Hatam-Ile, 13th of Ninthmoon 3045
Rain beat against Ren’i and his Guards’ uniforms when the forces of the 9th and 10th legions came to a halt, bringing their taxing march across the plains to an end, but they hardly noticed the weather. The flags could be seen from afar, the red-and-purple colouration announcing to everyone present that the soldiers belonged to the Meril-An division.
Ren’i’s red cloak flew behind him like a pair of spread wings as he observed the consuls dismounting from their kooris. The half-plate armour they wore resembled those of the northern legions except for the old-fashioned helmets whose ornamental, horn-like extensions curved towards the skies. Meril-An was a city immemorial, the sourthern-most fortress of ancient Kisha in the millenia that had followed Quan’s reign, and its citizens carried their history with pride that Ren’i respected. Meril-Anians made for good, loyal soldiers, he knew it from experience: there were four of them in his Guard in addition to the captain, all personally handpicked by him for their positions.
On Ren’i’s other side stood consuls Kha’ar, Vannuil and Qel, on the other Ared and Hamr. Ren’i had seen it best to ask Ared to show himself in their company as much as possible. The Meril-An consuls needed to get accustomed to seeing the akheri chief as part of the military brass and learn to take orders from him, preferably before they were up to their armpits in Liqaris, and Ren’i knew full well just how pigheaded the more conservative full-bloods could be.
The heavy plate armour borne by the consuls’ kooris gleamed wet from the rain. Soldiers rushed to take their reins as the consuls marched towards Ren’i. They both went on their knees in front of him and crossed their arms across the chest.
”Your highness, voice of the ruby throne.” The shorter consul’s voice carried a hollow echo inside the helmet. ”We arrived as quickly as we managed.”
Ren’i’s gaze moved from one soldier to the other slowly, deliberately, and he spoke formally, ”consul Agal. Consul Venu. Arise.”
They rose and pulled off their helmets in unison. Vannuil had summarised to Ren’i all she knew of the Meril-An consuls, and Ren’i had made sure to memorise their names and any significant details of their achievements. Like their 5th legion colleagues they were experienced, hardened professionals who had served Kisha for centuries. Venu was tall, her deep olive skin as dark as Hamr’s, and her whole head was covered with long black braids reaching midway down her back. Agal’s skin was light brown, but there was a noticeable blueish violet sheen to it as daylight touched it. Her hair had gone entirely gray with age. Despite the wrinkles surrounding her eyes and mouth her gaze was sharp, her posture as ramrod straight like any soldier’s. The ears peeking out of her hair weren’t as long or pointed as Venu’s.
Ren’i could barely hide his astonishment. Consul Agal was not a full-blood – she wasn’t even a taivashi! Ren’i stole a glance at Vannuil. She did not look at him, but Ren’i could read from her expression that this bit of information came as no surprise to her.
”Consul of the 9th legion, Venu of house Nawara. Consul of the 10th legion, Agal Merethanese. Your presence here today honours you,” Ren’i greeted them, his ashay enhanced voice carrying easily over the rain and the wind.
Venu and Agal bowed deeply. ”Hail, crown prince Ren’i mar Oereinen,” they responded as one.
”So the empress’s declaration was true, then?” Venu asked. ”The Liqaris are truly on their way?”
”So it would seem, once they’ve managed to dig themselves out of the snow banks,” Ren’i answered.
A small lopsided smile graced the woman’s face. ”About time. We have been busy fortifying Meril-An for them for several millenia. How nice of them to finally come for a visit.”
”I did assume you would not want to miss the festivities.”
”Your highness is much too considerate,” Venu said. ”Our soldiers would have been thoroughly disappointed had you kept all the fun to yourself.”
”I like her already,” captain Hamr muttered under his breath.
Ren’i turned to Vannuil. ”Please arrange a patrol to show the legions where they may set up camp. We have much to discuss, and the sooner we get started the better.” He nodded towards Venu and Agal. ”I shall send my soldiers to fetch you to the meeting once you have organised your forces.”
The organising took all day. Night had already fallen by the time the consuls arrived in Hatam-Ile’s elder’s house, escorted by the Guard of Honour. They listened in silence as Ren’i summarised the tale of the scouting part’s journey to Liqaria. Consul Venu grinned when Ared reflected what Ren’i had witnessed for all and sundry to see.
”What’s the headcount, captain?” Agal asked.
”Counting the akheri volunteers there’s approximately 30 000 of us – perhaps 39 000 now that your legions have joined us,” Hamr replied. ”His highness estimates that the Liqari force is considerably larger, perhaps 45 000 in total.”
Venu rubbed at her chin. ”Yes, we can certainly get a nice little scuffle going with these numbers.”
”What of the empress? Has she already received news of the situation?” Agal added.
Ren’i felt every pair of eyes in the room affixed to him. He returned them calmly.
”The empress made it quite clear that the Hytherlands are under Kishan protection as part of the empire. She wants the southern border to hold into the future, and my main mission is to ensure that her will be done.” He sobered. ”The situation has changed from what her majesty and I estimated back at Hol Saro. It demands us to change our approach faster than any messenger can reach the capital. It is true that her majesty does not like surprises, but the realities of warfare rarely match the expectations.”
