Unexpected Meetings

  The first thing he noticed as he walked through the doors from the visitor’s hall into the throne room was the view. An entire wall made of glass overlooked the palace’s backyard, the bustling, circular city down below, and the entire system of the Lakes of the Graces.

  “We will wait here until Her Majesty is ready to see us,” commanded his royal guide, halting in the middle of the walkway.

  Theo gladly complied and took his time observing his surroundings. He had heard about the Lakes of the Graces from multiple sources, seen a hundred sketches of them in his books, even studied up on geographical maps to try to understand how the inner reservoir of the main body of the lake produced enough water to fill its surrounding lakes and almost all the major northern bodies of water in Chloris, but the sight of it was utterly breathtaking. From so high up, he could even see past the six lakes for each of the six main Graces to the waterfalls up north that flowed down the cliffs into the infamous Northeastern rock shelf below.

  Every body of water was intricately connected through rivers, and any area that wasn’t occupied by shimmering blue was a lush green that rivaled that of his forest clearing with Ty. Trees, liberally scattered across the bountiful fields, were as abundant as the unbelievable spectrum of wildflowers flooding the brilliant, swaying meadows, and, encompassing it all, the mountains of the Royal Boundary coming to a head as the cliffs began.

  Untouched, undisturbed. Not a single building or person in sight, only the faint outlines of pathways that encircled the lakes.

  He wished he could have seen it—the look on Ty’s face when she witnessed such a marvel left to the world by the Earth Mother.

  Do you think our flower is there? he imagined her whispering to him with the widest, most innocent smile on her face.

  Maybe. Want to go take a look?

  Oh! Really? Really, really?

  Theo palmed his face for a second before realizing where he was and letting his hand drop.

  Fuck, now I’m sad.

  “We will proceed now, Child of Emrys,” beckoned the lady not a few minutes later, freeing Theo from his imaginary exchange as she stood where the walkway ended and the room with the big glass lookout began.

  Swallowing his nerves and heartache, Theo took a deep breath and exhaled before walking further down the hallway, past several stairs to the upper floors, noticing that other royals were watching and waiting for him to pass before they followed behind.

  As he left the black-and-white tile for the plush, red carpet, he could see a line of royals standing to the left, facing the other end of the room while his own attendant ushered him a few steps in before joining them.

  “Theodore val’ne Emrys,” spoke a deep and stern, commanding voice.

  Heart in his mouth, Theo stopped and awkwardly pivoted toward the voice.

  There was a tall, black armchair—nothing like his idea of a throne—on the right-hand side of the room, where a gray-haired individual sat. Unlike the other royals he had spotted on the palace grounds, her dress was a flowy and layered creamy white instead of stark white against the typical peony-pink, and a delicate, golden circlet graced her head; her face wasn’t clear, as her profile was blinded by the bright light streaming in through the window, but he immediately noticed the warm, Ancient tan of her skin.

  And, save for a small table at her side with a small box on it, not a single attendant adorned her side.

  “Come. Look at the lakes with me.”

  With no reason not to comply, Theo found himself facing the window and the Lakes of the Graces with its minute details, so pronounced he felt like he could fall in if he closed his eyes.

  “You are as she described,” spoke Queen Lanimede slowly.

  Unsure of when he should speak or turn around lest it be considered a great offense, Theo took a deep breath and held it.

  “Miyen’amo.”

  He froze. Darius had called him the same thing.

  “Your color, I have not seen in a long time. In my youth, children were killed if they developed a color like yours. You are a danger to the Earth Mother, and she marked you for a reason. Of course, you burned Hythe to the ground regardless. You are tremendously lucky to have been born a commoner.”

  Theo stayed silent, not at all surprised that the queen knew of such information.

  “As I understand you are a nonbeliever, and likely doubt my credibility and authority, I would like to indulge you in a brief history of our people. It may not change your mind, but I would like you to hear it.

  “The first Ancient was born to Anasot and Eslah. The second, Noa and Sepicas. The third, Uphes and Chalsis. While the Ancients of Anasot, Eslah, Noa, and Sepicas were plentiful, they strayed far from the Earth Mother, as all four Graces despised the treatment they received from Her. Uphes and Chalsis, however, would only bear ten children, all of who became loyal servants of the Earth Mother and lived exclusively in Her Temple, where we are now.

