Chapter 65

Shocking the World

"You'll find the most honest in the pools of excrement and the most corrupt in the castles of gold."

Proverbs

It was underway, Noah realized. The city, the architectural marvel, was brimming with barely sheathed anxiety and nervousness. There was little in the way of usual signs of entertainment, be it the singing bards, the open theaters, or even the taverns; everybody looked to be on the verge of bending over and breaking. They were anticipating – the names, those who would be called out to venture. And he knew… right then and there – she had to come forward.

The announcement that Princess Olivia would hold a public speech at the Royal Square just outside the Royal Grounds rippled throughout the city like a tsunami. People dropped whatever they were doing and headed over, speeding over one another. In no time, the square was crowded beyond its capacity, people spilling and bleeding over into the streets and alleyways, and even the roofs of the surrounding buildings. Far upfront, a line of guards settled in front of a slightly elevated, quickly-made wooden platform.

Watching from the walls surrounding the Royal Grounds, Evon and Prestol, the youngest and the oldest Princes, appeared curious. It was unlike Olivia to make a public spectacle of something, and especially to use the Royal Decree to announce a public speech for the masses. As a matter of fact, this was the first time it happened.

"… what do you think sis is up to?" Prestol asked; he was a tall man, his youthful disposition still wholly present in his early thirties, a pair of blue eyes glistening underneath the golden shine of the sun, but less so than his bald head.

“Who knows?” Evon shrugged. “Perhaps she’ll try and encourage the people to volunteer for the departure.”

Right around then, a man stepped up to the platform, the Royal Announcer. His voice quickly broke out throughout the crowds, announcing the Princess’s arrival. The masses broke out in cheers and hails, kneeling respectfully as Olivia appeared on the stage, walking up to the front. There was a trace of uncertainty in her expression, but her eyes reveled in determination. He surprised her, asking her to do this – but it was necessary. She knew it was necessary. It would become the building block for her future, not just the near one, but also the distant one.

When the whole city was sleeping in the den of anticipation, and all those in power had shut their lips tight, the one who steps forward and speaks the words of courage will be seen as the hero. She, however, had to do it all by herself – he was not here, with her, to whisper the words she ought to say. But he didn't need to be. She knew what she had to say, what the people wanted and needed to hear. And the exact words to use to win their hearts over. This move might make her siblings warier of her, but it was inevitable, with what she was wanting to do. This was the sort of opportunity that shouldn't be missed.

"My dear peoples," she opened up strongly, her voice firm and determined, reaching the majority of the souls listening. "I express my gratitude for you gathering so quickly, and more gratitude for upholding such strong Faith in these troubling times. The sky is red, but the Light is impervious. We have faced the Fire before, and we have burned – but we have never turned to ashes. We've survived, as we shall to this time as well."

“…”

“I know you fear them – I fear them, too,” she said, reciting Noah’s guidance inside her mind; relate to them, make them believe you share the same anxieties they do. Make them feel closer to you, as though you could be friends given different circumstances. “The beasts that come crawling from the dark, wanting to scorch our holy lands. We won’t let them. Our forefathers, and their forefathers, have safeguarded these realms since the time immemorial, from the fire and otherwise, and these lands are built on their lasting sacrifices. In their honor,” she said, taking a deep breath and preparing to speak out the crux of it all. “In Light’s honor, in the honor of all of you and all of me, I declare to follow in their steps.”

“…” the world turned silent for a moment, frowning and confused.

“With the coming of the dawn two days from now,” she added. “I will depart for the Brightfloods, for the Brightfort, and for the Silent Crossing and beyond. I will take what little Light I was afforded by its Grace and use it to defend my home, to defend our home, no matter the cost. Whoever has the heart of mine, and the will to defend the lands of our families from the invaders, I hope you will join me on that day and march. I can neither guarantee your safety nor our victory, but I do promise to shed the last drop of blood this feeble body of mine has to do all in my power to make that reality happen. Thank you… thank you for coming here and listening to this foolish Princess. Please, consider my words, but do not feel forced – do not abandon your loved ones just because others are doing it. I swear in my name no one shall be allowed to jeer and mock you for your choice. Thank you…”

She bowed deeply toward the stunned and beyond silent crowd, turning around and departing. Her heart was beating madly, her lips barely containing the grin that wanted to break out. It was there. In their eyes, she saw it. The fire. The awe. Respect. The surprise and shock. Just there, because of the few simple words, she had embedded herself in their minds and hearts until the end of their days. Perhaps, decades from now, a great deal of them will be telling this story to their grandchildren, of the day where a small, quiet Princess stepped out and declared she would throw herself into the fire to defend the Kingdom.

