Fatima X

PA 1 – April

“One… two… three… and… hurf!” Fatima huffed, lifting up her end of a freshly cut log. At the other end, a buff woman twice her height stared at her trembling form dubiously, their end of the log being held up with relative ease.

“Are you sure you’re strong enough to handle that?”

“Don’t… don’t worry!” Fatima wheezed, adjusting her grip on the log. Slowly, they began marching their way back to the harbor. “I’m… I’m a Queen! It’s… only right… that I help… where I can!”

The two of them were one of several groups working on collecting supplies for the city. With the main threat long gone, Xian had sent out his soldiers to gather up anything the city needed to recover after the raid. Fatima, not having anything better to do, decided to join in, helping out the group tasked with moving the freshly cut trees back to the city.

“I get that, my lady, and I’m grateful for it, but it’s just… there are other things you can do to help out, you know? Less physically demanding things.”

“Are you… are you saying I’m weak?”

“…If I say yes, will that make you give this up?”

“Like… Hell!”

“You know, when Xian told me I’d find you here, I sort of expected you to be

“Avery!” Fatima yelped gleefully, spinning to greet her fellow Queen. Unfortunately, her sudden movements caused her to lose her grip, and the log fell to the ground, crushing her feet in the process.

“Queen Fatima!?” the soldier across from her yelped, yanking the log off her feet as quickly as she could. “Are you alright!?”

Fatima hunched over, grabbing her feet tightly as she did. For a moment she could do nothing but slowly open and close her mouth, eyes squeezed shut as she gasped in pain.

A moment later the pain was gone, but somehow it still… it lingered, like when you stubbed your toe.

“Er, sorry about that,” Avery coughed awkwardly, patting her back sympathetically. “Are you good? Do you need another minute?”

“…I think I’m good,” Fatima rasped, slowly forcing herself to her feet.

“Right, uh, here, I’ll take over for you. Why don’t you just follow behind us?” Avery offered.

Fatima nodded, blinking the tears from her eyes.

The walk back to the harbor was quiet, the soldier and Avery carrying the log back much more easily and quickly than before.

Fatima wasn’t jealous. Really.

But soon enough they’d returned to the harbor, the log getting placed down alongside a dozen others. They were set down in the shadow of the city walls, alongside sticks and stones and all other types of building materials that would be used to help rebuild the harbor.

“I’ll be needing to borrow Fatima for a bit,” Avery told the soldier after they’d set down their load. “Will you be alright on your own, or should I wait for you two to finish.”

“Ah, no, my lady,” the soldier shook her head. “Take all the time you need. I can just go find another person to help me.”

“Good, then see that you do,” Avery nodded back, the stern look on her face melting into something softer. “You’re doing good work out there, helping to rebuild your community. Better than most. So keep up the good work, soldier, and make your people proud.”

“Yes, Queen Avery!” the soldier saluted, a small, pleased smile on her face. With that, she left to return to her duties, leaving the two queens alone.

“…Hey, were you in the army back on Earth?” Fatima asked curiously, the phantom pain in her foot long gone. “Cause you kind of give off that kinda energy.”

“Unfortunately,” Avery sighed. “But only for a few months before I dropped out.”

“You can do that?”

“Hm. I just ended up hating it too much to continue with it. Reminded me too much of Catholic school, I think.”

“Ah, really? You know, I’ve always heard that—huh? What’s that sound?”

Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump.

The beating of a drum echoed across the harbor, and with it the sound of all conversation ceased. In but a moment, everyone working on the docks froze, their heads turning as one to stare up at the watchtowers. Then, a moment later, they turned to stare out over the water.

And there, over the horizon, foreign ships appeared.

Suddenly, all work stopped and everyone turned, rushing back towards the walls. Within an instant every soldier working on the harbor dropped what they were doing, pulling out their weapons and organizing swiftly into a defensive position. They quickly ushered the few civilians who’d remained outside back into the walls, while Fatima and Avery were pulled behind the other soldiers, a wall of spears set between them and the arriving fleet.

“Oh my,” Fatima murmured, impressed. “How efficient.

“Our inattention failed us once,” the soldier in front of her growled. “But never again.”

Around them the other soldiers murmured in agreement.

A few minutes later Xian arrived, practically running out the gates. Stumbling to a stop next to them, he turned to the soldier closest to him and snapped out, “What’s going on, are there more pirates!?”