”You are aware that the most important duty of the imperial commander-in-chief is to embody her majesty’s will, your highness. She expects her will to be obeyed, down to each and every letter.”
Agal’s tone was carefully neutral, but Ren’i could see in the gaze she directed at him that she was watching for his reaction closely.
”You are correct, consul Agal. That is not all, however. It also my duty to be her sword and shield where her arm does not reach, and to parry the enemy before her majesty even knows she’s in danger.” Reflexively, Ren’i placed his hand on the pommel of the sword. The protective spell left his skin tingling, pins and needles crawling up his spine. ”My task is to react to threats before her. That is why I am her commander-in-chief: because I see what she does not, hear what she does not, and can therefore act much faster than she can.”
Agal inclined her head. Something in her eyes had softened by a fraction. ”And if we refuse to go against the empress’s orders? Are you prepared to force us?”
”There is no need for that. I know you’ve reached the same conclusion as I.”
Venu quirked her brows and said, ”and what makes you think that?”
Ren’i let out a soft huff of laughter. ”Had you intended to decline, consul Venu, you would not have marched all the way from Meril-An just to tell it to my face. The plains are crawling with beasts who’d be delighted to have a pair of travellers for an easy dinner. You could have easily gotten rid of my messengers and pretended my message never reached you, and you would have been hard-pressed to find anyone willing to question your story.”
The smile Venu flashed his way was younger than her actual years. ”All right, all right, he’s not completely hopeless. Very well then. My legion is at your disposal.”
Agal was still watching Ren’i thoughtfully. ”You are still young and only at the start of your military career, your highness. Kisha’s history is long and turbulent, and this will not be your last war. Are you ready to risk your position – your own future – for a single conflict?”
Ren’i had known to expect the question, yet it still gave him a pause. He looked at each and every person present one by one, the akheris, the taivashis, the empty-blooded consul, eyes taking in one face after another. He knew the answer without having to think. His voice was quiet when he said, ”the fate of my country and my people is my fate, too. I am ready to do whatever it takes to defend them. Should they have no future, then my own is worth nothing, either.”
He thought of his father, of Chuja, his whole family, and the long, restless summer nights in a city that never slept. He thought of Hol Saro’s spring storms and the polar nights of winter, of autumn colours in the northern woodlands and the cloud-covered mountain peaks in the horizon. Thought of Hawk and of his fingers interlaced with his own, of deserts, sandstorms, and of the land that transformed overnight as the seasons turned, and of the people who transformed with it. Whatever the future had in store for him, he knew it was somehow entwined with it all.
”Well spoken,” consul Vannuil said, breaking the silence that had settled in the room.
Finally, even Agal smiled, which deepened the creases around her eyes. ”It sounds like we understand each other.” She settled more comfortably on her cushion. ”Shall we get down to business then? There aren’t too many weeks until Seiye’s spring. We’d best get out forces in position before we get visitors.”
”Our soldiers are used to the long, dry summers in Meril-An, but it does not compare to the conditions here in the Hytherlands. Chief, you and your elders know the wastes the best,” Venu said, addressing Ared. ”It is likely that we will face our first battles during the rains. What can we expect?”
Ren’i felt his thoughts wandering while Ared and the consuls immersed themselves in conversation over the map. The insatiable pull of the confession that had kept him awake for nights on end had at last calmed into a vague longing, but he could still sense Hawk’s presence even at a distance. He’d lingered on it many times over the past day, as though counting the hours until their next rendez-vous.
His hand was still clutching the hilt of his sword, feeling the power radiating from it flooding into him. It had comforted him in Liqaria and kept him focused despite the hunger and the weariness. Ren’i stole a glance at Hamr, quite unnoticed by him as he listened to the consuls, scowling. He was the only one apart from the akheris who had reacted as Ren’i had expected upon realising that Agal was not taivashi. Kha’ar, Vannuil and Qel had shown no reaction whatsoever, and Ren’i knew they had kept the matter a secret from him.
The very thought of it made him restless. His fingers found the familiar shape of the pendant around his neck while all others had their attentions on the map, gripping it tight for a moment before he could force himself to let go.
It was already way past midnight by the time he exited the elder’s house under the protection of his Guards. Thanks to the approaching festival week Hatam-Ile was brightly lit even at night time, and the lights shining from the windows told him the locals were not sleeping. Ren’i threw one longing look over his shoulder as he left the square. The drawbridge had been raised, and he had no hopes of slipping away while surrounded by soldiers. He felt Linnee and Yurau appraising him, but no one uttered a word as they returned to the rain-beaten camp. Sleep took a long time to come in the solitary cold of his tent, and when Ren’i dreamed, he dreamt of fire.
On the edge of the woodlands Hawk fell into slumber just as restless as Ren’i’s. Though there was nothing left of the firewood he’d tossed in the hearth for the night the flames still burned low once morning came. As he watched, the flames died into glowing embers, then went out entirely, and Hawk did not dare move a muscle for a long, long time.