These emotions swelled from deep inside of her, but she contained them. She couldn’t let them get the better of her; instead, she placed on the face of melancholy and determination, especially so because she saw two figures standing in the distance, waiting for her – the Eldest and the Youngest brother. It was inevitable, she knew, and she immediately steeled her heart to repel their probing.

“Dear Brothers,” she approached them with a smile and bowed courteously. “I did not know you two were here.”

“… what was that about, Ollie?” Prestol asked immediately, skipping past the pleasantries, his expression doubtful and even somewhat angry.

“Show some respect to your sister,” Evon chided, forcing the Prince’s head and back down into a bow. “She’s not some commoner you picked up on the street.”

“… i-it’s fine, Eldest Brother,” Olivia turned her voice somewhat panicky, waving her hands in front of her as though uncertain as to what to do. “Please, don’t fight.”

“We’re not fighting, Ollie,” Evon said, smiling faintly and letting go. “But regardless of the way he asked, he did ask a good question.”

"…" mix lies and truths, Noah's voice echoed inside her mind. Just telling lies will create a web you'll be unable to spin. Give them what they want to hear and what they expect to hear and what they would have never guessed. Rather than a reason, give them a story. "When I heard the Bells," she said, lowering her voice and curling her fingers into a fist. "I read up on it. On the Fire. On the heroic figures who stepped up front and saved the world."

“… heh, and you want to be like them?” Prestol mocked.

“But no record that I could find ever spoke of those before them,” Olivia glanced at Prestol, giving him a rare glare that surprised both men. “The hundreds, and the thousands that died, barring the fire, until the heroes finally decided it was enough. So many nameless, ashen bones cradle these lands… and nobody ever speaks of them, as though we are mute. I don’t want to be a hero, Brother. I am far from having the capacity to be a hero. But… I want to be there with them. Stand by them as they throw themselves in the fire. I want them to know that, at least, someone acknowledged their sacrifice, whatever little meaning that has. I want to be there to see their faces, to hear their voices, and to share-in with their hearts.”

“… you will die, Ollie,” Evon frowned, speaking in a harsh tone. Yet, unlike before where she would defer to him almost immediately, she glanced at him with determination.

“Maybe,” she said. “But why am I the only one being warned and told it is not a good idea? Why am I the only one being given a choice? It is their land as much as it is ours, Eldest Brother. We can’t tell them to go defend it when it suits us, and tell them it belongs to us every other time.”

“You dumb girl!” Prestol exclaimed angrily. “Do you even hear yourself?!! I don’t care that you want to go and die with dirt-infested nobodies, but you also want to tarnish the name of our Family?! Wait until the Father hears of this!”

“… Father already knows,” Olivia said, turning to her side, ready to walk away. “Father always knows, Brother. None of us do anything without his approval, explicit or otherwise.”

Leaving the words behind, she headed toward her mansion. Her heart was still beating quickly, but for very different reasons; in part because of shame and in part because of fear. She had never spoken to her Brothers like that. She was always silent and compliant. Their relationship, she knew, would never be the same. Whether they bought her lies and half-truths or not, they would look at her differently and treat her differently. She would no longer have open doors to them, even if she never used them when she had them. It was scary, yes… but also invigorating. She felt freed, however little, as though one chain out of dozens that were binding her snapped, giving her just a little bit more room to move and breathe. It was a step… but a remarkable one, she knew, because, for the first time in her life, she did something of her own will, something for herself rather than others. Something that will make today the most memorable one in the past twenty-six years of her life.

