Kellaran POV:

I notice my daughter running at a pace even Lylos, my horse, would be jealous of with a face practically made of blood it was so red. I recognize that expression, it was the same her mother had when I first kissed her. Ahh, those days fill me with joy at the mere thought. Good on my daughter for finding someone she can cherish.

Now then, onto important matters.

Who’s legs do I need to rip off for touching my daughter?

********************

Cecilia POV:

I dart throughout the palace with such a speed that, if I was paying attention, I would realise had actually pushed through the fifth rank of swiftness. I had reached a bottleneck regarding how to attain such speeds. Now you might be thinking, isn’t running faster than a horse a little unrealistic? And the answer is, you’re right!

But the only answer I can give you is the return of physical magic into the world. Nobody knows how it happened, only that seven hundred years ago alchemy was simply pipe dreams of crazy men, but then all of a sudden people started performing superkinnic feats and people were dropping dead and bursting into flames from just eating their favorite spices.

I round another corner before realising that I never dropped a level in my mad dash, which I rectify by hopping off the balcony and swinging down a level, it was a large room that was still roofed and walled off. I roll down the hallway and continue my run until I reach the stairwell to my quarters, which is up the spire. It’s a tradition that the unwed and maidenly daughters of the house live in it’s highest spot, followed by their brothers followed by their parents. Once a daughter is found to no longer possess their maidenhood, they are brought down a level to sleep with their brothers. Dad literally dragged a kicking and screaming Talia down every stair of the tower after he found out about her treatment of the boy servants. In case you're wondering, the daughter is usually brought down a little later in life, usually as a woman, not in your first months of puberty.

It’s no mystery why the other nations hold those three in low regard. According to some hearsay, our trading partners are sending delegates to participate in the choosing ceremony where the heir is announced. Everyone seems to realize that they are doing this to get advanced warning as whether or not to try to strongarm dad into changing his mind. They need Erian trade routes for intercontinental and interracial trade, but that doesn’t mean they’re foolish enough to leave people like Talia on the throne. Or rather, people who create incidents.

The stability of Eria means the stability of the world's trade, so we were essentially the one nation only the Kanis Islands were stupid enough to piss off. Poor Kanites. If only they weren’t inbred, pirating shits.

Once I’m at the door to the top of the tower, and considerably out of breath, I open it up and look at the nice room I will now be living in. It is small, by the regard of a noble, but more than enough for me. It is filled to the brim with books and ornate carvings run all along the walls. A previous king had a load of colored and uncolored starstone carved into the walls for his daughter who was prone to night terrors if the room was too dark. They truly are beautiful patterns, telling a story really. I can’t remember what story it was exactly, but it was supposed to accompany one of her favorite bedtime stories.

I quickly run towards my bed and pull out the book that has saved my ass more times than I can count in recent years. It was a gift from my mother, and remember how I said that if I didn’t know for a fact that magic was gone, I would have called her a seer?

I immediately flip open the book to a random page and what greets me is exactly what I needed. She left instructions that I am not allowed to simply read through the book, and I took those with as much gravity as I would her dying words.

The passage read as follows.

“My dearest Cecilia. As you are probably in the midst of your first heat, I just want to say, please don’t turn into Talia. Now yes, you are a primal Beast-Kin, and yes, the heat doesn’t work exactly like you probably expected it to. In our case, myself and yours, it is cause by our hybrid blood. Naturally, the body automatically puts you in heat around males it finds suitable for bearing your children while protecting you in your weakened, pregnant state whilst also making a home for your children. That is not necessarily the case for you, as it wasn’t for me. You’re body's instincts regarding the ideal male are more attuned with your understanding of a powerful male, I.E. a male with suitable wealth and political power. You have no idea how bad it got for me when I first pounced you dad. I still shake when I remember how vigorously he--” Mom

I immediately stop reading to protect my own sanity. So, if what mom said was true, then that would explain why I found Gabriel suitable. He held a station that was hand picked by dad and displayed a degree of dominance over the other council members, most notably dad and Saran.

The two most powerful men in the kingdom…

Why am I getting a bad feeling about this?

I start reading again, jumping a few lines of erotic smut. My mom sometimes acted like that to get a read on people, though she never told me what she was looking for. I probably don’t want to know.

“Now, chances are you’re reading this while still in the early stages of heat, which is the “choosing stage.” You won’t get aroused or anything, but you will get more and more aggressive and naturally have the desire to follow around your chosen partners. This stage will last around a month the first time, though afterwards it quickens up to about a week. The real heat, as you would probably refer to it as, starts at the end of this month. You will feel the desire to start pandering towards you prospective mate’s desires, being quite clingy, in all honesty. This stage lasts around two weeks, every time, though the degree of you’re own desires will depend on your own state, children, age, physical capability… the list goes on. You won’t try and bite off more than you can chew, don’t worry, your body won’t have you hounding down world emperors. Just try and make sure that you don’t have any big plans scheduled. Finally, here is a family recipe that can help skip the heat. However, keep in mind that it isn’t a sure thing, and it only delays the heat, once you run out of time it will hit you like no other. Good luck Cecil.” Mom

Okay… this is bad. It lines up right on the choosing ceremony, and I’m going to be surrounded by powerful people. Wait, it should be fine, I was going after the one I deemed-oh shit my seat seat is right next to the minister of affairs! Fuck! People are going to think I’m shameless, that or--!

My eyes widen, I forgot, High-Beast-Kin have a tradition that regards the heats of other Beast-Kin. And the tradition never took into consideration hybrids because they still keep strong ties to their native homelands, which hold hybrids as slaves from birth. A stupid system, I get it, but that is the way of things. Unless we manage to pass a law in the next week, which could very well cause a revolt due to the low number of hybrid rulers, I could end up as the biggest cock up of the royalty in centuries. I seriously need to cement Royal authority once this is over with, and also get rid of that damn law.