  “For many, many years, the children of Uphes and Chalsis served the Earth Mother. Never venturing away from the Temple or bearing children, Her sole keepers were therefore affectionately called ‘royal.’ That is, until many years later, after Earth Mother’s seclusion, when Hythe and Ethy bore the first ‘commoner.’

  “You look surprised. Many consider the Ancients the rightful owners of the land because they are the closest things to Graces that we have, not to mention they can cast magic and still follow the old traditions, but all of us—all of us—are descendants of the Graces and the Earth Mother. Without retelling the entire story of Hythe and Ethy, which would surely take until sundown, the reason their offspring became known as commoners is twofold: one, because Hythe destroyed her own aura using Anasot’s magic after Thaon’s Departure as a way to separate herself from the Earth Mother, and two, because Ethy, the youngest, also disdainful of the Earth Mother’s orchestrations, awoke broken and far weaker than the other Graces. It is for these reasons that commoners cannot cast magic, are far weaker, and do not live as long as traditional ‘Ancients’ who follow and worship the Earth Mother and Her Graces.

  Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

  “One thing they do possess, however, is the love from Hythe that she was meant to spread across the land as a Grace. The love that she spread for more than a hundred years, until the Earth Mother killed Thaon out of spite and jealousy, and she began her many, many years of silence. That is partially why the Ancient population is far smaller than the commoners, and why they do not ‘love.’

  “So when Ethy, having long forgiven the Earth Mother for forcing suffering upon him, brought the first commoner to the Temple of the Earth Mother that the children of Uphes and Chalsis so dutifully kept maintained, and the children fell in love, they were able to continue the line of both commoners and royals. And little by little, the Ancient blood that once came from Uphes and Chalsis became more and more diluted, until there were no longer any traces of magic to be found in the commoners. And little by little, even the most devout servants of the Earth Mother disavowed their promises to Her and ventured off into Chloris with their children, until only one of the ten direct descendants of Uphes and Chalsis remained at the Temple with the family she had created.

  “One remaining royal with the qualities of an Ancient. One remaining royal who lived to see all the Graces. One remaining royal who served and loved the Earth Mother with all her heart and was rewarded for it.”

  And then, finally, a long pause.

  “It is the wealth of knowledge I have as the queen and as the oldest living royal that I must inform you that Tyche sel’emma Jeanne is not who you may think she is.”

  He could not help it. At the mention of her name, he turned to face the queen.

  Staring into the distance, hands on her lap, her crown holding jewels that were all a brilliant opal akin to rainbows in the sunlight, she looked like a ghost. Her pupils were white, and her face was marred with age. Her wispy, long gray hair was half down, half tied up in a bun. Her hands, folded neatly in her lap, were thin and bony. She wore no rings, only a white bangle that appeared to be made of the same stone as the jewels in her circlet.

  She slowly turned to him, her pearly eyes sending a shiver down his spine. “Did I grant you permission to perceive me?”

  Immediately, he faced the windows again, hoping with all the will he had left in his body that the transgression was not too egregious for her to conclude the meeting entirely.

  “Ancient scriptures dictate that reincarnation exists, and that our auras do not change across the different lives we live. This extends to everyone in Chloris—Ancients, royals, and commoners alike. It also extends to the Earth Mother and Her Graces, the latter which seem to be especially drawn to the Academy they created. Not only are Sethes trell’ina Trine and Casseopia trell’iylla Trine the reincarnations of Sephec and Caspos, but all twelve Graces should be currently walking the land—as the Earth Mother would not allow Her favorite child, Hythe, back into the world without surrounding her with the very Graces she loved but was rejected by on account of Her selfishness. Back when the Graces were all but on their deathbeds, I had even witnessed the backward facet of the Earth Mother once, in all her tenebrous glory. But never…never have I met the forward facet of the Earth Mother. Never have I witnessed the unique, unforgettable myriad of colors my father often recalled to me.”

  He could see her gradually shift back to the windows.