“Sir! Unknown ships arriving on horizon!” the soldier reported, turning and giving his king a quick bow. “We’re unsure as to their intentions, but we’ve fallen back like we practiced. Should we disengage?”

“No, no,” Xian shook his head, smoothing out the wrinkles in his shirt. “No. Stay like this. I—and I alone—will step forward to treat with them. This time, if they turn out to be hostile… well, it doesn’t matter. Hold your position here until I give you the all-clear, got it?”

“What about us, Xian?” Fatima asked, raising her hand politely. “Surely you don’t expect us to stand back here while you put yourself in danger like that?”

He paused, turning to stare at her with a blank face. “…You are foreign dignitaries in my court. Foreign royalty, no less. To put either of you in danger would be a failure on my part as a ruler, and I refuse to allow either of you to come to harm.”

“Tough shit,” Avery scoffed, pushing her way out from behind the crowd of soldiers. She stepped in front of his, staring him dead in the eye. “I am a Queen, not some petty politician who needs to be coddled and pacified every time even the slightest thing goes wrong. I’m your ally—your equal—and that means I’ll stand beside you no matter what. Got it?”

Xian gave her a long look, before finally sighing tiredly. “…Very well. I suppose I have no choice in this.”

“Damn straight you don’t.”

Xian sighed once more, before turning to look at his other ally. “Well, what about you, Fati—wait where did she—”

“C’mon you two!” Fatima waved them over from where she stood, all the way down at the end of the harbor. “Those ships are almost here already!”

“…My opinion on this never really mattered, did it?” Xian slumped, running a hand over his face. Avery merely shook her head quietly, marching down to stand next to her fellow Queen.

“About time you two got here,” Fatima gave the other two God-Kings a small smile as they stepped beside her. “That fleet’s almost here.”

“I see it,” Avery hummed, narrowing her eyes as she stared at it. “That’s, what, eight, nine, ten ships? More? There’s no way these people are coming here peacefully.”

“Yeah, especially not with who’s leading it.”

“Wait, you know who this is!?” Xian turned to Fatima incredulously. “How!?”

“Huh? Don’t you recognize him, Xian?” she asked, turning to point to the ship at the head of the fleet. There was a man sitting at the front, and as it got closer, it became easy to make out his features. It was a tanned, muscular man, his arms crossed over his shirtless chest, showing off a spiraling tattoo covering the right side of his body. On his lap sat a trident, and resting atop a mop of long dark hair was a crown of shark teeth.

For leading the fleet was the King of the Sea, God-King Enzo.

--

The wait for the foreign boats to arrive seemed to stretch into eternity, though she knew that it had really only been about ten minutes. The arrival of the small fleet itself came with surprisingly little fanfare, with the boats quietly floating into port. The one at the head, carrying the God-King, knocked against the dock with a loud ‘THUNK,’ Fatima’s nerves causing her to jump slightly at the sound.

Soon all of the boats were floating in port and, showing that the King had at least some courtesy, his sailors stayed in their ships, only their King stepping onto the docks.

“King Enzo,” she greeted him with a polite nod, not letting any of her wariness show. It was only the comforting presence of Avery behind her, reminding her that she still had some sort of protection, which allowed her to stand tall and unbothered before him. “To what do we owe you the honor of this visit? I don’t believe you’d sent word beforehand, had you?”

“Ah, my apologies my fellow Kings and Queens,” the smile he gave them was smug, and she felt her hackles rise at the sight. Was this man… was he here to gloat? “I had meant to send somebody ahead to announce my arrival, but they were grounded by that storm that came in last night. By the time I realized he hadn’t made it, I was practically already here anyways and didn’t see the point in wasting our times like that.”

“Sure you did,” Xian scoffed, and despite her own annoyance with the other King she gave Xian a warning look out of the corner of his eye. Normally he’d be one of her more polite allies, but with how things were now she didn’t believe he’d be able to control himself if things got too heated. “That is why you came with an army, after all. What better way to announce your arrival?”

“Please, don’t be so quick to dismiss us as enemies!” Enzo chuckled, thankfully not seeming to have taken offense. “Do I look like I’ve come here prepared for war, hm? I’ve actually come to bring you an offer.”

