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Saying Goodbye
Preparations took a few weeks, but at last everything was ready.
"I wish we could go with you," Alaron said with a a pout. In his mind, his parents were going on a grand and glorious adventure that would be all fun and no work.
"Nothing would make me happier than for you to be able to come, but it's far too dangerous." Aurora kissed the boy on the cheek.
"Mother!" He whined, but secretly he loved the affection.
"Why did the Fates do this to us?" Mairwen wanted to know. The Empress had told them of their birth and the strange Fate that delivered them, but left out the fact that Aurora wasn't the one who gave them life. It pained her to keep secrets from these children she loved so much. Someday she would be able to tell them everything.
"I do not know why the Fates did this, but I will do my best to find out. As soon as I do, I will hurry home to you." The slender woman wrapped th
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Empress of the World Leaving Home
Aurora and Devrim hurried through the darkness of the tunnel, their only light the glow stone that was part of the walls. The Empress wrapped the Guardian's cloak around her tightly as she followed Devrim through the tunnel. She had been wary of using it because Zan was so much taller than her, but Aurora found as it wrapped around her shoulders that it adjusted to her height and build. The pair had placed many items inside the recesses of the cloak before leaving the palace, including money and weapons for protection. The weight of the cloak never changed. As she made her way underground, Aurora wondered what else she would discover about this magical garment. The novelty of adventure pushed her to move quickly, always anticipating the next discovery. When the passage forked to lead inside and outside of the city of Valiant, Devrim paused and looked back at her. While the tunnel leading up inside Valiant was paved with glow-stone, the second passage was dark and unfriendly.
Empress of the World The Inn
Around sunset a storm of late summer rain whipped out of the east, and as a result the company decided to risk a night at an inn. They pressed through the sheets of water to a shelter below a small copse of trees. "You should change." Devrim told Aurora over the sound of the rain. "I can lend you a shirt and trousers.""Why?" Aurora did not understand.Junayd answered her. "There's a small town up ahead with an inn. Four men traveling together will draw less suspicion than three men and a lady. The inn is above a tavern. Drunk men are stupid men," he said with smirk.It made some some sense. While women were free to do as they chose, it wasn't common for them to travel with a bunch of men. People would automatically assume that she had hired them to escort her, and that would raise questions as to her identity. She could enter separately from them and request a room, but two sets of strangers in a tiny town on the same night might be equally curious. Aurora push
Empress of the World She's a Girl!
"Good sir, do you mean to rob us?" Devrim asked carefully. He hoped the words would sink into Jarog's thick, drunken skull."Lay off, Jarog!" someone from Jarog's table called. "Tell them you were joking." Aurora noticed the friend would only confront the large inebriated man from a distance."I would listen to your friend," Junayd said with an easy smile. He, like Nurlan, had his hand at his belt.Jarog realized his error. He squinted hard to clear his vision and laughed. "You men can't take a joke." He laughed again awkwardly then abruptly stopped as no one was laughing with him. Another curiosity struck him. He turned to the figure whose face was shrouded in a dark hood. "What's with your friend there? Can't he talk?"Aurora sat up straight, but sunk her face deeper into the cowl. He could not have seen her face either way, but it couldn't hurt to be safe. Devrim spoke up for her, "Our friend is quiet. Is that a crime?" He was obviously referring to th
Empress of the World Talk Like a Man
"Empress, it's time to go," Devrim called gently. Aurora opened her eyes and saw Devrim smiling softly above her face. "The men asked me to wake you, seeing as how we are, you know, supposed to be married."Aurora sat up and began to brush the hay from her dress. "Of course," she said, a little embarrassed that he had seen her sleeping. The pair had discussed before they left whether they should reveal the truth to their escorts before leaving and decided only to tell them if it became necessary. It would be unfair of them to ask the soldiers to keep their pretend-marriage secret when they returned home, so they opted to carry on as usual. Many political marriages were devoid of love and affection, being purely for business. Everyone in the palace knew the Emperor Consort and Empress had separate quarters and never visited each other in them (for of course no one knew about their secret passage). As there were already two royal heirs, Devrim's duty was complete. So the soldie
Empress of the World Call a Doctor!
"Berry!" Aurora cried out as she ran over to her horse. The beautiful black mare lay on the ground shaking violently. "What's wrong with her?" She asked Devrim frantically.Devrim came alongside the horse as well and removed the loosened saddle. "I don't know. Her breathing is very labored.""We need help!" The Empress told Devrim, though it was obvious. Neither of them knew anything about horses other than how to ride. Nurlan and Junayd, having heard Aurora's scream, came running into view. "Berry is in trouble! We need physician," she told them quickly.The two soldiers didn't hesitate. Nurlan jumped onto his own horse, grabbed Junayd's horse by the reigns, and took off for the closest town. Junayd scanned the ground, running over to nearby bushes. He pulled a leafy green plant out of the ground and brought it to Aurora. "Get her to chew on this. It will calm her." The girl accepted the plant and coaxed Berry into a chewing it. After many minutes, Berrys breat
Empress of the World What Now?
"I don't have enough information, Your Majesty," Nurlan responded without looking the Empress in the eye."It was a simple question. Do I do a good impression of a man's voice?" Aurora prodded."Perhaps with more practice…""Ha!" Devrim felt vindicated.Aurora turned her nose up at the three men in front of her. "You three have no culture," she said indignantly, though not even she was sure what she meant."So this man, the one who tried to kill you…he knew who you were and where you would be. How?" Junayd tried to change the subject. The other two men jumped on this new line of thought quickly."If someone knew we were headed north, this road is a logical place we would cross." Devrim mused."And four adults on horseback that aren't merchants or soldiers would be relatively easy to spot." Nurlan added.
Empress of the World Negotiations
After a night in the barn of a generous farmer—for they thought a night in the open would be too risky—and another early morning, the group made it to the city of Obsequence. It was so named by one of Aurora's ancestors who conquered it. The town at the time not only didn't fight the invading force, but actually welcomed them, throwing out their own terrible leader to be captured. Now it was a bustling city full of traders and merchants. Junayd went ahead of them and bought new clothing for them to wear. The style here was in general less flashy than the capital, and the soldier returned with simple garments to help them fit in."What's this?" Aurora held up a long piece of light brown cloth."It's for your head. Some men and women wrap them around their hair and face to block the sun. I figured it would hide your appearance, Your Majesty." Junayd said. Aurora had seen nobility from the desert region southwest of Valiant visit occasionally, so she had an id
Empress of the World Emotions
Gandr had been looking at the shiny baubles at a jewelry stall for quite some time. He didn't like humans at all, but they did have some pretty things. He could dig up stones and gems, but Gnomes lacked the skills or patience to cultivate them into works of art such as these.Gandr was also trying to keep his mind off the events of the day before. He hated what Cafer had ordered him to do. He was a highly trained soldier. In a real battle, Gandr had no trouble removing an enemy's head, but putting a poison needle in an unsuspecting girl was not the same. When he had danced with Aurora weeks before, he had sensed her feelings through his magic. The gnome had experienced her joy and fear, and it had affected him. 'Blasted humans and their feelings' he thought bitterly. But it didn't matter now; the Empress was dead by his hand, and the best distraction would be buying as many shiny things as his purse would allow."How much?" A sweet voice beh
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