#cor'terrae

[nathanaelroyale]

Snippet of Ch . 3

The castle of the Holy Camarian Empire's capital, Illander, was overwhelmingly bright, with white stone walls, columns, and vaulted ceilings. Adorning the ceiling of the main entry of the castle was a fresco depicting the banishment of our Lord, the Divine of Darkness and Undead, Nanqa. In the clouds of Alasse Cire, the other Divines gathered in council. Lord Reinn Anon, Divine of Light and Storms, held the left hand of his wife, the Divine of Love and Loyalty, Sila Vor. Together, they were the principal deities of the Holy Camarian Empire, and their alliance between Ellaern and humans was the foundation of the Camarian Empire's strength.

Eleven of the twelve other Divines attended the meeting, with the last, neither Lord nor Lady, He'ar Namin, Divine of Judgment and Wisdom, taking Lord Nanqa deep into the void of space. The mural depicted this event as a celebration of light over darkness, of wrongs righted. Yet the Divine of Compassion and Mercy, Lady Naik'lea, sobs openly into her hands.

I like to think that she cries for the injustice being done to our Lord.

It is the Reinnian Church that teaches Camarians this story. I would hate Royale, too, if this were the 'truth' that I was fed from infancy. But I did not feel pity or sadness for the enemy of my people. For they surely did not for me.

The hatred of the Camarians was a subtle thing in the northern court. Not so among the common people who were likely to throw rotting vegetables at you while you watched for a knife in your gut. No, in the castle, the courtiers had perfected silent disgust. They had pretty smiles behind their fluttering fans, brittle things that didn’t mean anything at all. 

[nathanaelroyale]

Snippet of Chapter 14

I speak up, "Your meetings are soon?"

"They are. I should finish my work here before I go to the royal couple."

"Then I shall not keep you, "I stand and bow to Riq'ua in the Royalian tradition before I turn and walk through the library to the exit.

I should return to the cabin as I was to teach Nathanael his letters and numbers that evening. I also wanted to take inventory of the ritual items I had acquired for the rite of lichdom. I required two more things before the ritual, and I knew I had little time left to acquire them.

Halfway down the hall, I stopped. I had not asked Riq'ua when we should next meet. Although we met once every week, we met more often these days as Riq'ua's presence was a balm to my ire and depression. Making my way back to the library, I stopped inside as I saw Riq'ua standing from the chair I had left him in. There was a small crowd around him, mainly human nobles, from the look of their pastel court attire.

I approached slowly, brows furrowed, wondering what was being said.

A male courtier's hands swept before him as he spoke, "You've been spending much time with the Prince, and some are even saying you are courting him," his voice filled with disbelief.

"He is a Royalian; why would you wish to be seen with him?"

A woman beside the first continues, "Aren't you worried about your reputation as the High Advisor of the royal family? Spending time with Prince Drefan will only tarnish it!"

My teeth grind behind my lips. I was halfway toward Riq'ua and this press of incipient morons. I kept my face neutral but had little control over what was in my eyes. Was it hurt or anger? I did not know, but Riq'ua, who was about to speak, saw me at that distance.

Turning, I was leaving for the hallway when a hand pressed on my shoulder. That hand turned me around, and I instinctively stiffened, unsure who was touching me. But it was Riq'ua.

I shrug off his hand, taking steps backward, ready to turn away so I can leave the library and the castle and nurse my hurt. Again, however, that hand grasped my shoulder with a stronger grip than an Ellearn should have, and Riq'ua stepped up to me. His lips mash against mine, and I am shocked still. We were there in the library in front of dozens of people.

Did he not care what that meant for him?

Riq'ua's arms wrap around my waist, and he deepens the desperate show of our connection. He had never kissed me like this before, with such excitability as Riq'ua maintained his tranquil exterior always. But clearly not now.

My hands grasp his silver robes as I pull back enough to speak.

"Riq'ua, but what about-" I did not have time to finish my question before Riq'ua responded.

"They do not matter."

My eyes widened, and words were lost to me. He did not care what the court thought! By Nanqa, I had never felt so prized by another person before this moment. I pulled him back in with a hand on his cheek for another kiss. I could hear the voices, even my name mentioned by those same courtiers and other people currently in the library. But I did not care either. If Riq'ua wished for us to be known as courting, publicly, I would follow his lead.

My need for him was not purely physical; it was also spiritual and psychological. Riq'ua filled me with a glimmer of that foregone feeling, of hope. That my future would not remain so bleak, and that I could have something for myself that brought me joy. Something that would not be taken from me by anyone, even Rouben.

As we walked out of the library and down the nearest hall, I listened to Riq'ua's annoyance at those nobles who dared to tell him who he should spend his time and attention on. The fact that his attention and time were spent on me still made me feel like I was floating, disconnected from the world around us. Riq'ua was another reason to go through the ritual of lichdom soon, another thing I could cling to while the ritual stripped me of my mortality through such pain that I could not come close to imagining.

For Riq'ua. For Thom.

I would do it for them.