firmly. He didn't see much of a difference in taking her against her will or fooling her into coming with him. “That girl is different from the rest of them.” Magic aside, she had taken an insanely popular opinion during the questionnaire. That single act of loyalty to the people of Aestus made her much more Aestian than the puppet Aestian nobility that had come down with them. “You will leave her alone Furiae, until I speak with her.”

Furiae’s eyes narrowed. She doubted he’d get an audience with how guarded the Duchess of Lonroth had been keeping her younger sister. It made him wonder, why exactly the Lady was even in the pageant to begin with with her being rather terrible at playing the nobles’ games. He wondered if maybe the Duchess was using the pageant to showcase her sister as some lordling’s mistress. That would make the Duchess only slightly better than a slaver. Lady Aeria deserved better.

Soren needed to figure out Lady Aeria and he knew exactly how to begin.

The pageant had rules for the contestants on the night of the melee. That if a knight stood out significantly during the melee, even if he didn’t win, he would be given a boon. It could take the shape of anything. The previous year saw the Stelio Belmont claim the King’s own steed as his own. An audacious demand but the King honored it regardless. The contestants in the pageant could be claimed as boons too. A method of claiming the best before the king got his pick.

Would anyone bat an eye if Soren claimed a lesser born lady from a no known house?

He’d use his boon to gain an audience with her he wouldn’t force her to do anything.

This late into Radiant Week he could only join the melee as a mystery knight. Which was fine by him because no matter how loyal he was to Einon Sarkain, he didn’t Einon to find out what he was up to and why.Einon, fixated on ancient Aestus lore and the restorations of Aestus culture, learned of the red eyed Queens of Aestus from Furiae herself. If Einon found the Lady there’d be nothing Soren could do to stop Einon Sarkain from taking her for himself.