I look over at the description of this mystery drug.

“Two parts water essence with and infusion of blended firepowder... Drop resulting pellet into a bowl of golden Erkin milk.

Potion will result in a natural bottling of all effects of a Primal heat. Effects persist for two days, one if user maintains intimate proximity to worthy mate. Important Note: this potion will only bottle up the heat, once it is over and you still desire to resist the heat. Lock yourself into a tower and perform some indecent acts, you may end up hurting yourself otherwise. Utilize other resistance methods before utilizing the potion, it is meant as a last minute resort.” Mom

The notes weren’t written by mom, and most of the instructions were just jabber to me so I didn’t even bother reading much besides the bare necessities as they seemed. It was obviously written by an alchemist, probably a woman from the obvious attention placed on the writing. No offense to men, girls just seem to be better when it comes to handwriting. I’m no exception.

I sigh, letting the stress take place as it quickly turns into an angry groan. This is why I fucking hate politics and all of these traditionalist shits. Most traditions I can get behind, the ones belonging to the Purebloods greatly so, as they completely forgo race and can be adopted by just about anyone. Their original society was based solely on the personal achievement of the individual, a tribal system very similar to that of the North-Kin of Valaran. There weren’t nobles back in those days, but high chieftains chosen among the tribes who then reported to the kings and high king. Not as much was done back then, but people reported not to laws but to the public good. Rangers back then roved the tribes and made certain that the people did not abuse their freedom and still followed the teachings of the Primordial One and the Rowunes.

That all changed with my great grandfather, though I have to agree that Eria wouldn’t have survived long with the rest of the world looking towards Eria as a land wrought with danger and riches beyond reason, in the form of alchemic goods. Honestly, I just hate the fact that one can’t be righteous and people are free of harm by the very law I’m forced to uphold. Maybe once my power has improved to a greater degree, I’ll be able to become the law, give greater freedoms to the Pact.

I sigh in remorse.

I just want to be a tyrant. To rip the way our nobility holds themselves asunder and take those who deserve to rule up in power. But I have to wait, otherwise I’ll just add myself to the bodies.

I won’t fail Elizabeth, I won’t fail Des’ra, I won’t fail Jor, I won’t fail anyone else. The nobility will burn, the law be damned for protecting them from my wrath. I refuse to become like them, to torture innocents for sick satisfaction. To revel in the pain of those so much weaker than you it is disgusting. If I do, I will be spitting in the face of anyone who ever loved me and died to such tactics, and one should never damn the dead, ‘lest they visit your hell and mock at your screams, as you mocked at the damnation you begged for them.’

I let my expression harden, thank the Primordial that the people in the first ring are all royal guard and those three fiercely loyal, though slightly deranged, servants. I can’t let myself get so eccentric as easily as I just did, otherwise I would be too easily deposed by the nobility.

It just can’t wait to not be Queen.

*******************

Bart POV:

“We’ve arrived!” Guard

With that, everyone on the cart shuts up and the previously terse atmosphere returns, reminding me of what I was thinking of before Shawn and I dispelled it. Okay, chances are it was nothing. It was the first time i’ve had a hallucination, but I did get hit over the head about a month ago by some drunken idiot. Maybe it was that weird tasting yak milk I had the other day? See, lot’s of reasons to have a hallucination. Definitely not a long dead goddess deciding to say fuck it, the arcanum is breaking.

Ah hell, let’s just focus on the job recruitment. It’s a fool's errand to worry about things you’ve no control over or any way to plan against, I learned that little bit pretty quickly in life, nearly went old and grey when I was still twelve. Despite saying early in life, I’m only fifteen, but according to literally everyone I know I’ve acted more adult than some worthless runts that have the gall to call themselves adults.

Heh, I’ll be an adult next year! Then I’ll be able to adopt Shawn and we’ll be real brothers in law, name and trust, blood can go fuck itself for all I care.

The others in the cart file out and Shawn and I leave as well, the boards creaking a little as a Bull-Kin gets up behind us, pushing the two of us to move faster and taking ridiculous strides for a cart. Bull-Kin always find a way to piss me off, as it would seem. Though the same can be said about all of those self important, discourteous, and all around dickish, musclehead freaks. I don’t mind soldiers, they usually are taught discipline, courtesy and the like, but if they act go all primal on me I will stab someone.

A pair of guards lead us from the front and back, security must be tight as hell. The majority of them are still the same old guards I remember, meaning that the huge influx of town guard and mercenaries was birthed from at least the fifth ring guardsmen. Probably everyone after them as well. Why else would they need almost two hundred and fifty Rangers? Two hundred for the walls and the other fifty for random patrol routes. It might seem a bit daunting at first glance of how much area is needed to be covered, but these are the best of the best, among the most battle hardened and capable of the nations warriors, most match up to even Royal Knights.

While I’m thinking that, we are led into a courtyard that looks like it was repurposed from a training grounds. They probably chose this place since it would be too dangerous to take us into the third ring for the ball room, since it’s the fucking third ring, and has a balcony above us that has a rather obvious purpose. I look at some of the others in here, a few guards line the walls and a sizeable number of city-goers stand in the sand filled arena like area. Shawn’s pace falters for an instant, but that’s enough to catch my eye. He’s a second rank in swiftness, despite being fucking thirteen, and none of his movements are misplaced like that. I casually give a glance towards where he was looking and snapped my head back just as quickly, but he still managed to meet my eyes.

WHY THE FUCK DID HE HAVE TO BE HERE!!