  “While my eyesight may not be what it once was, auras are still as clear to me as the day I was born and first set eyes on my parents. So when Tyche sel’emma Jeanne wished for an audience with me, and I met with her under the assumption that she was the reincarnation of Hythe, I realized I had made a grave mistake. Her aura had been confirmed by several Elders, and I was certain that the reason the halfling could live was because the Earth Mother shared with her a weaker version of Her own aura, but this…this was different. This was the first time she had sought me out in all these years. This was the first time I was able to lay my eyes on that breathtaking, divine rainbow I have been seeking all my life.”

  There was an abrupt pause, and when she continued, her words were markedly less confident. “I am unsure of who you are, why she spoke of you and only you, why your companions are Graces while you are unrecognizable to me…but your sullied color and your silence…I cannot help but wonder if I was right, all along. If…the Earth Mother still has not learned her lesson.”

  After a sigh, the queen stood up, her voice surprisingly nostalgic instead of cold. “Is it finally time for me to rest?”

  Theo did not respond, staring at the Lakes of the Graces even when the queen turned to him.

  “Theodore val’ne Emrys. Miyen’amo. Danger to the Earth Mother, Bearer of the Mother’s sins. Look at me.”

  He did as he was told and, as he stared unflinchingly into her eyes, he could swear there were the faintest traces of a smile.

  “It has been a long time. And a promise is a promise. Take the box on the table and leave.”

  Not two seconds after the order left the queen’s mouth, Theo felt someone approach him from behind.

  The attendant gestured with one hand toward the small box on the desk beside the queen—about the size of a small deck of cards—and another back to the hallway from which he came.

  “Please proceed.”

  As much as he wanted to, however, with the box already in his hand, Theo could not move. His eyes were staring straight at the five people who were standing at the entrance. More specifically, the two at the front with their guardians standing behind them.

  Selene. Her eyes were bloodshot, and her face was dressed like a doll, cheeks pink with embarrassment. Her straight blond hair was plain for all to see, untied and uncovered. Rosy flowers in the center of a golden circlet with red jewels adorned her head, its dangling chains blending in so much with her angelic hair that it seemed as if the crystals were magically floating around her. An intricate red seal that looked similar to Ancient script word sr’alignoth—‘outsider,’ as used in spells to demarcate individuals who were excluded from a spell’s effect—was plain to see on her forehead, underneath where her bangs and hood had always covered, except now they were parted to the side. On her was the most fairy-like, ornate dress with delicate layers of shimmering pearl white and pastel pink.

  Korinna, beside her, was wearing the most triumphant, ecstatic grin on her face. Face dressed less like a doll and more like her natural self. Her hair looked the same as it always did when she didn’t have it up—straight, down to her hips, dark brown and outrageously long—along with her stunningly blue eyes. Surprisingly, she was wearing the same thing that he had last seen her in—her black Academy-issued chemist’s outfit, complete with cape and pin. She looked as dashing and unpredictable as ever.

  He met Kor’s eyes first. She offered a smile and a wink before turning around to whisper a few words to her flustered partner.

  Selene looked up at her partner, the look of embarrassment gone as she gazed up at Kor and grasped tightly onto the hand she offered. All the things he had never seen before in the princess were unhidden now that they were behind closed doors—admiration, fondness, yearning. It was pure, undistilled. It reminded Theo of something he had lost.

  “Please proceed, Child of Emrys.”

  He tore himself away from his thoughts and pocketed the small box, walking obediently down the aisle from where he had come. But even as he passed, he still could not take his eyes off them, least of all continue when he heard Kor speak from behind him.

  “Shall we, princess?”

  With a small nod, Selene stepped forward slowly, their parents behind them wearing proud looks on their faces.

  “Child of Emrys.”

  Nodding again, finally separating himself from his classmates’ private affairs, Theo caught up to his guide and rushed through the doors again, where he was then led back upstairs. His other classmates were gone, as expected.

  Without another word, as if hurrying to get rid of the commoner, the royal ushered Theo out the double doors, leaving him completely bewildered and at a loss for words in front of the two gate attendants.

  Just as Theo was about to turn away, he heard a loud bell chime from above.

  One, two, three rings.

  He turned to one attendant and opened his mouth to speak, hoping his guess was right when one of them interrupted anyway, reading his mind.

  “An auspicious day—a royal has been wed.”