“An offer?” Fatima spoke up before Xian could refute him, raising an eyebrow dubiously. “What kind of offer? If this is about trade, then I’m sure the local merchants would be happy to strike a deal with you, though I would caution you that due to recent… problems our stocks are no longer as large as they once were.”

“No, not about trade,” he shook his head. “At least, not directly. However, my offer is rather important—in fact, should you accept, it would dramatically change the way your Kingdoms will interact with the world from this moment forth. As such, it is not something I’d speak to you about with prying ears. So I’d request that the four of us—and any other monarchs you wish to allow into this discussion—meet inside your city, in a place where nobody is around to hear what we have to say.”

Xian looked like he wanted to refuse, but a surreptitious pinch from Fatima made him reluctantly agree.

“You may enter Nancheng,” Xian conceded with narrowed eyes. “However, only you alone may enter. I will not allow a foreign army into my home.”

“And let you take me prisoner instead?” Enzo tsked, shaking his head. “You do not trust me at all, and yet you expect me to trust you? How is that fair?”

“I understand your mistrust, oh King of the Sea,” Fatima tried to appease him. “We may not be enemies, but we are not allies, either. Mutual mistrust is understandable, wouldn’t you agree? However, perhaps a compromise can be made. You see, due to our recent problems, one of the bunkhouses usually used for foreign merchants is currently empty. If you wish for privacy to discuss your offer with us, perhaps that would work?”

Enzo raised a hand to his chin, thinking it over. “…I suppose I could let you cajole me. Very well, Queen Fatima, I accept this compromise of yours.”

“Excellent!” Fatima smiled, her hands clapped her hands together. “If you would follow us…?”

“In a moment, Queen Fatima,” the other King held up a hand in a ‘hold on’ gesture. “What of my people? They’ve been confined to their ships for almost a day, now. Surely you don’t expect them to continue to sit there, cramped and uncomfortable when land is but a single step away?”

“Then perhaps you should have brought less people,” Xian scoffed. “…I will not allow your whole army to disembark. However, in the interest of compromise, I will allow less than ten of them to step out onto the docks at any given time. But they are to stay on the docks themselves, understood? If they come any closer to the city, my soldiers will take that as a sign of aggression and attack.”

Enzo narrowed his eyes, but agreed with a scoff. “Fine, fine. I do not like it, but I’m willing to indulge your paranoia. For today, at least.”

“We thank you, King of the Sea,” Fatima nodded at him, taking note of the way his chest puffed out slightly whenever she used his title.

An arrogant man he was. And arrogant men were the ones most easily manipulated.

--

They settled into the empty bunkhouse easily, sitting around a small table sat next to a cold fireplace—barring Avery, who decided to remain standing next to the door. Normally used by merchants and travelers to haggle deals and play games, today it would be used by their immortal leaders for… the same reasons, really.

There was something to be said here about perspective, though Fatima wasn’t sure what.

“What was it you wished to offer us, King Enzo?” Fatima asked curiously from where she sat across from him. “When you arrived here with so many men we had thought it was an act of aggression. And yet, you’ve been surprisingly cooperative. And what you said back on the docks… is this offer of yours truly so big a deal?”

“Indeed,” Enzo nodded, leaning against the table. “You see, I’ve recently heard that after a violent raid by unknown pirates, your sole fleet was destroyed—”

Xian twitched.

“—and that the city was sacked—”

“It was not sacked,” Xian cut in angrily. “They never even made it close to the walls.”

“Really? My apologies, then. It appears the attack wasn’t quite as damaging as I thought. However, I noticed that you didn’t say anything about the fleet being destroyed.”

Xian glared at the other King silently, but did not refute. Fatima stepped on his foot, trying to remind him to be more polite.

“As I thought. In that case, my offer will be most helpful indeed,” Enzo smirked at them. “You see, I happen to have a fleet myself. The largest and most powerful one of any Kingdom on the coast. A fleet more than capable of protecting your city while you recover from that cowardly attack.”

“You… want to sell us some of your ships?” Fatima asked slowly, trying to figure out what he was getting at. Nobody would just offer their greatest advantage to a rival. “Or do you want us to give you something, in return for protecting our coasts?”

“No, nothing so simple. I wish for something greater. Something more… permanent.”

He gave them a wide, self-assured grin, spreading his arms before them.

“I, King Enzo of the Kingdom of the Sea, wish to join your alliance.”

9,874 God-Kings Remain