**

Noah stared at the figure sitting across from him on the desk, sipping wine casually, examining Asandra who stood to the side, frozen in shock, horror, and fear. Though Noah expected Jovyer to come, he was still rather quick about it. So quick that he didn’t even have a chance to send Asandra away. He glanced at her helplessly and apologetically; after all, no matter her disposition, her mindset was deeply rooted in the world’s ideals – the King was… everything. Father of everyone. A figure beyond the skies themselves.

“… she’s a bit young for you, don’t you think?” Jovyer spoke, at last, turning his attention back to Noah.

“For a bed? Yes,” Noah nodded. “For a guard? I wouldn’t say so.”

“Ollie is even younger.”

“… I truly wonder just what kind of a man do you see me as,” Noah smiled bitterly, taking a sip of wine as well. “Or rather, what kind of a beast do you think I am.”

“… this was a sly move, Outlander,” Jovyer said as Noah’s attention drifted to Asandra. Ah… the poor girl had another bombshell dropped on her, confirming her greatest doubts. She would probably take quite a few days to recover, Noah mused. “And, honestly, the one I wasn’t expecting.”

“I’d be in deep shit if people could expect what I want to do,” Noah said. If anyone in the Kingdom knew that he was so casually chatting and drinking with the King, he wondered what their reactions would be? “But you have to give it to me… it’s pretty good.”

“… this will change the landscape completely,” Jovyer sighed. “I thought you’d be more patient.”

“I was going to,” Noah nodded. “But I wouldn’t be me if I let an opportunity like this slip through my fingers.”

“They’ll become wary of her,” Jovyer added. "Though, I suppose, that works well enough for you."

“What they’ll become wary of is what they see,” Noah added. “Not necessarily what is there.”

“… there’s more to it?” Jovyer arched his brows, questioning.

“I do have to say, you’re awfully free for a man who ought to be pulling an army together as his Kingdom is on the brink of war.”

“… you overestimate how much people care for what I do, Outlander,” Jovyer chuckled bitterly. “Army will be gathered, and people will march – perhaps far, far, far more than we would have ever expected… just because of a simple stunt.”

“…”

“… tell me the truth,” Jovyer looked into those blue, innocent-seeming eyes. “What were you doing before coming here?”

"…" Noah replied to the gaze, taking a sip of wine and smiling. "Creating worlds, in a sense."

“… in the sense you’re doing right now?”

“No,” Noah shrugged. “I’m afraid there are a couple of really soft-hearted people around me imploring I don’t do things the most efficient way.”

“… what would be the most efficient way?” Jovyer asked curiously and fearfully, understanding the Dacent’s implications well-enough.

"… there are hundreds of ways colored in cruelty to usurp the world, Your Majesty," Noah said. "Start dumping corpses in places they'll be found, spread rumors that there's a ring of Nobles involved in human sacrifice and that the Royal family wants to do a massive blood sacrifice to corrupt the Wheel."

“…” both Jovyer’s and Asandra’s eyes widened into saucers as they listened on.

“Completely kill off the entire Royal family, look for who gets ahead in the power vacuum that follows, and join them. Make a deal with the outside forces, exhaust the military supplies of the Kingdom, and take charge. Start slowly and build up the powers, installing my own people in key positions of power by any means necessary – Commanders, treasures, administrators, anyone with even the slightest sway.”

“…”

“These ways are usually the most efficient,” Noah added, ignoring their horrified looks. “But also the riskiest. One, just one slip-up, and the whole thing goes up in flames. In the chaos that would follow each, it would be quite easy to lose control of the situation as unknown variables could always pop out of nowhere. And… beyond all…" he set down the cup, meeting Jovyer’s gaze. “I’m just not that kind of a man, I’m afraid, Your Majesty. I am cruel, and I have no problems with removing the thorns in my eyes… but the thought of killing hundreds of innocent people for such cruel reasons… sickens me. If I had been that sort of a man, there’d be far more dead, and far less of a chance of me still being alive. And, as it turns out, I, unfortunately, very much like being alive…”